Webster University's Peter Sargent to Receive USITT's 2017 Thomas DeGaetani Award

Peter Sargent, founding Dean of Webster University's Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts and its Lighting Design and Stage Management programs, has been chosen to receive the 2017 Thomas DeGaetani Award from USITT.

USITT annually honors an outstanding lifetime contribution to the performing arts or entertainment industry by an individual or organization near the location of the Annual Conference & Stage Expo. The USITT 2017 conference will be held in St. Louis.

Past recipients of the award-which is named in honor of USITT's first president, Thomas DeGaetani- include Cleveland's Playhouse Square and Keven Myhre.

Sargent is celebrating his 49th season with the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis as a resident lighting designer.

Sargent is Secretary for the Board of Directors of the Arts and Education Council where he received a Lifetime Achievement Award. He is also a past recipient of USITT's Special Citation for Education.

Sargent is a member of the Educational Theatre Association Hall of Fame and the College of Fellows of American Theatre and National Theatre Conference. He is a Board member for The Shakespeare Festival St. Louis, The Tennessee Williams Festival of St. Louis, Dance St. Louis, and The Insight Theatre.

Sargent will be honored at the 57th Annual Conference & Stage Expo in St. Louis, March 8-11, 2017. The annual conference provides technical sessions, workshops, and discussions on topics from architecture, costume design & technology, engineering, rigging safety, lighting design & technology, stage management, scenic design & technology, sound design & technology, and technical production.

USITT, the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, is a national non-profit association for the live entertainment production industry. It provides hands-on learning, mentorship, and networking opportunities for emerging and working professionals in the backstage arts. Its Annual Conference and Stage Expo is the only complete production event in North America, featuring over 250 training sessions and 280 exhibitors of the latest tools and resources for creating live entertainment. More information is available at usitt.org.