Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2023, Theatre

Performance is used as a means of storytelling, to escape, to reflect, to learn, to celebrate, or to understand other perspectives. The Country Wife by William Wycherley is all of the above. It is a multi-faceted script that Wycherley curated to appeal to the masses. Written in 1675, this Restoration play uses wit and comedy to comment on societal structures such as gender norms, class, rank, and relationships. The narrative is funny, raunchy, clever, pointed, self-reflective, and opens itself up to be consumed at a variety of levels. I designed the scenery for the 2022 production at The Ohio State University. This is the detailed analysis of that process.

Committee: Brad Steinmetz (Advisor); Tom Dugdale (Committee Member); Sarah Neville (Committee Member) Subjects: Design; Fine Arts; Performing Arts; Theater; Theater History

MDes, University of Cincinnati, 2010, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning : Design

Designers, as creative individuals, are encouraged to play with various ideas to achieve innovation. Although play is acknowledged in design world in the context of ideation, the value of play is underestimated. This is why it is essential to explore ways to promote play in the whole design process. The purpose of this thesis is to introduce a fresh way of viewing play through examining it in the design process with an observational study, which evaluates play to identify potential research implications for its role in the product design process. To evaluate the impact of play, the researcher not only observed, but also worked with design students focusing on a particular project for ten weeks. Based on her observations, the researcher surveyed the students to evaluate their perceptions of play and their work habits. The results indicate that a considerable improvement would be present when play is promoted in the design process. This research is not only significant for examining play in terms of design but also for identifying necessary expertise to develop a comprehensive study in this field.

Committee: Craig Vogel MID (Committee Chair); Dennis Puhalla PhD (Committee Member); Sean Sauber MBA (Committee Member) Subjects: Design