Production Design and Technology Emphasis

The B.A. in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in Production Design and Technology allows students to study broadly in all areas of design and production or specialize in design of scenery, costumes, fighting, and sound. Technology specialization includes technical direction, costume technology, scenic art, props technology (artisanship), and stage management.

theatre set

The emphasis in Production Design and Technology focuses on training young designers and craftspeople for the entertainment industry. Our goal is to graduate critically engaged and technologically sophisticated students in the fields of scenery, costumes, lighting, sound and stage management. The pathway begins with a core group of classes that emphasize the fundamentals of all design disciplines, and provides a foundation for a career, not only in theatre, but in related fields such as film, television, amusement park design, and concert tours.

Dreamer Project Fall 2019Theatre productions are supported with large well-equipped shop spaces. The scenery shop includes a steel working area, large assembly space, and dedicated paint shop with movable paint frame. The costume shop has lots of natural light, industrial & domestic sewing machines & sergers, cutting tables, a laundry room, and extensive costume research library and four vast costume store rooms.

We have state of the art fighting and sound equipment including LED fixtures, moving lights and a Constellation sound system. Students also have the ability to learn AutoCAD for Performing Arts on new high-performance laptops, and create models and craft projects in a brand-new shared maker space with a laser cutter, 3-D printer, drawing and drafting tables, spray booth and work sinks.

Courses in Support of the Design and Technical Theatre Pathway

Required Major Courses

  • TA 51A: Scenery & Props for the Performing Arts (1 unit)
  • TA 51B: Costume for the Performing Arts (1 unit)
  • TA 51C: Lighting & Sound for the Performing Arts (1 unit)
  • TA 55: Intro to Design for Performing Arts (3 units)
  • TA 153: Costume Design or TA 154: Scenic Design (3 units ea.)
  • TA 191: Activity Projects in Theatre Production

Degree Completion Options

  • TA 64: Make-Up for Performing Arts (3 units)
  • TA 91: Scenic Painting and Props (3 units)
  • TA 151: Lighting for Performing Arts (3 units)
  • TA 153 or TA 154 (3 units) - whichever class you do not take above
  • TA 158: Model Making & Drafting for Film & Theatre (3 units)
  • TA 161: Theatre Design Topics (3 units)
  • TA 168: Stage Management (3 units)