About Me – Scott C. Parker, Lighting Designer

It all started in a small one room shack in the middle of the village. Well, maybe not. The small shack was an apartment in New York and the village was Greenwich Village. Born to an artist and a writer, I grew up surrounded by creativity. My first school was the progressive City & Country School on 12th Street. From there, I went up to the Elizabeth Seeger High School. Really, I went up… The Seeger School rented a floor from City & Country. After Seeger, I went to Bennington College to major in Photography. It was there that I discovered that I would prefer to work in a large dark room with a lot of people rather than by myself in the photo darkroom. I found Lighting Design. Here is a copy of what I place in programs when there’s room. Most often, it’s much shorter.

Program Bio version one:

With over 30 years of experience as a freelance lighting designer, Scott C. Parker has spent the past five years driving industry software standards as the Product Planner for Vectorworks Spotlight. His corporate event portfolio spans lighting design and complex rigging specifications for high-profile national conventions and awards shows. Dedicated to advancing theatrical education, Scott provides specialized professional development workshops for educators in theatrical design and production. He is also the long-standing producer of New York City’s Stage Lighting Super Saturday workshop, an event he co-founded with Sonny Sonnenfeld in 2005 and presented through 2020 (stageseminars.com). Honored by the USITT with the Distinguished Achievement Award for Education, Scott continues to contribute to the national conference. His extensive teaching credits include Rutgers, Temple, Columbus State, Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film, Pace, City Tech, City College, Edward R. Murrow School, and Berkeley Carroll School. Scott maintains active credentials as a USA829 member, an ETCP certified electrician and Theater Rigger, and a recognized ETCP trainer.

Program Bio version two:

Mr. Parker has been a lighting, sound, and scenic designer, Equity stage manager, and technical director in New York for over three decades, and for the past five years, he has served as the Product Planner for Vectorworks Spotlight. His diverse theatrical credits include Radio City Music Hall, the Lincoln Center Institute, Gene Frankle Theater, The Public, John Houseman Theater, American Place, Town Hall, and various regional theaters from Boston to Nashville to Nebraska. His corporate portfolio features extensive design and rigging specifications for major conventions and awards shows. He also provides professional development workshops for teachers specializing in theatrical design and production. From 2005 through 2020, Scott produced the annual Stage Lighting Super Saturday workshop in NYC, which he co-founded with Sonny Sonnenfeld (stageseminars.com). Additionally, Mr. Parker has worked as a TV News Cameraman, with work appearing locally on all NYC news programs, nationally, and internationally on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, TNN, CNBC, overseas television, Good Morning America, 48 Hours, and Regis Philbin. A member of AEA and USA829, he holds an MFA in Theatrical Design & Technology from Brooklyn College and a BA from Bennington College, with additional design studies at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, The Studio School of Stage Design, and The Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. He is an ETCP Certified Electrician and Theater Rigger, a recognized ETCP trainer, and a recipient of the USITT Distinguished Achievement Award for Education.