sightlines.usitt.org: Costume designer Lauren Gaston, a second-year MFA candidate at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, is the recipient of the 2013 USITT Student International Travel Grant. She will receive $1,000 to help her travel to Hong Kong this fall to study Cantonese Opera design.
Lauren plans to spend a month at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts assisting with future productions, seeing performances, and "immersing myself in the culture," she wrote in her application.
5 comments:
I think this is a great opportunity but honestly 1000 dollars to go to Hong Kong is not that much. I understand that it is to "help" with expenses but I feel if she is such an up and coming designer that should be part of the contract. I think to already have designed so many shows at this age is great but I still find it strange expenses aren't covered. I think an internship doesn't need to be paid but should have expenses covered.
I think this program/award is really good opportunity, but I agree with Alex how this program is "helping" with expenses because 1000 dollars are not enough. However, by this award, she would get more things than anybody would and she is also offered a housing at Hongkong. It sounds amazing chance to go Asia to learn about completely different styles of opera. Looking at Lauren's activities, I could imagine how hard and professional she worked that she was qualified to be the recipient. I thought she was very fortunate to be working in four different continents that would definitely enlarge her skill and way of thinking. I hope that one day, I could study abroad and enlarge my experience and thinking in a different way.
I hope I one day get the chance to design on another continent. As the student notes, seeing through the eyes of another culture must have some sort of impact on one's designs. I think adding elements of design as procured through other cultures would be a great way to widen one's inspirational choices, and that is something that will stay with you forever afterward. I understand USITT probably only has so much they can award, but I do agree that a little more $1,000 would be helpful, especially if the student is staying there for an extended period. In any case, adding elements of other cultures to designs would just enhance the ways we as designers can can hold that mirror to humanity.
What I think is great about this is the fact that this has helped promote international internships/jobs which is great because I feel that most of us think about just doing theatre in the United States and I feel that we don't necessarily find out a lot about international theatre practices and if we do they are usually a more modernized version of the type of theatre that is lacking culture aspects from the original. It greats to think about sharing your experiences with others who have such different ways of working than you, but probably have the same passion and drive to do what you love like you do.
This is fantastic opportunity. Being from the United States, it is hard to actually learn about other cultures and history. Sure, America is a "melting pot", but is it really? Unless you live in a big city, I'm pretty sure most of America doesn't have a clue about other cultures and histories. One of the main factors in this is because we are separated from the rest of the world, whether it be walls or oceans. It's sad, really, because this makes it difficult for us to advance because we are only inspired and taught about the small world we live in. What about the bigger world? I think USITT is creating great opportunities to learn about other cultures in order to enhance our own. There is so much to see in the world, and I find it sad that so many Americans are locked in cages.
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