Thorn Michaels (third-year lighting design graduate student) finds it easy to relate to Sasha, the central character in Melissa James Gibson’s Brooklyn Bridge, being co-produced by UW Drama and Seattle Children’s Theatre and opening next month.
“It’s a beautiful show, with an adult message.” says Thorn. “Growing up an only child with a single mother, like Sasha, I battled with loneliness. What I love about this play is that she learns to look to the people around her and in them finds support and community that is greater than the insular nature of the old-fashioned family.”
Thorn is the show’s lighting designer—- her thesis production—- and it’s a bit of a homecoming for her. She started taking classes at Seattle Children’s Theatre when she was 12, including studying directing with Brooklyn Bridge director Rita Giomi.
“She was a big figure in my life. She influenced the way I think about theatre very early on,” says Thorn.
Before the winter break, Thorn took some time to chat about her time at UW, how she got into lighting, and how she approaches her art.
How did you get into lighting design?
When I came to UW as an undergraduate my intention was to be an actor. During my very first lighting design course with Geoff Korf he asked us, “What is the color of sunlight?” We all said yellow. Then he took us outside and showed us a sheet of white paper. When we looked closely at the sunlight on the paper, we realized it’s actually kind of blue. It sounds simple and obvious, but it blew my mind. I had never looked at light itself in that way before, the way a painter looks at it. Over the course of that class I started thinking about how form is revealed by light, how our perception of color and shadow, even the way we feel about other people, is completely influenced by light. I became fascinated with lighting design and by the time I finished undergrad I was pretty sure I wanted to be a designer.
Over the course of that class I started thinking about how form is revealed by light, how our perception of color and shadow, even the way we feel about other people, is completely influenced by light.
Did you know right away that you wanted to go for an MFA?
I took classes with the first-year graduate lighting designers during undergrad, and that got me excited about the MFA. I prepared myself by interning for a year at Circuit Playhouse in Memphis. After that I applied for graduate programs and was lucky enough to get into UW. During my first year I found I just wasn’t ready. I started to lose what I loved about theatre and it became a duty that I had to perform. I decided to leave the program. It was a hard choice, since I had been involved in theatre since childhood. I began living life outside of school and theatre. I worked as a cook in a restaurant. I became certified as a personal trainer. I worked at a movie theatre. I worked as a barista.
Then my husband and I decided to save everything we could and spend a year traveling through Europe. That was what really brought me back to the program. We stayed in really beautiful places and befriended a lot of amazing people. Traveling is an endurance trial that teaches tough lessons about who you are. During my first go at grad school if something wasn’t the way I wanted it to be I would panic or reject it. Traveling taught me to take full responsibility for any situation even if it’s not one of my creation. Graduate school is full of circumstances you don’t want to be in. You have these giant dreams that you want to create, but you don’t know how to execute them. Part of that is the nature of the experience. You’re pushed so that you can get beyond your comfort level.
When we were traveling, one of the more enlightening stops was the Edinburgh Arts Festival in Scotland. My husband and I saw 22 shows in a week. Being in a theatre again made me realize I wasn’t done. I needed to design more and rekindle my childhood love of theatre. Coming back, I feel completely different. I feel absolutely that I am in the right place.
Being in a theatre again made me realize I wasn’t done. I needed to design more and rekindle my childhood love of theatre.
Your first show when you came back was Cold Empty Terrible. How was that experience?
After being away from theatre for four years, it was diving in headfirst. It was also a kind of show that I really enjoy; theatre that goes far beyond the bounds of naturalism into something challenging, a little unsettling, off-putting and surreal at times, but also incredibly beautiful. As a designer there were no bounds. I couldn’t hold back. I had to jump in.
You’ve designed for dance as well as theatre. How is that different?
In dance, I often find that choreographers are more interested in finding things in the moment. There is less preparatory discussion. I get to do more inventing of the world that the dance exists in. While theatre is based largely around the text, dance expresses things that are inexpressible verbally. The lighting for dance can be directly emotional rather than intellectual. I find it artistically beneficial to do both dance and theatre, as they stimulate such different parts of my brain.
I often find myself identifying very strongly with the characters and so I treat them with sympathy. I think theatre awakens in us empathy for others that often can be hard to access.
How do you think your acting training has benefitted your designs?
I have a very strong emotional connection to characters. When I read a play I look at things in terms of the arc. I look at the motivations of the character. Lighting design is largely about directing focus, influencing the perspective and mood of the audience. Having been an actor gives me the tools that allow me access to those concepts. I often find myself identifying very strongly with the characters and so I treat them with sympathy. It’s something that brought me to theatre: Drawing attention to human beings or moments that otherwise you would have ignored. I think theatre awakens in us empathy for others that often can be hard to access.