The Second City Will Host Diversity Weekend

Backstage: The Second City is celebrating diversity with its upcoming weekend of events April 30–May 2 in Toronto.

The improvisational comedy troupe is hosting the diversity event filled with performances, workshops, and training opportunities for fresh talent.

Local Theatres Face Off in a Super Bowl-Inspired Competition

AMERICAN THEATRE: The Carolina Panthers might be going head-to-head with the Denver Broncos on Sunday in Super Bowl 50, but several hometown theatres are taking the competition from the football field to the stage.

CMU students to compete in Robot Art 2016 contest

The Tartan Online: a team of Carnegie Mellon students are working hard to create a robot with artistic abilities. This international competition, created and sponsored by Andrew Conru, an entrepreneur who founded FriendFinder Networks Inc., has cash prizes of up to $100,000 for the winning team’s institution. But more than that, it is a call for collaboration.

Hog Factor Champs Win Hog 4 Console, $20K Scholarship for Carnegie Mellon University

PLSN: High End Systems drew crowds to its LDI booth with gear ranging from the new SolaWash Pro 2000, SolaSpot Pro 2000 and Uno to featured products including the SolaSpot Pro 1500, ShapeShifter and Hog 4 Hoglet and Miniwing. Also featured: the new GUI interface for Axon. The company also staged the finale for its Hog Factor competition and awarded a new Hog 4 console and $20,000 scholarship to the winning school, Carnegie Mellon University

Three Schools Compete to Win $20k and a Hog4

Stage Directions: Three “Hog Factor” finalist teams will compete at LDI 2015 to win a Hog4 console from High End Systems and a $20,000 scholarship for their university. The three finalists, chosen from 60 teams who entered, are from Carnegie Mellon University, Southern Methodist University and Webster University.

Teams Sought for Ideal Theatre Design Contest

Stage Directions: The USITT Architecture & Theatre Student Design Competition, sponsored by American Seating, is now accepting applications to participate. The competition asks theatre and architecture students to imagine a new theatre space for their campus. Designs are due Jan. 18, 2016, but teams must fill out an intent to participate application by Oct. 30.

Rose Brand Action Design Winners Announced

sightlines.usitt.org: Based on a beautifully designed, developed, and lit scenic environment, Team Autumn was voted this year’s winner of the Rose Brand/USITT Action Design Competition at the Cincinnati 2015 Conference & Expo. Votes were tabulated through the Rose Brand Instagram and Facebook pages.

Inside the surprisingly dark world of Rube Goldberg machines

The Verge: On the eve of the 2015 Rube Goldberg Machine Contest college nationals, six teams gather in Columbus, Ohio’s Center of Science and Industry children’s museum to set up their machines around the walls of the hangar-like space and eye up the competition. The teams have made the trip here by car, their carefully assembled machines, months in the making, broken down and borne by trucks and U-Haul carriers. Team members lean over each other to place a golf ball here and balance a domino there, assembling their delicate contraptions for the next day’s judging.

Martin Professional Reveals Winner of Young Lighting Designer Contest

Stage Directions: HARMAN’s Martin Professional today announced Jorge Espinoza as the first prize winner of the 2015 Young Lighting Designer Contest. As part of his prize, Espinoza has been awarded a trip to the Prolight + Sound 2015 show in Frankfurt, Germany where he will be formally presented as the winner at the Martin Professional stand (A93, Hall 9.0) at 1 p.m. today.

Rose Brand Inc. Launches Mascot Contest

Stage Directions: Rose Brand Inc. announces the launch of a contest to name the company’s Hardware and Rigging mascot. The frog represents the hardware line of the company’s Theatrical Fabrics and Supplies business.

Rose Brand Announces Winners of the 2015 Rose Brand / USITT Action Design Competition

Stage Directions: Based on their beautifully designed, developed and lit scenic environment, Team Autumn was voted this year’s winner of the Rose Brand/USITT Action Design Competition at the USITT Expo in Cincinnati, OH. Votes were tabulated via the Rose Brand Instagram and Facebook pages.

Young actors excel in annual August Wilson competition

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Pittsburgh’s seventh annual August Wilson Monologue Competition took place at Point Park University last night, with the three winners earning college scholarships and trips to New York City for the national finals, May 2-5, at Broadway’s August Wilson Theatre.

The World Ice Art Championships Are a Garden of Frozen Delights

The Creators Project: Despite temperatures that threatened to melt their creations, a team from Japan and the United States used hand and power tools to turn 10 blocks of ice into The Fighter, a battle scene between a knight and a dragon. The creation, which beat out the work of 15 other teams, claimed a top prize yesterday in the Multi Block Classic at the 2015 World Ice Art Championships, notably sponsored by BP. Other winners included Russians Ivan Zuev and Eduard Ponomarenko for their abstract masterpiece [need something more descriptive than just masterpiece), Ancient Protector, and Vitaly Lednev for the giant chameleon, Lizard's Treat.

High End Systems Announces Hog Factor Competition

Stage Directions: The Hog Factor is a national collegiate lighting programming competition from High End Systems. Teams of lighting designers from recognized colleges are asked to create a performance lighting piece on either an existing Hog desk or via Hog 4 PC. The grand prize includes a Hog 4 console (MSRP $44,000), a $20,000 scholarship for their school and an internship at High End Systems, with the opportunity to join the company full time following a successful trial period.

Public Theater names Shakespeare contest winners

TribLIVE: The results are in from Pittsburgh Public Theater's 21st annual Shakespeare Monologue & Scene Contest.

Seven students received awards for their performances in the Showcase of Finalists on Feb. 16 at the O'Reilly Theater, Downtown

7 students win Shakespeare Monologue and Scene Contest

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: To start a chilly evening, KDKA-TV’s Ken Rice, everyone’s favorite (and wittiest) emcee, quoted the bard’s “King Lear”: “This cold night will turn us all to fools and madmen.”

Or madwomen, he might have added, not to mention kings, queens, jesters, lovers, murderous thanes, fairies and even a jailer’s daughter — all the rich dramatis personae of Shakespeare’s works.

Calling All Students Interested In Attending USITT

Stage Directions: PRG is hosting a student essay contest asking you to future-cast the technology you will find at the 2025 USITT Expo. The most creative and insightful essay will be named the Grand Prize Winner! PRG will fly the one grand prize winner to Cincinnati, put you up, and get you into the place where new ideas are generated. You can kick the tires on the newest products, and network with leading industry professionals – USITT’s Stage Conference and Expo!

Nemetschek Vectorworks Launches Conference Pass Giveaway Program

Stage Directions: Under Nemetschek Vectorworks' Conference Pass Giveaway program, three entries will be selected throughout 2015 to attend 2015 PLANET Student Career Days, USITT's Annual Conference & Stage Expo 2015, or LAbash2015.

Rose Brand Offers $10,000 Main Stage Curtain as Prize in Rags to Riches Video Contest

Stage Directions : Rose Brand launched a new competition, The Rags to Riches video contest, that challenges theatres to create a short video (under 1 minute) explaining why their stage is most deserving of a new curtain. Videos will be featured on the Rose Brand Pinterest and Vimeo pages and the one with the best combination of creativity and entertainment (as judged by Rose Brand) along with likes, shares and organizational need will win a new main curtain worth up to $10,000 for their theatre. The deadline is Nov. 7, 2014.