What families ask me before we start
Design and production admissions works differently from acting admissions, and almost nobody explains it. These are the questions I get most, answered as directly as I can.
Getting started
What is theatre design and production, and is it a real major?
It is the whole of theatre that is not acting: scenic, costume, lighting, sound, and projection design, plus stage management, technical direction, and production management. Every one of those is a degree program at major universities and conservatories, and every one of them leads to paid professional work. It is one of the few arts fields where the technical training transfers directly into film, television, live events, and themed entertainment.
When should we start preparing?
Sophomore or junior year is ideal, because a portfolio is built out of real production work and that takes time to accumulate. Senior fall is not too late, but the work shifts from building the body of work to presenting what already exists as strongly as possible. If your student is a sophomore, the most useful thing they can do this year is get on more shows and document everything.
My student is interested but has not done much yet. Is it too late?
Usually not. Design and production admissions rewards potential and thinking more than volume, partly because reviewers know that high school access varies enormously. A student with three thoughtfully documented projects often reads stronger than one with twelve undocumented credits.
The portfolio
What actually goes in a design and production portfolio?
Process, not just results. Research images, sketches, drafting, paperwork, and production photographs, arranged so a reviewer can follow how the student thought. Faculty are evaluating judgment and curiosity, because they are choosing someone to teach for four years, not someone to hire. A beautiful final rendering with no evidence of thinking behind it is a weaker submission than a rough sketch shown alongside the reasoning.
Does my student need to know which discipline they want?
Not always, and at some programs it is better if they do not. Carnegie Mellon has all design and production students take foundational coursework across disciplines for three semesters before declaring a concentration. Other programs admit directly into a specialty. Knowing which model a program uses changes what the portfolio should emphasize, and that is one of the more concrete ways program knowledge affects an application.
What about the interview?
Most programs interview, and for many students it matters more than they expect. Faculty want to hear a student talk about their own work and about theatre they have seen. Preparation is not memorizing answers, it is getting comfortable enough that the conversation sounds like a conversation. This is the part we rehearse most.
Do portfolio requirements differ between schools?
Significantly, in format, quantity, and what reviewers weight most. Part of the work is building one strong body of material and then tailoring the presentation per program rather than sending the same file everywhere.
Choosing programs
Conservatory or university?
This is usually the most consequential decision in the process, and it is about the student rather than about prestige. Some students want to be in the shop and the theatre nearly all the time. Others need academic breadth alongside the training and are unhappy without it. The same student can be excellent in one setting and miserable in the other, which is why I ask about how a student likes to spend a Tuesday before I ask about their dream school.
How many schools should we apply to?
Fewer than most families expect, chosen more carefully. Each application carries a tailored portfolio and often an interview, so volume dilutes quality fast. A curated list where the student is a genuine fit at every school outperforms a long list built around rankings.
What if my student changes their mind about theatre?
It happens, and the training holds up. My own students have gone on to organic chemistry, pre-med, conservation biology, graphic arts, and languages. Design and production teaches project management, collaboration under deadline, technical drawing, and problem-solving with real constraints. Those transfer. I would rather a family hear that plainly than discover it later.
Why does it matter that you visit campuses?
Because the published material tells you what a program offers and not what it feels like. I visit two to three programs a year, meet with faculty, and talk with my own former students who are enrolled there. Knowing how a department actually treats its undergraduates, and whether students across cohorts know each other, is the kind of thing that decides fit and that you cannot read on a website.
Working with me
Can you guarantee admission?
No, and anyone who does is selling something else. Admissions decisions belong to the programs. What I can do is make sure the student presents the strongest and most honest version of their work, applies to schools where they genuinely fit, and walks into interviews prepared.
Do we have to be at Interlochen to work with you?
No. Coaching is independent of my role at Interlochen Arts Academy and I work with students anywhere. Sessions happen remotely.
How does a first conversation work?
It is free and unhurried. Tell me where the student is and what they want to make. If I am not the right person, I will say so and point you somewhere better.
Who is in the room, the student or the parents?
Both, at different times. The work belongs to the student and most sessions are with them directly. Parents need clarity on timeline, cost, and what a career in this field actually looks like, and those conversations are worth having openly rather than in the hallway afterward.
Ask me the question that is not on this page.
The first conversation is free, and I will tell you honestly whether I am the right fit.
SJDnPCoaching@gmail.com
A former class had this made of me. I keep it on the desk as a reminder not to take myself too seriously.