FIU Theatre Assistant Professor Jennifer Ivey’s first book The Scenic Charge Artist’s Toolkit: Tips, Templates, and Techniques for Planning and Running a Successful Paint Shop in the Theatre and Performing Arts was recently published by Routledge.
“It’s been an amazing new process, more exciting and challenging than I could have ever imagined,” says Professor Ivey. “It was fulfilling to combine and organize years of experience into a concise and digestible format.”
The book focuses on professional and practical skills for professional theatrical scenic artists. It introduces the many different options available to a scenic charge artist, as well as the fundamental expectations and responsibilities of planning and running a shop. From the pre-production organization, budgeting, sampling, and sealing to practical lessons in efficiency and shop maintenance, this text provides options to organize a paint shop no matter the size of the shop, show, or company.
Filled with templates for labor and time estimation, tips on leadership and collaboration, techniques for painting and planning textures efficiently, and sustainable practices in health, safety, and wellness, the book provides guidance and practices to successfully manage the inevitable changes in theatre planning and production. It also offers tips and reference material on employment options, gaining employment, and excelling in this profession.
Professor Ivey joined FIU Theatre in 2016. She has worked around the country as a designer and/or technician with companies such as the Georgia Ensemble Theatre, West Virginia Public Theatre, Atlanta Opera, and the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival. She has an MFA in Theatre, Scenic Design from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is also an active member of the theatrical professional community through conferences and organization, including presentations at USITT (United States Institute for Theatre Technology), KCACTF (Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival), and leadership as the Conference Planner for Design Technology and Management Focus Group for ATHE (Association for Theatre in Higher Education), and Chair of the Space Design Sub Commission for OISTAT (International Organization of Scenographers Theatre Architects and Technicians).
