Theatrical productions at Trinity University require more than a great script and tremendous acting. Among the people behind the scenes is Tim Francis, lighting designer and technical director for Trinity’s Human Communication and Theatre department. He stepped out from the curtain to share his views on mistakes, Sesame Street, and artichokes.
What do you like best about working with Trinity students?
Beyond the classroom, I spend a lot of time with students as we work together on our theater productions. I enjoy getting to know students during this less formal time and establishing long-term relationships. I like that former students can become old friends. On a recent trip to Chicago, I visited with Trinity Alumni who graduated from 1991 to last year.
How do you motivate your students?
I try to set an example of hard work and focused energy. Each day in class or in the theater, we have a set of goals and tasks to accomplish. In class, I provide students with tools and skillsets to explore and develop their creative side. In the theater, I organize students to best use their existing talents, expand their knowledge and gently (sometimes firmly) remind them of our hard and fast deadline of opening night.
What are some of your pre-class rituals?
Many of my classes are very interactive and hands on. My ritual usually consists of a mad scramble to set up equipment, tools, or lighting equipment for demonstration or student use.
How did you get involved in your area of study?
I enrolled in an acting class my first year of college because, in the back of my mind I thought, "I can do that." At some point that first semester, I walked into the scenic studio and used a hammer correctly. I was offered a work grant position, launching without my knowledge, a career in technical theater.
Please share an amazing experience you have had working with Trinity Theatre.
Through the Stieren Arts Enrichment Series, our program has brought in many talented guest artists. All were amazing opportunities for me and our students to interact and work with outstanding theater artists. My all-time favorite was working on Urinetown: The Musical with director Alan Muraoka who has played Alan, the owner of Hooper's Store on Sesame Street for the last 17 seasons. He was warm, generous, and helped the entire team of students, staff, and faculty to create the best production possible.
What production would you like to see at Trinity? Why?
One of my favorite plays is What the Butler Saw by Joe Orton. It is such a well crafted farce: funny, satirical, and a bit scandalous. We produced it in 1995, but I'd be happy to do it again.
What is your favorite philosophy?
This is a quote from The Dramatic Imagination by Robert Edmund Jones: "The secret lies in our perception of light in the theater as something alive. Does this mean that we are to carry images of poetry and vision and high passion in our minds while we are shouting out orders to electricians on ladders in light rehearsals? Yes. This is what it means." The quote helps to remind me why I became a lighting designer for theater.
What profession other than yours would you like to attempt? Why?
Before I wandered into a darkened theater and stayed, I considered a career outdoors, perhaps as a park ranger or forester. I wouldn't mind working at the Grand Canyon, which I haven't visited nearly enough.
What sound do you love? Why?
I love the sound of birds singing in the morning while camping in Big Bend National Park. There is nothing quite as satisfying as a crisp, cold morning, a hot cup of coffee, a desert vista, and the sounds of birds.
Favorite expression?
"We do it right because we do it twice" is tongue-in-cheek but often accurate. Every theater production is a prototype and sometimes mistakes are made. Mistakes are fine as long as you learn from them.
Favorite sports team?
The Scottsdale Community College Artichokes. How can you not root for an artichoke?
Where would you like to retire?
I was raised in the west in Arizona and miss the access to the open spaces of national forests, national parks and Bureau of Land Management lands. I think retirement will find me somewhere in the American West.
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