May 29, 2026
Earlier this month, a dozen students gathered on the Zellerbach Playhouse stage to show off their costume, lighting, and set design skills. The event shined a light — literally — on the incredible work the students have completed in classrooms, on stage, and out in the community.
The students were presenting at the 2026 Design Showcase, sponsored by the Department of Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies (TDPS). The event lasted all day as the exhibiting students fielded a steady stream of questions from professors, TDPS peers, non-theater students, and Bay Area industry professionals. It was a great opportunity to peek behind the curtain and examine the craftsmanship behind UC Berkeley productions.
“The 2026 Design Showcase illuminated a multi-disciplined and multifaceted world of design and story,” said Dominique Fawn Hill, a costume design lecturer. “This showcase invited peers and professionals to continue the creative, kindred necessity of networking. All in all, through an inspirational lens of individuality and professional development, this showcase ignited a flame towards the future of community, design, and production.”
The Design Showcase wasn’t just for scenic, lighting, and costume designers; stage managers also showed off their work with intricate spreadsheets detailing prop usage and line notes. UC Berkeley teaches the full range of behind-the-scenes roles, preparing its students for the adaptable needs of theatrical productions.
A VISITOR LOOKS UP AT SCENIC BACKDROPS AND SET PIECES.
Photo by Alexander Rony
Molly Windsor-Marshall grew up around the theater. Her mother worked in a school’s theater department before managing a community theater, so Windsor-Marshall provided a lot of volunteer labor. However, she never got to manage the technical side, as sound and lighting design were always carefully managed by a trained adult. It wasn’t until she took her first lighting design course at UC Berkeley that she obtained some hands-on experience. She was surprised by how much she enjoyed it.
DRESSES DESIGNED BY MADISON IX (LEFT) AND SOPHIA CHEN (CENTER) AND THE ROOF OF A MODEL BUILDING BY JACKIE CHIANG (RIGHT)
Photos by Alexander Rony
At the showcase, Windsor-Marshall displayed visuals from some of the scenes she lit, along with a complex lighting diagram. Behind her, giant paintings from a drop painting workshop and shop practice course towered over attendees. Each display on the stage offered something unique and compelling.
“Presenters displayed their work using elements such as mannequins to propel clothing creations and costume design, model boxes to display a scaled understanding of fantasy and reality, digital and illuminated prototypes to display how a lighting designer can paint with lights, and paperwork from production, showcasing the bones of any successful entertainment ecosystem,” said Hill.
Student interest in theater design has grown so much that adding a dedicated professor is now the department’s top hiring priority. Costume design in particular has become a major draw for the many students who love fashion.
Madison Ix, Sophia Chen, and Daniel Lopez displayed some of the clothes they designed at the showcase. Ix is a molecular and cell biology major who is minoring in theater and performance studies. Though she is in several fashion- and cosmetics-themed student groups, she found she needed a creative outlet in her coursework.
“TDPS allowed me to express my creativity in an academic setting and allowed a bridge between that and my analytical biology side,” said Ix. “I have grown so much from this, both in my scientific attributes and my fashion and costume design.”
Like Ix, Chen displayed a range of meticulous sketches of her costume ideas and fashion concepts. Chen began sewing in earnest during the pandemic, following in the footsteps of her seamstress grandmother. Her work as a Zellerbach Playhouse costume shop assistant helped her secure a job at an Alameda bridal shop, where she makes alterations to wedding dresses. Chen noted that costumes and wedding dresses both require extreme precision and care, and she enjoys how varied the projects are. She also designed three outfits for the Eco-Performance Lab’s End Times Trashion Show.
Lopez felt like he found his calling when he began doing costume design in college. He displayed several pieces from a steampunk-themed A Midsummer Night’s Dream. TDPS allowed Lopez to scour its 30,000-piece archive for items that hadn’t been used in a decade. Some were obvious fits for the play’s theme — like a pair of spiked, prismatic goggles — while others required Lopez’s resourcefulness to patch together.
Many of the students hold multiple roles in productions. Lopez doubled as a stage manager before his graduation. Jackie Chiang used her expertise as an architecture student to design three-dimensional scenes and even a concept for a theater building. Most acted in high school only to discover theater design in college.
DANIEL LOPEZ USED THIS MASK (LEFT) IN A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM. GEOFFREY TORIBIO USING HIS LAPTOP (RIGHT).
Photos by Alexander Rony
Geoffrey Toribio, who entered college intending to major in chemistry, was drawn back toward his roots in high school drama. He called his role in Lysistrata “the best experience I’ve had in my entire life” and praised his acting classes for improving his interpersonal skills.
Toribio just graduated with a theater and performance studies major that focused on scenic design. He took several prerequisite courses that taught him industry-standard tools like Vectorworks and allowed him to work on A Midsummer Night’s Dream, putting his newfound knowledge on center stage.
Unlike other majors, who may only have to worry about what their professors or teaching assistants think of their essays, theater design students put their work out into the world, where it can be judged. It takes guts, but it’s also a great confidence-building exercise.
“I would not have been able to grow as much as I did going through the classes I took in the theater department,” said Toribio. “The design program at Berkeley has offered me an enriching learning experience to have hands-on training with the talented faculty we have here. From drafting to model-making to designing a show for TDPS, these opportunities allowed me to grow as not only a designer, but as a thinker. I’m going to look back fondly on the years I spent at the school that not only reminded me who I was, but showed me who I can and will become.”
TDPS contributes to UC Berkeley’s innovation and entrepreneurship engine. Its alums form their own fashion companies, dance troupes, and performance ensembles. These examples might not appear in the campus’s impressive startup stats, but they require the same hustle and determination. And, as any theater or event professional will tell you, unforeseen challenges always arise, requiring quick problem-solving.
Students can take their acquired skills beyond the theater. Producers and designers must demonstrate teamwork when collaborating with performers and directors to realize a grand vision. Many other types of performances — from film and television to galas and weddings to sports and concerts — require experts in lighting, costume, and set design. Stage managers in particular learn transferable project management skills that will serve them well in any field.
TDPS wants to keep running the Design Showcase as an annual affair to continue spotlighting its students’ achievements. It wouldn’t take much money — just $5,000 a year — but they need to find donors interested in exposing students to theater design and elevating their career opportunities. If that describes you, please consider giving to the Department of Theater, Dance & Performance Studies Fund.
