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Benefits of the ProjectInstalling an efficient stagecraft system will enhance our ability to produce stellar work at Steppenwolf and, in broader terms, will reap benefits for audiences as well as members of the theater community. With this system, we will be able to affordably generate a wider variety of scenic effects for each production, which will offer designers more freedom in creating their work. This system will also allow technicians access to a user-friendly operating system for executing scenic effects, thereby providing new and expanded job skills for technicians. Additionally, by introducing and refining this process, we will offer a model for other theaters and designers across the country. With numerous theater professionals creating quality work, audiences will benefit from the consistent high caliber theatrical experiences offered by theaters nationally. As a leading cultural institution with an ambitious artistic program, Steppenwolf is in a strong position to develop and test this automated control system. Throughout our 25-year history, we have continually stretched our resources in pursuit of our artistic vision, including building a theater complex on the Northside of Chicago that contains facilities appropriate to the project. Our season offers a wide variety and number of productions, which will provide opportunities to test the adaptability of the system while confirming that the technology can unobtrusively integrate into the artistic process. Because our artistic and technical staffs are already familiar with and adept at the traditional mechanical design and implementation details for the range of scenic effects this technology would ultimately control, access to this technology will serve as a creative catalyst. Additionally, Steppenwolf has the resources to acquire the necessary existing industrial equipment, and the personnel to devote production time to the process of developing and adapting the system for use in performance. All of these aspects combine to provide an opportunity for this project to create a model of an efficient operating system for future use in our productions and in productions in theaters across the country. The technical aspects of stagecraft are necessary to support the creative choices of a team of theater artists, and in fact this makes the discipline essential to the operation of a producing organization such as a theater company. While resources dedicated to various facets of technical production can certainly be applied to make lively spectacle on stage, a more elegant choice, especially for a performer-centered company like Steppenwolf, is to put the resources toward less visible but inherently supportive technology.
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© Fritz Schwentker -- 26 August 2004 |
