During his tenure at the University of Wisconsin, Gilbert provided numerous opportunities for his students to be exposed to visiting professionals in all theater disciplines as well as to visit and participate in professional productions. Visiting professionals included lighting, set and costume designers as well as directors and choreographers. These interactions provided valuable experience and connections for students who otherwise would not have access to the professional community during their course of study. In an effort to continue these opportunities The Hemsley Lighting Programs currently has multiple offerings:

  • Associates and Assistants Seminar

  • Digital Cinema for Theater Lighting Designers Seminar

  • Visiting Professional Program

Associates and Assistants Seminar

The Hemsley Lighting Programs is pleased to offer Craig Stelzenmuller’s three-part Associates and Assistants Seminar for online viewing. This seminar was developed by Craig for presentation as part of the Hemsley Programs Portfolio Review and has gotten rave reviews from past student attendees. The original seminar has been expanded in subject matter and detail. It covers questions an associate should consider before negotiating for the job and then provides various paperwork examples from actual Broadway and National Touring productions including lighting plots, set electrics, magic sheets, focus charts, automated light and followspot tracking paperwork among many other subjects such as lighting console prep and tech table /rehearsal considerations for a large musical or play. Craig introduces the many programs he personally uses to help organize and manage a large show and the seminar is loaded with stories from his experiences on major productions with top Broadway lighting designers.

The seminar can be viewed at the following link: Associates and Assistants Seminar

Digital Cinema for Theater Lighting Designers

The Hemsley Lighting Programs is pleased to offer a seminar focused on the basics of lighting for digital cinema. The filming of stage performance has become increasingly prevalent and important in the performing arts landscape and is a subject that theater faculty and their students may want to familiarize themselves with as work in this area has increased dramatically. The seminar includes an introduction to camera functions and setup decisions that directly impact how stage lighting is captured on digital media. The class covers topics ranging from camera exposure and color temperature to specific examples from stage shows captured for video broadcast. The seminar is taught by either Alan Adelman or Bob Barnhart as they share their unique perspectives based on their many decades of experience in both theater and television. The seminar is offered free to professional theater lighting design programs although if an honorarium is available it would appreciated and can be donated to the Hemsley Lighting Programs.

For more information or to make inquiries please contact Alan Adelman at hemsleyintensives@gmail.com.

Past Seminar Testimonials

“Our students have been telling us how valuable the class was to them and how much they learned. The seminar covered a lot of material but the information was organized in a way that made comprehension easy. This topic is more important than ever for theatre lighting designers. The concepts touched on will be critical going forward” - Stephen Strawbridge (Yale)

“Our students clearly have a greater appreciation and awareness of what to think about when capturing live events, how to tailor your work for the camera versus the human eye” - Don Holder (Rutgers)

“The classes gave our students both the vocabulary in order to speak with camerapersons and engineers and DPs, as well as a better understanding of what to look for and how to re-balance their lighting to look good in an HD video environment” - Clifton Taylor (North Carolina School of the Arts)

“Designers from all disciplines in our program were able to attend, as well as students from our Puppet Arts program. The two seminars were of great benefit to us all” - Michael Chybowski (University of Connecticut)

“It was incredibly interesting to hear how much work goes into taking a live event and translating it to the screen. It's changed the way I watch televised events forever” - Violet Smith (California School of the Arts – MFA student)

Visiting Professional Program

With an understanding of the tightened funding available within theater departments across the country, the Hemsley Lighting Programs is happy to provide support that can foster these interactions. The Programs is pleased to be able to offer grants of up to $1000 to university or college lighting design departments for proposals that would foster professional interactions and provide valuable professional exposure for their students that would otherwise not be possible.

Application for Visiting Professional Program

A lighting professor at a university or college lighting design program should write a letter on department letterhead outlining their proposal including a summary of the benefits their students will gain from the proposed experience. The proposal should also include an itemized budget.

Please address any questions and completed application letters to: Alan Adelman at: hemsleyIntensives@gmail.com