The University of Rhode Island’s Undergraduate Research, Scholarly, and Creative Works Showcase strives to acknowledge and award students for their innovative work in a wide range of fields, including art, film, music, theatre, and STEM. This year’s showcase recognized Audrey Visscher, a senior double majoring in theatre and film/media, as the first place winner for the College of Arts and Sciences. Audrey’s award-winning showcase presentation takes the audience on a walk through her experience working as the light designer for URI’s season-opening play, Silent Sky. “Not many people know how much truly goes into designing a play, especially the lights,” Visscher says. “There is much more than turning on lights so that the actors can be seen. There is research involved, as well as drafting, sometimes electrician work, and lots of time goes into the whole process.”

So what exactly about URI and its Theatre Department attracted Visscher? “I was drawn to URI because of my ability to double major,” she says. “I have interests both in theatre as well as film, and instead of telling me I had to choose, like most schools would, URI practically dares people to double or even triple major.” She goes on to explain what she further found appealing about the Theatre Department: “Specifically in terms of theatre, the moment I fell in love with the department was on my tour of the theatre wing. When I entered the scene shop, my jaw dropped. It was the biggest, most beautiful room I had seen, with old set pieces hanging on the walls, machinery, and lots of space to work. I came to the tour of URI knowing that I enjoyed building and designing the sets for shows, so seeing there was a great room just for that was a huge appeal.”

Although Visscher currently has no official plans, she intends to continue her work in theatre upon graduating later this spring. “After I graduate, I am hoping to work in a variety of jobs. Backstage of theatre (lighting, scenic, crew, directing, etc) or anything behind the scenes for the film (designing, editing, directing, etc) is my main goal. I don’t want to do one thing and stick with it, but instead, keep moving and keep each new job fresh,” she says. On a final note, Visscher hopes to encourage both fellow and inspiring theatre majors with this final piece of advice: to explore the versatility that theatre and the many elements it has to offer. “If you are interested in majoring in theatre, I would recommend trying a little bit of everything,” she says. “Sign up for various work calls here and there to help out where needed, and you may find a new area of theatre that grabs your heart.”

~Written by Briana Ciceron