Tharon Musser

Tharon Musser (born 1925) is a Tony Award winning lighting designer who has worked on over 150 Broadway shows. She is the current Dean of American Lighting Designers. She is best known for her groundbreaking work on the Broadway musicals "Dreamgirls" in 1982 and "A Chorus Line" in 1975. "A Chorus Line" was the first Broadway production to utilize a completely computerized lighting console instead of the manually operated "piano boards."She is considered one of the pioneers in the field of lighting design.

Life

Tharon graduated from Berea College in 1946 and, like lighting designer Jean Rosenthal, attended Yale University, obtaining her MFA in 1950. It is a common misconception that upon moving to New York that she became an assistant in Rosenthal's studio, but Tharon never assisted Jean. Her first Broadway lighting credit was José Quintero's staging of Eugene O'Neill's "Long Day's Journey into Night" in 1956 at the original Helen Hayes Theatre.

She designed on Broadway from 1956-1999 and her notable credits include two of the longest running Broadway shows: Michael Bennett's "A Chorus Line", which ran from 1975 to 1990 and is currently in revival, and Gower Champion's "42nd Street" running from 1980 to 1988. She has also worked with playwright Neil Simon and choreographer José Limón.

In 1972 she won her first Tony Award for Best Lighting Design for "Follies" which was directed by Harold Prince and choreographed by Michael Bennett. That was followed by Tonys for Michael Bennett's "A Chorus Line" in 1976 and his "Dreamgirls" in 1982. In 1980 she received a Drama Desk nomination for her design of "Children of a Lesser God" . She was honored as a USITT Distinguished Lighting Designer in 1996.

At the first Eddy awards cermony presented by Entertainment Design in 2000 there was a panel discussion by the original production team of "A Chorus Line". When asked what would she change in the show lighting after 25 years, Musser replied "Nothing, but I might use color changers." Fact|date=February 2007

At the 2007 United States Institute of Theatre Technology (USITT) conference in Phoenix, Arizona, Musser was honored with a presentation made by a number of her former assistants throughout her long and impressive career. To celebrate this event, USITT published a detailed book honoring her life, artistry and remarkable career as an American lighting designer.

Tony Award Wins

Tony Award for Best Lighting Design:

*1972 "Follies"

*1976 "A Chorus Line"

*1982 "Dreamgirls"

Tony Award Nominations

Tony Award for Best Lighting Design:

*1970 "Applause"

*1973 "A Little Night Music"

*1974 "The Good Doctor"

*1976 "Pacific Overtures"

*1978"The Act"

*1979 "Ballroom"

*1981 "42nd Street"

External links

* [http://www.ibdb.com/person.asp?ID=25815 Tharon Musser] at the Internet Broadway Database
* [http://www.northern.edu/wild/LiteDes/ldhist.htm A brief History of stage lighting] by Larry Wild at Northern State University