蘑菇AV BA Stage Design and Technical Theatre grad profile: A Q & A with Eden Reshef
Q: Tell us a bit about yourself and life before you started university.
A: I am a born theatre kid, I鈥檝e been doing theatre on and offstage ever since I was four and I wouldn鈥檛 want it any other way.
Q: What led you to your major?
A: I have been acting my whole life and heading into university I wanted to see how I could expand my skill set and add to the ways I could create theatre, so I could spend my life immersed in the spaces I love.
Q: What is a memory from your first year that brings you joy?
A: In my first year I was a part of the (DTS) and we put together a musical theatre karaoke event. After karaoke was winding down none of us really wanted to leave and instead we spontaneously started a 鈥楶itch Perfect鈥�-style riff off in the basement of the Arts Center. We didn鈥檛 stop until 2am.
Q: Tell us about a big accomplishment during your time here.
A: This spring I completed my first produced set design for the Fountain School鈥檚 final production of the year, The Odyssey. When I came to Dal I knew I wanted to focus on set design and so I鈥檝e been working toward this for the past four years. I began working on this project in August of last year all the way until it opened in March and I had the opportunity to collaborate with local theatre professionals with designs built and staged by my peers. It was, in two words, the best.
Q: Favourite class/ faculty while here and why?
A: The Advanced Seminar in Baroque Culture in Cesky Krumlov! 1000% my favourite moment of university in my favourite class with my favourite professor. This is a study abroad course that takes you to a small town in the Czech Republic where they have one of the oldest functioning original baroque theatres in the world. It also happens to be located inside a castle which also happens to house your dorm rooms for the month. I was lucky enough to take this course with my favourite prof, the legendary Jure Gantar who is famous around here for his theatre history lectures and his PowerPoint animations.聽聽
Eden, front row, second from left, with Fountain School classmates during the Cesky Krumlov study abroad 2024 trip.聽
Q: Most rewarding part of your time here at the Fountain School?
A: The peers you grow through the program with. Along with being incredible artists, I鈥檓 very lucky to say that my peers in my graduating class are my close friends and newly professional collaborators. We鈥檙e emerging into the professional world together, and I know we will be supporting one another long after we鈥檝e graduated.
听蚕: How did the program arm you with the practical skills you'll need to start shaping your career?
A: One thing the program does very well is give you substantial experience in every discipline before you narrow down your training into your chosen focus. Through my experience at this school and in professional theatre, I鈥檝e found there is no way to fully understand what it means to do a certain job until you鈥檝e been in that position yourself. This program has built-in opportunities for that type of learning. Even when you work on a crew skill you don鈥檛 necessarily want to focus on, you come away from that experience in a much more adept, empathetic and knowledgeable position to fulfill your chosen career.
Q: Any advice for those starting the program this fall?
A: Get yourself a good pair of steel-toed boots! Your gear is the equivalent of the textbooks the other majors require. You鈥檒l be spending a lot of time in them, so make sure you like them. And relish the paint splatters you will inevitably get all over them.
Q: What's next for you?聽
A: I鈥檓 currently dressing for Come From Away at Neptune, and this summer I鈥檒l be set designing Festival Antigonish鈥檚 production of Beyond the Sea.聽Set Design by Eden Reshef, in 蘑菇AV's 2026 The Odyssey.聽Built and staged by fellow carpentry and paint crew students.