Day 1 in Kansas City was spent walking around the city and finding out where eating was a possibility. Day 2 in Kansas City was the opening day for the USITT convention. After registering we waited for about an hour for the Stage Expo to open. Once I got into the Stage Expo I was truly a little overwhelmed by the amount of new technology available to see. I spent most of my time in the Stage Expo finding out where all of the different displays were, and deciding where I would like to revisit as well as what companies I would like to talk to about what they are doing in the theatrical world.
I went to my first seminar today at 1:30, which was an extremely interesting discussion on the ideas of Immersive Design. This seminar discussed the importance of embracing technology and the wants of people from their entertainment. The panelists stressed how our generation is seeking entertainment that is interactive and creates an alternate reality that they can dive into; in order to work within these ideals of 5D and immersive design, technology plays an extremely important role. This seminar opened up ideas for job opportunities that theatrical designers may fit into, but may have not thought of because it is found within different fields.
At 5:00 I went to a seminar about The Art of Sound for Dance. I found this seminar very informative about how to answer many questions that I often over hear with in the world of dance. I was completely opened up to the ideas of using theatrical sound fxs to create sound for dance as well as the concept that Cunnigham and Cage use in their collaboration on dance shows of the sound and the dance being separate entities that when put together create a new and “magical” experience, as stated by Darron West. I also enjoyed Brad Berridge’s solution to making the monitors loud enough on the stage for the dancers without ruining the sound in the audience; his philosophy suggests starting levels on the stage and then working your way into the audience. Overall I am learning an extensive amount of information at USITT Kansas City.