This month marks the start of the term for several new Members of USITT’s Board of Directors! Meet our new Board Members below, and be sure to stop and tell them hello at our Annual Conference & Stage Expo in Columbus next spring!

Kasey Allee Foreman (Board President) has served as Associate Producer and Production Manager for University Theatre productions in the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts at the University of Oklahoma for over a decade. A short listing of her professional theatre/live entertainment credits include: SphinxCON, a conference promoting Diversity in the Arts; Canterbury Choral: Bernstein’s Mass; Houston Grand Opera: Renée Fleming’s premiere La Traviata (world premiere); Stages Repertory Theatre (Houston); Houston Shakespeare Festival; Shakespeare Festival at Tulane (New Orleans); Theatre West (Los Angeles). Professional film credits include: Mystery, Alaska; Lost and Found; Austin Powers: The Spy who Shagged Me. Kasey has been a member of USITT at the regional level and/or national level for over 30 years. She is proud to have served on the USITT Board of Directors as the VP for Conferences, the VP for Education and Training and as a Director, as well as on the board of USITT-Southwest. She has served USITT on the Conference Committee as chair and member, IDEAS Committee as chair and member, on the Awards Committee, Compensation Committee, Grants and Fellowships Committee. Kasey is the co-founder of the Gateway Program and has been the Co-chair of the Women in Theatre Network. Kasey received her MFA in Costume Design and Technology and Lighting Design and Technology from the University of New Orleans and her BA in Theatre Arts from Furman University. She is a second degree blackbelt in TaeKwonDo and has studied Isshinryu Karate and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. 

Tammy Honesty (Board Treasurer) is a scenic designer, scenic artist, and educator. In Tammy’s career as an educator, she has taught both full- and part-time at a variety of universities ranging from 2-year degrees to 4-year conservatory programs with graduate students. Currently, she is an Associate Professor of Scenic Design at West Virginia University. She recently served as the Vice President of Education & Training and continues as the leader of Women in Theatre/member of the I.D.E.A.S. committee. From 2001-2012, she was active in the Ohio Valley Section, as Board Member at Large for 3 years followed by two terms as Vice Chair of Programming. In 2009, she served as a Regional Programming Co-Coordinator for the National Conference & Stage Expo. That experience ignited her passion for serving the organization at the national level. Since then, she has been a trouble-shooter, a conference office manager, an Assistant Programming Coordinator (2013- 3 15), a Programming Coordinator (2016-2019), and Director of Board (2015-2019), which was both enlightening and energizing. Tammy’s involvement in the various facets of USITT has helped her to become a better educator, designer, and theatrical artist. Tammy is also a member of USA Local 829 and a member of the Behind-the-Scenes Mental Health Initiative (BTSMHI) Steering Committee, the group encompasses all areas of live entertainment in North America from IATSE roadies to musicians to Broadway to TV/film to higher education.

Jim Streeter (Director) is currently the Production Manager for Princeton University’s Production Arts Services at the Frist Theatre. Prior to that, he was the Resident Lighting Designer and Master Electrician for Princeton’s Program in Theatre and Dance (now part of The Lewis Center for the Arts). He is a current member of the Board of Directors as the VP for Exhibitions, the Conference Committee as chair of the Emerging Creatives Showcase (formerly The Young Designers, Managers and Technicians Forum), and the I.D.E.A.S. Committee. He also served on the Executive Director Search Committee. He is a former VC for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion for the Lighting Design and Technology Commission, having served in that role from 2014 - to 2021. From 2004 – to 2010, he was part of the group that revived the NY Area Section serving as By-Laws Committee chair, Vice Chairman, and Chairman of the section. He has twice been a mentor in the Gateway Program. At the 2017 Conference, he presented, with former alumni, the session “Polakov and The Studio and Forum of Stage Design. At the 2015 Conference, he presented, with Daunte Kenner, the session “Why Can’t I use Green? Lighting for the Multi-Ethnic Cast” and was also a panelist for the “Thomas Skelton Retrospective”. He is a graduate of the Center for Media Arts and studied lighting design at The Studio and Forum of Stage Design in New York City.

Ford Sellers (Director) has over 30 years of experience in the lighting industry, beginning in Las Vegas, as an electrician, spot-op, and board-op on large production shows, and transitioning to Corporate A/V. He returned to academic theatre in 2001 as the Master Electrician for Cornell University’s School of Theatre, Film, and Dance where he reconnected with USITT. When he left Cornell to become the Sr Product Manager for Chauvet in 2010, he held-on to the idea that USITT can have a greater impact beyond academia. He’s worked with Chauvet to engage with the institute, and it’s mission to promote the advancement of the knowledge and skills of its members and to facilitate communication among performing arts practitioners, entertainment industry professionals, educators, and students. For the last decade, his volunteer work with USITT has primarily consisted of: serving on the Lighting Commission (8 yrs, Currently as Vendor Liason), hosting sessions at several Expos, being a reviewer for the Young Designers Managers & Technician Awards, presenting a 90min Webinar for USITT’s FORUM@4: “Mixing different LED color systems in a single lighting rig”, chairing sessions at various Expo’s on topics including fixture maintenance, Concert Lighting Design, among others, volunteering both on the Lighting Commission and at the Expos. Throughout his career, he has strived to educate & elevate his peers. Whether by mentoring, developing training courses, teaching, pushing for inclusion on his teams, or by presenting at the USITT and PLASA Expos, his goal has always been to educate and invigorate the teams on which he has served.

Shane Kelly (Director) is Professor and Head of The Theatre Technology Program at The Theatre School at DePaul University. He is the co-author (with Jay O. Glerum) of the upcoming 4th edition of the Stage Rigging Handbook. Shane has been rigging for 25 years and conducts inspections, installations, specification of systems, and safety training via his company Shane Kelly Rigging. He has been a USITT member since 2003 and have served the institute at all levels during his career. Shane has served as the USITT Midwest Regional Section chair and vice-chair for programming and is the faculty advisor for the DePaul University student chapter. He previously served on the Board of Directors from 2014-2020 and has served on the nominations, publications, international, and tech expo committees and is an active member of the technical production, management, and international commissions. Shane was the faculty coordinator of USITT’s/Cirque du Soleil Elite Training Las Vegas from 2011-2018 and is one of the Jay O. Glerum Rigging Masterclass instructors leading the advanced track. Shane is an ETCP Certified Rigger (Arena and Theatre), ETCP Recognized Trainer, OSHA Authorized General Industry Outreach Trainer, and American Red Cross Authorized Training Provider. Shane’s professional practice and research is focused on sustainability and ecodramaturgy. He worked as a producer, production manager, technical director, and rigger and was the Associate Director of Education for SpaceLab at the 2015 Prague Quadrennial and Technical Director for Six Acts at the 2011 Prague Quadrennial Scenofest. 

Kimberly Corbett Oates (Director) ASTC, is a Partner at Schuler Shook, a consultancy specializing in theatre planning, architectural lighting, and audio-video design. Her recent projects include the Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center at the University of Memphis, TN, and Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences, Lubbock, TX. Kimberly joined USITT in 2005, attending her first Conference that year. She was a young dancer and later a musician, but backstage production became her passion. Her theatrical credits include lighting and scenic design, a variety of technician positions, and stage and production management. In her volunteer work, she runs audio, graphics, and video production for weekly livestreams. Kimberly is currently on the USITT Board. She has sat on the Audit, Research, and Membership Committees. Kimberly is past Commissioner for the Engineering Commission, where she helped increase participation and membership. In this role, she became familiar with conference programming. She has been a contributor to TD&T and a panelist at the Annual Conference for multiple sessions. 6 Kimberly holds a BS in mechanical engineering with a theatre minor from Lafayette College and an MFA from the Yale School of Drama. She is a member of the American Society of Theatre Consultants (ASTC), the International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM), and AIA Dallas chapter, and the International Council of Fine Arts Deans (ICFAD). She is on the Board of Directors for IAVM Region 6. Kimberly was previously a member of the ESTA Technical Standards Program, serving on the TSC and Floors, Rigging, and Control Protocols Working Groups.

Danielle Ranisate (2024 Board Fellow) is a Scenic Artist and Designer, majoring in Set Design at Colorado State University, and getting a minor in American Sign Language. She has been a Department Mentor for the past three years and has just been elected to the Student Advisory Council for CSU’s School of Music, Theatre, and Dance.

Over the past few years, she has worked on Set Design teams Collegiately: Silent Sky, Spring Awakening, and The Rocky Horror Show, and has worked as a Scenic Artist Regionally: Maine State Music Theatre’s 2023 and Illinois Shakespeare Festival’s 2022 Season, Collegiately: CSU’s current season, and previous 2021-23 seasons. She is very excited to be setting up a USITT student chapter at CSU this year. When she is not painting, she’s learning how to juggle or trying new knitting patterns.