Originally from Portland Oregon, Abby is now New York City-based and pursuing a career and passion of Production Management. A recent graduate, with dual concentrations in Technical Direction and Stage Management, from the Design/Technology Conservatory, she is looking forward to practicing these skills and experiences she earned.
In addition to her education at Purchase College, Abby has had the pleasure to be in a Production Assistant position at Juniper Street Productions, in 2019 & 2020, where she had the honor of contributing to the Broadway productions of Gettin’ The Band Back Together, and Slave Play.
Ultimately, these roles and experiences, lead Abby to a variety of production positions, over the past four years. Including with internships at Hudson Scenic Studio and Cigar Box Studios, where she learned techniques in custom scenery fabrication while assisting on the productions of Hamilton (NYC and tour), The Inheritance, The Great Society (LCT), among others.
Abby thanks you for your time and support, and welcomes you to browse her resume, available to download at the right, and to take a more thorough look at her work and experience, below.
Worked directly with the Production Manager during load in of Gettin’ the Band Back Together, Slave Play, and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf? and the load out for Slave Play.
Communicated with all department heads to ensure they had the resources, like printed drawings, hardware, and paperwork, necessary for load in.
Assisted in load out by taking detailed inventory of all scenic, prop, and set electrics pieces to be saved for potential remounting.
Worked with the Production Manager to support the design and production team, this included prop sourcing and receiving, payroll tracking, and logistics coordination.
Learned about the various theatrical unions, and how to interpret their contracts for use in the production.
Prepared flame certification packets, teamster coordination, and expense reports during load In to support the tech process.
Assisted the project management department by preparing client proposals, discussing technical construction of units, and coordinated with shop staff to organize truck packs.
Involved in meetings with designers and shop heads discussing construction plans and ensuring that the integrity of the design was maintained.
Collaborated with project management and production management to create a system of scheduling projects through the shop from final proposal to install using Google oriented products.
Assisted the shop in a changeover of software and aided in the transfer of all information.
The Design of Twelfth Night included three Immersion rooms curated by ushers before the audience entered the playing space. The intention was for the audience to experience similar emotions that the characters endure throughout the show. November to January was a time for the production team to be enveloped in the design of the show and create a cohesive world of the play evoking a human experience rather than just a Shakespeare play. Room one was dedicated to an infinity mirror set up. Room two had one lightbox reading “heart” and an adjoined lightbox reading “break” which could be lit by an audience pressed button. Room three was enveloped in fabric tubes that the audience had to push through to enter the playing space. There was an abundance of prototypes throughout the design process which included discussions of creating new building techniques the conservatory has never used before such as a stock stretcher frame. The show was mostly built with one final piece to be tackled and prepped for load in when the college closed, the scenic pieces were inventoried and stored for possible future use.
The main scenic elements for Fen were a real dirt-covered deck and two flying mirrored walls. Dirt on a brand new stage floor was a big undertaking and definitely one of the most challenging building materials the conservatory has ever used. With the purchase of fill dirt for budgetary criteria, crews sifted the raw material to ensure no traces of worms, glass, or foreign debris for the safety of the actors and production staff. Load-in of the dirt entailed a two-week procession line of wheelbarrows running through the hallways of the theatre. Loadout consisted of a crew double the load in size and additional wheeled vehicles to assist in the one-day event. While a majority of the load in time was dedicated to the dirt, the flying mirror walls were a complicated system of sheaves and sandbags rigged in a theatre not meant for flying objects.
The Spring Opera is always one of the biggest shows Design/Technology students partake in. While the design of this particular Opera could be classified as simple with just a few major scenic elements, the ability to execute the design under the budget and time frame was difficult. Since the D/T scene shop could not support the load of building all of the scenic pieces, it was decided to outsource the columns. First, PRG Scenic Technologies assisted in understanding the dynamics of the use of foam and the best design for the CNC machine. Next, a foam billet was delivered to Enhance-a-Colour, with their help and use fo a CNC hot wire cutter, the base and capitals were carved. Finally, the technical team met with PRG Scenic Technologies art department to understand the attachment and coating process of the foam. Bringing that knowledge back to D/T, the team was able to successfully build and install the columns to the set with no complications.
Bastille Day was involved in a Festival series that included three shows in rep in two spaces. Beginning with the design process in early June, the production team continuously met over the summer to devise designs and prep as much as possible for the six week production period devoted to the show, which included build, rehearsal, tech, and shows. While Bastille Day was alone in a theatre, challenges arose when conforming to the same rep schedule as the fellow shows. An example, being that one of the four main actors was replaced during tech, this consisted of additional blocking rehearsals, run-throughs, and tech time to prepare for opening.
