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Scenography and Technical
Production: Creating Magic Behind the Scenes
by Jacinthe Tremblay,
translated by Alexa Topolski
Even after forty years, there are
still those who think the National Theatre School (NTS) only trains
actors. Mais pas du tout!
As its many busy graduates will attest, the School has been teaching
Technical Production and Scenography since its very first days.
Its alumni are to be found backstage and in the offices and studios
of theatres and companies across the country and around the world.
Guido Tondino, Norberts
J. Muncs, Michel Gosselin. Photo: Maxime Côté.
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Busy. Eclectic. That’s what professional
life is like for Technical Production and Scenography graduates.
To cite a few examples: Nicolas Rollin (Production, 1999) works
in assistant directing and sound design for theatre. Terry Middleton
(Technical Production, 1993) works in set and lighting design
for theatre and directs a festival. Stéphane Mongeau is
Production Director for Cirque du Soleil’s upcoming show,
where he is assisted by Lucie Janvier (Production, 1996). Gabriel
Tsampalieros (Scenography, 1998) works as an art director for
film and also does set designing for theatre. The list goes on
and on…
What makes these people so sought-after
in the professional world? Their talent, of course. But also their
training. "In Scenography and
in Technical Production, our goal is to train students who are
multifaceted, who can see the big picture and can work in any
place and any culture," explains the Technical Production
Program Director, Norberts J. Muncs.
| The
Scenography and Technical Production Programs in Brief
• In recent years, women
have come to outnumber men in both the Scenography and Technical
Production Programs. The 2001 Technical Production class
is made up of five women and two men. First-year Scenography
has seven women. This trend started in the 80s. In the 60s
and 70s, Technical Production was seen as a “male”
profession, while men slightly outnumbered women in the
Scenography Program.
• Beginning this year,
for the first time, Technical Production will become a three-year
program, up from two very full years in the past. This will
make it the same duration as its sister program in French
and the Scenography Program.
• What are the qualities
of an ideal Technical Production candidate? He or she would
have finished another post-high-school program and would
have some practical stage or backstage experience. For a
Scenography candidate, the ideal background would include
study in fine arts, design or literature and prior theatre
experience.
•
First-year students in Technical Production vary in age
between 18 to 25. In Scenography, the average age is between
19 and 28. Averages notwithstanding, there is no upper age
limit for acceptance to the School. |
 The
Big Picture
While students of the School’s Technical
Production Program receive a solid technical foundation, their
time at the School is aimed at preparing them for careers in sound
or lighting design, technical or production direction, and stage
management or assistant directing.
"Production
people play a crucial go-between role between the members of a
theatrical team," Muncs points out.
"They have to reconcile a director’s vision with budget
and time demands." Muncs’ French counterpart,
Michel Gosselin, elaborates. "Ideally,
the technical director is the guardian of a show’s artistic
integrity. All the elements of a production, including the text,
the actors’ performances, and the design are filtered through
the technical rendition. The
clarity and sensitivity of the technical interpretation of those
elements can make or break a performance."
Guido Tondino, Director of the Scenography
Program, also constantly battles the misconception that his courses
only prepares its graduates for costume and stage design. "The
School trains people to work spatially and conceptually. They
are equally at home in theatre, film, television, circus, museums,
even restaurants. We are interested in all aspects of design,"
Tondino explains.
Learning
it All
The students of each of these programs
will spend time practising all aspects of their disciplines during
their time at the School. "In
the first year, some of them arrive with an idea of what they
want to specialize in. A few months later, they learn more about
other areas and are attracted to those, too," says
Muncs. Having students learn how to do everything, points out
Gosselin, gives them a familiarity with all the elements that
go into a production, which will prove invaluable no matter what
specialty they end up choosing.
When Technical Production students finish
their demanding program, they have little respite. As soon as
they graduate, work in the "real world" begins. Yearly
follow-ups by the School show that Technical Production graduates
quickly establish themselves as technical directors and production
designers. Scenography graduates typically follow a more circuitous
route. "Our graduates build
a reputation from working on small productions and working in
different areas," explains Tondino. "Success comes gradually."
Thinking
Globally
"For
the past five years, the only place our graduates haven’t
worked is South Africa!" Norberts J. Muncs says, with
justifiably proud exaggeration. All three program heads strive
to equip their graduates to be able to fan out across the globe
and encourage them to do so. "We
urge them to think beyond the Montreal-Toronto axis," says
Tondino.
Cross-cultural thinking begins in the
studio in the School’s Scenography Program, whose native
English- and French-speaking students share the same classes.
Students are exposed to the dramaturgy and traditions of each
other’s cultures. The mix is further enriched by the one
or two foreign students who are drawn by the Program’s international
reputation each year.
New
Programs
Since September 2001, the School offers
two new Apprenticeship Programs as Scenography specializations
under Guido Tondino. The two-year programs in Scenic Painting
and Props Building were developed in response to the growing needs
of the design community.
A one-year Specialization in Lighting,
will be offered under the aegis of Norberts J. Muncs’ Technical
Production Program. Scheduled to begin in September 2002, it will
target professionals with at least three years of prior experience.
"The new courses not only are meeting a real need in the
professional milieu but will also provide an even richer environment
for all the students at the School," says Tondino.
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