The American Society of Theatre Consultants (ASTC) named the newly redeveloped internship program for a beloved and recently deceased member, Jim Read, FASTC.  Now titled the Jim Read, FASTC Memorial Internship Program, it pairs a high school theatre student with an ASTC member to learn more about career paths in our industry.

The 2023 participant was Alyssa Gil-Pujols from Fordham High School for the Arts in the Bronx, NY.  Her mentor was Jerad Schomer, ASTC.  Alyssa graduated in 2023 and specialized in sound design while in high school.  After spending time with Jerad during the end of 2022 and early 2023 learning about the role of a theatre consultant, she prepared a project considering the potential renovation of the Theodore Roosevelt Educational Campus (TREC) auditorium.  She presented her project to the members of ASTC during their spring business meeting at USITT in St. Louis.

Alyssa started her presentation showing members the existing conditions of the TREC auditorium, which seats 800 people.  She described all of the issues she experienced during her time there, ranging from technical problems to how the audience arrangement did not promote intimacy with the performers.  Working with Schomer, she looked at comparable theatres and discussed what makes those spaces more effective than the one she had been working in.  She spent a lot of time thinking about the audience’s experience, like every theatre consultant.  Her improvements included an extended stage apron for a larger playing area closer to the audience.  She studied two options for seating sightlines and explained the pros and cons of each.

Alyssa clearly learned a lot in her time working with Schomer. Not long after her presentation to ASTC, Alyssa won the 2023 Pat MacKay Diversity in Design Scholarship (Sound) from TSDCA and USITT.  Alyssa is attending Rider University.

Interview by Live Design: https://www.livedesignonline.com/news/diversity-design-qa-scholarships-alyssa-gil-pujols

USITT, 2023 Pat MacKay Diversity In Design Scholarship Recipients Announcement: https://www.usitt.org/news/2023-pat-mackay-diversity-design-scholarship-recipients-announced

By Paul Sanow, ASTC