sightlines.usitt.org: Tayneshia Jefferson, an accomplished stage manager and newly elected member of the USITT Board of Directors, died suddenly of a brain aneurysm on July 31 in her native Houston, Texas. She was 41.
Tayneshia, known to friends as "Tay" or "T," had 20 years' experience in production management for such companies as Austin's Zachary Scott Theatre Center, Utah Festival Opera, Houston Ebony Opera Guild, and Grammy-nominated chamber chorus Conspirare.
7 comments:
'Raucous sense of humor'. I think that they just forgot to mention that she also had a raucous, echoing, infectious laugh!
This made me smile. Nice write up about Tayneshia with a good balance of her personal and professional achievements. She made such an impact on my life and other students at CMU in one year and the third floor in Purnell is just not the same. A wonderful woman who lead a great life.
This was an excellent article about Tayneshia, and the interview from last year was also very funny. She was great to see around the halls, she knew who I was even though I hadn't actually had her for a class, and there are very few people like that. She also came around to our projects and made some nice comments on them which made you feel happy with your work, and realize where you could do more. She will be sorely missed.
This article represented Tayneshia very well. It showcased her since of humor, professionalism, and sparkling personality. I didn't know Tayneshia well but when ever i passed her or had brief conversation she was always very warm and welcoming. We always reminisced about what it was like to live in Texas and we always found it very strange that we didn't know most of the same people, the theater world in Texas is pretty small. It is a tragedy that she had to leave so soon. But they always say the good die young.
This article makes me so sad. As Alex said, It captures Tayneshia very well, and reminds us all how much she'll be missed. I didn't know her terribly well, but after a couple really wonderful conversations at the end of last year, I realized just how amazing she was. She could always make anyone smile, she gave great advice, and she was always willing to listen. I cannot express how much emptier the building seems without her. She will never be forgotten.
I remember first reading this article a couple of weeks ago and really appreciating this lovely tribute to Tayneshia. I was fortunate enough to be a part of the Stage Management Mentoring Project with Tayneshia during the USITT conference in Milwaukee earlier this year. It was so amazing to be able to meet her friends and current and former colleagues from all over the country. That week was when it became clear to me just how much of an impact Tayneshia had made on the personal and professional lives of so many people in our industry. I will never forget the night when she introduced me to all of her friends and was so excited that we were all in one place that she had to take a picture of all of us together. Tayneshia's involvement with USITT has really inspired me and I hope to continue my involvement with the organization, this year and beyond, in her honor.
We must face the truth, this article does a decent job at attempting to describe Tayneshia; but the truth is no mere words can capture who Tayneshia was and how much she meant to all of us. She was no ordinary professor or mentor, she was a friend. I will never forget the short time I got to know her and learn from her. She is dearly missed.
As a student and someone who was deeply influenced by Tayneshia's wisdom and friendship, I thought this article was well written and true. This article also reminded me how we in theatre are such a collective, and how far our connections with one another can extend to. Seeing so many people coming together via social media and seeing how many people's lives were affected by such an amazing woman, really allows me to take pride in my craft and my field in not just the work I do, but the people I work with.
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