THE WIZ

stage photo of CMU drama's production of The Wiz.

THE SHOW

In 2015 Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama's large musical production was "THE WIZ" by Charile Smalls and William F. Brown. The show was one of the largest productions ever created at CMU with a large cast, ambitious design, and sizeable budget. As the video engineer for the production my job was to make sure that the media designer's vision made it to the stage effectively.

COLLABORATORS

VIDEO ENGINEER

The design called for many moving video screens, content generated in real time using Unity 3D, and digital input from an operator and on-stage actors. As the video engineer I worked with the media team, and the production team at large to make sure that all the moving pieces would come together smoothly. I researched and tested equipment, created system diagrams, calculated projector lensing and positions, organized and led the video department load-in and strike.

VIDEO

This video is a gimps backstage demonstrating the automated cart and projection screen moving on the arced track. An image is projected on the moving screen by two short through projectors mounted on the cart reflecting off of adjustable mirrors. The video also shows the counterweighted cable management system used to run power, data, and network cables to the cart. I worked heavily with the show's technical director and rigger to create this solution.