Author/Editor
This page features information about several books/handbooks in which I have played a significant role in either authoring or editing. I have also included some general information about each publication as well as links to each of the books' publishers. The publisher's sites will provide you with more information about each book as well as how to order them.
Stage Lighting: Fundamentals and Applications
by Richard Dunham
This text approaches lighting as a comprehensive area of design that introduces the student to the elements of lighting and its associated equipment. It then builds upon this information to provide a solid discussion and demonstration of many of the foundations of lighting design --across a variety of lighting specialties. In today’s market, lighting designers are frequently called on to “cross-over” into areas of lighting in which they may not have received any formal training, yet they are being asked to effectively light many different types of subjects or environments. Stage Lighting acts as a reference and exploration of not only the mechanics, but more importantly, the aesthetics and design approaches that a designer may follow when completing a lighting project. Students will now have a solid reference to basic lighting concepts, an idea of how basic techniques can be transferred between different areas of lighting specialty, and a glimpse into the unique aspects of numerous lighting design disciplines. Whether a designer comes from a theatrical or engineering based background, this book forms a bridge between these two different areas of lighting specialization. Full online chapters are dedicated to relevant design applications such as: Concert Lighting, Video and Film Design, Display and Exhibit Lighting, Spectacle Events, Architectural Lighting, Landscape Lighting, Themed Design, and Virtual Lighting Design. This is one of the first lighting publications to provide a basic fundamental discussion of such a variety of lighting applications. Stage Lighting has received very positive reviews from professional journals such as Lighting Design and Application (LD+A), Light and Sound America and Theatre Design and Technology (TD&T). It has also been featured in the Book of the Month columns of Production, Lights and Staging News (PLSN) and Stage Directions.
Pearson Education (Allyn & Bacon) 2011
Late And Great: American Designers 1960-2010
edited by Bobbi Owen
(R. Dunham, Contributing Author: Thomas Skelton Chapter)
Designers participate in the creation of art and entertainment productions with the same level of professionalism as performers and directors, but their names are less often remembered and their contributions can often recede into the collective memory. Late & Great: American Designers 1960-2010 helps to raise designers' public profile by honoring 25 designers with a record of their artistry. 27 authors participated in creating this volume which has an introduction by theatre design historian Arnold Aronson. The book was released in connection with USITT's 50th Celebration and is available through USITT Publications, 2010.
Practical Projects for Teaching Lighting Design (2nd Ed.)
edited by Richard Dunham
A collection of practical exercises, demonstrations, and workshop lessons compiled from numerous lighting educators throughout the country. This reference of tried teaching methods/techniques is used as a teaching resource for those who are teaching lighting at a variety of educational levels (secondary school through graduate programs). Each exercise provides a procedural outline for completing the lesson as well as a series of learning objectives and observations that will allow an instructor to plan each lesson effectively. Lessons range from simple exercises requiring no equipment and just the observation skills of the student to fully equipped light labs and realized productions. It remains one of USITT's most successful in-house publications and is available through USITT Publications, 1992 and 1999.
Projects for Teaching Scene Design
edited by Karel Blakeley
(Advising Editors: Richard Dunham and Robert Smith)
A collection of practical exercises, demonstrations and workshop lessons compiled from numerous scene design educators. This is a sister publication to Practical Projects for Teaching Lighting Design and provides tried teaching methods/techniques using a variety of exercises and studio projects for those teaching scenic design. Again, each exercise provides a procedural outline for completing the lesson as well as a series of learning objectives and observations that will allow an instructor to plan effectively for each exercise. Lessons range from simple exercises requiring no equipment to fully realized productions and is available through USITT Publications, 2006.
Theatre Design and Technology
(TD &T)
I have authored a fair number of articles and completed a number of book reviews for this trade publication over the years. TD &T is the official publication of USITT and is published on a quarterly basis. Two of my articles won Herbert D. Greggs Honor Awards which are given for the most outstanding articles that have appeared in TD & T during a year. The first, a featured article on Cirque du Soleil’s La Nouba, received a 2001 Herbert D. Greggs Honors Award while the second, for Performance Design Traditions in India: Where Past and Present Meet, was coauthored by Dr. Farley Richmond and won a 2003 Greggs Honors Award.