Tim’s Story
Lighting Magic
Tim’s passion for theatre began in elementary school.
The proof? Alongside his picture in his fifth-grade yearbook, it reads, “Tim wants to be a theatrical lighting designer.”
Back then, he turned to tech for one simple reason. “I can’t sing. No school is going to do a play with fifth graders. It’s always like a Disney musical,” he recalls. While there isn’t typically much in the way of tech production at that level either, his elementary school needed someone to help with the audio. His dad volunteered and brought Tim along to help.
That’s when he discovered lighting. “It was a little preset panel of six little buttons to make the light cues. And I fell in love with it.”
He’s been doing it ever since, discovering that “I can still be a part of the production and not have to be on stage.”
“For some reason, being backstage and making the magic happen felt more rewarding.”
Underground Theatre…Meaning His Basement
Tim made a theater in his basement and would put on performances with his friends.
“We would hang lights with curtain rods and take old bedsheets and make wings and curtains and make it snow with paper shredding for Frozen and stuff. We would write our own scripts.”
For Christmas one year, his dad made him a switch box. Tim plugged some lights into it to control them. “That was my first light board.” When other kids were getting toys for Christmas, he was getting theatre tech items.
“I would get a fog machine or a disco ball.”
A Burgeoning Career
Growing up in suburban Connecticut, Tim lived in a district with several schools.
By age 14, he was getting emails requesting that he do the show lighting and design. He became the go-to designer in town.
“It wasn’t really a job because I had so much fun doing it. And I still do. None of it really feels like work because I would do it in the end.”
As he got older, Tim moved into community and professional theatres. “That’s when I realized that this is going to be much more, that this is a real job to have, and people do this for a living.” He started to reach out to some professional designers and meet people in the industry. He received recommendations that he check out Purchase. Once he did, he knew it was for him.
“I was kind of dead set, and I ended up only applying here, hoping it would work out. And it did.”
The Network
He’s already tapping into the network of alumni.
“There’s a GroupMe with alumni that goes years back. And people pick up jobs all the time. Small gigs at a theater for a day and make 50 bucks an hour. Small little things like that.”
He’s often surprised at how many Purchase people are working in the field. “I was just at a theater in New York, and I didn’t realize how many people were in that theater,” he says.
“You don’t realize it until you start talking, and then once people know you are from Purchase, it’s an instant bond.”
Scholarships Matter
He appreciates what he’s received so far.
“Coming to Purchase has definitely expanded my networking opportunities between the faculty and classmates with the possibilities they give us for work and just knowing people in the industry—in an industry where you have to know people to get a job.”
“This scholarship is definitely helping me achieve my dreams and drive my passions further and expanding my knowledge, growth, and making me a better individual.”
The World Needs More Purchase People
Help Talented and Deserving Students Like Tim
