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Technical Director, Schuster Theatre

MFA Theatre Technology/Production. University of Arizona; BA English and Theatre, minor in Theology/Religious Studies, University of Scranton

Theatre, Communication & Fine Arts

Jax is skilled in woodwork, metal fabrication, painting, theatre management, design, puppetry, and digital arts. Her theatre career has already taken her to the University of Arizona in Tucson; Music Theatre of Wichita, Kansas; Utah Shakespearean Festival, in Cedar City, Utah; Bucknell University, Lewisburg; Comm. Arts Center in Williamsport; and Playhouse on the Square in Memphis, Tennessee. Jax has worked in various road houses as local crew and fly crew chief.

In respect to design and technical theatre, Jax lives by the words of Julie Taymor, who said, "There is incredible power in the arts to inspire and influence." Jax challenges you to “Be an inspiration!”

Best advice I can give is to work hard and chase your dreams. The best part about theatre as an art and as a career is that nothing is out of the realm of possibility. So if you can dream it you can make it happen. Be creative. See the opportunities ahead of you, and go for it!

The people. The fact that there are so many faculty, staff and students working together. It is a place where the faculty and staff really care about what we teach and believe in why we are here. And the students are motivated and want to get every ounce of the Gannon experience while they are here. It's really amazing, and something you don't find everywhere you go.

Any student who has the "aha" moment as I call it...that's my favorite success story. It's the moment of watching a student "get it". It clicks, between what they read and learn in class, to what they are doing on stage and behind the scenes. The day that the art really sinks in and comes alive for them is when I smile, sit back, and know that something amazing just happened. An artist was born. And if I had even a tiny bit of influence on helping to make that happen, then I did my job.

Design - It is a general term that I use when saying design. I love teaching about how to develop a design. Guiding a student to see the living aspect of design (set, light, sound, costume) is an amazing thing. There is a moment when the student realizes that design is another character in the play. There is something about helping the student to answer 'where do ideas and inspiration come from?' or 'how can I do this?' that is an inspiring feeling. I love helping students to really see the world around them, to find a visual inspiration, and to turn it into a piece of art through design. Design, in any aspect, is a sculpture of the emotions and visions woven together on a stage.

I constantly read/research about new technologies in lighting, sound, and special effects. Trying to stay on top of what is current in professional theatre helps to enhance the experience that our students will get here at Gannon. In my spare time, I enjoy going back and learning about how various construction, painting, and crafting techniques were developed.