Marie Kearney
Since I started at Wimbledon College of Art I’ve gone from being a pair of hands to the head of a team, and I’ve been lucky enough to experience that abroad too. After seeing our production of new musical An Asylum On Every Corner (written by James Michalos) at the Edinburgh Fringe 2006, ArCub asked us to be part of their Cultural Spring Festival in Bucharest. As part of that, I spent months liasing with our contacts in Bucharest before leading the Romanian tech team and operating the lights for the show.

Where before I was an operator or lighting designer I now take on the broader role of technical stage manager, most recently with the company Stand Up Drama, who perform monologues and short scenes in nightclubs. We’ve just moved to our new venue, Sway, which meant learning how to operate an Avolite desk in a couple of days, and make the step from theatrical lighting to an entirely moving light based rig. 

The last few months have been somewhat hectic, having done two quite involved projects at the WCA (an anti-gun crime campaign and a speculative design project based on The Tempest), both of which have been very illuminating. I’ve also worked on several projects as a freelance designer, and worked as part of the technical team at Waterman’s Art Centre in Kew Bridge. Following completion of this course, I hope to have a bit of a break and then follow up some of the offers I’ve had to pass on due to college commitments. Having spent the first part of my education on the misguided notion that I’d eventually enter the law profession, I’ve found a calling that I love and that’s helped me to grow, develop and meet some absolutely brilliant people. With luck, the next few years will see me gaining the skills I need to be the one who can say “Leave it with me.”, experiencing new cultures, and generally making the impossible happen.

CREDITS: 

Operator: The Nightingale (Yellow Earth 2006)

Relighter: Meri Christmas (Rifco Arts 2007)

Lighting Design: An Asylum On Every Corner (Modus Operandi- Ed. Fringe 2006, Cultural Spring Festival Bucharest 2007), The Faery Queen (Cilgwyn Theatre 2007)

Technical Stage Manager: Not Any More (2K 2006), Turning Heads (Opera on the Run 2007), Stiff Acrylic (Fortress Productions 2007), Auntie and Me (Stand Up Drama 2008), Londonbites (Stand Up Drama, March and May 2008)

Technician: Various productions, Waterman’s Art Centre (2007-present)