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Mr. Nellis was rigger for the Walter Gloor Mainstage spring musical production of “The Wizard of Oz."
The internship was established in 2002 in memory of Jurgen P. Banse-Fay, a 1988 alumnus and former Rockefeller Arts Center Operations Manager and Technical Director. Mr. Banse-Fay died in 2001 at the age of 35. The award is given annually to a junior or senior on Rockefeller Arts Center’s student technical staff who best exemplifies the work ethic, professionalism and friendly disposition displayed by Mr. Banse-Fay during his years at the school. “My gratitude goes to Rockefeller Arts Center and the Banse-Fay family,” Mr. Nellis said.
Mr. Nellis served as assistant technical director and light shop supervisor for Rockefeller Arts Center during the 2005-2006 season. His behind-the-scenes experience also includes over 20 productions with the Glimmerglass Opera in Cooperstown, a summer as assistant lighting designer and master electrician for the Chautauqua Theatre Company and lighting work for Syracuse Stage.
The son of Karen and Blaine Nellis of Palatine Bridge – a small village located in Montgomery County in mid-eastern New York – Mr. Nellis graduated from Canajoharie Senior High School in 2001. It was during those years that he developed his fascination with the world of theatre.
“A production of ‘Barnum’ in 1996 at Canajoharie High sparked my interest in theatrical technology,” Mr. Nellis said. “Then, when I had the opportunity to work with Glimmerglass Opera in 2000, I chose to make my career in theatre.”
As a member of the student technical staff at Rockefeller Arts Center, Mr. Nellis has relished his opportunities to work with some of SUNY Fredonia’s top backstage personnel.
“I feel that I have grown in my field, thanks, in part, to my experiences with Rockefeller Arts Center,” he said. “Eric Hadley (current Arts Center technical director and operations manager) has, in many ways, inspired me professionally. Operating three performance venues is a daunting yet enlightening task that he loves to share with his assistant technical directors and his crew. Also, to say that (SUNY Fredonia Professor of Theatre) Steve Rees is an excellent educator at would be an understatement. I gained a plethora of knowledge while rigging scenery under his direction for ‘The Wizard of Oz’ in April.”
