Name:
J. Richard Smith
Year Graduated:
B.F.A. 1990 / M.F.A. 2005
Degree:
M.F.A. Theatre / Drama and Theatre for Youth and Communities
Favorite Memory of T&D::
As an undergrad -- the fabulous Halloween parties attended by not only students but faculty. As a graduate student - teaching, and coordinating the Symposium honoring my mentor Dr. Coleman A. Jennings in celebration of his forty years teaching.
Influential Professors or Classes:
John Rothgeb, Paul Reinhardt, Carolyn Lancet, David Nancarrow, and Jill Dolan and Coleman A. Jennings who inspired me more than either can know.
Current Hometown:
Seattle, Washington
Current Profession:
Freelance Director, Designer, Teacher, and Writer
Biography:
J. Richard Smith (Scenic Design) is a Renaissance man of sorts. He works as an actor, director, writer, illustrator, producer and professional scenographic designer, having designed regionally for community, professional, children's and academic productions throughout the Southwest. Some of his notable designs and plays directed include: Les Liaisons Dangereuse, A Shayna Maidel, Man of La Mancha, Carousel, The Tempest (two productions), Much Ado About Nothing, All's Well That Ends Well, In A Room Somewhere, Blood Wedding, Guys and Dolls, Big River, Secret Garden, Beauty and the Beast, The Snow Queen, The Hobbit, My Neighbor, and 30 plus productions for Second Youth Family Theatre, the professional theatre for young audiences company that he co-founded in 1991, in Austin, Texas for which he served as Producing Artistic Director from 1996-2005.
Since relocating to the Pacific Northwest in 2005, based in Seattle, Richard has directed Two Rooms and Private Eyes for West of Brooklyn Theatre Co.; designed the west-coast premier of Black Water for Off Center Opera, Stop Kiss for Seattle Public Theatre and Urinetown: The Musical for Cornish College of the Arts. He currently serves as the Department Coordinator for the Performance Production Department at Cornish College of the Arts as well as teaching as an adjunct instructor for classes such as Intermediate Studio, Advanced Scenic Design and Literature of Theatre. At Cornish, Richard directed Naomi Iizuka's Anon(ymous) for the Theatre Department and will return as a guest director in Spring 2012 to direct The Bacchae. His visual dramaturgical/conceptual illustrations are featured in the new anthology Nine Plays By Jose Cruz Gonzalez: Magical Realism and Mature Themes in Theatre for Young Audiences edited by Coleman A. Jennings, published in 2008 by The University of Texas Press-recently awarded the 2009 Distinguished Book Award by the American Alliance for Theatre and Education. Richard holds an M.F.A. in Drama and Theatre for Youth and a Professional Certificate from the RGK Center in Non-Profit and Philanthropic Studies both from The University of Texas at Austin.
