About | Catherine M. Pratt

Mood

Atmosphere

Environment

Ideas

Themes

How do you tell your story?

Within the world of theatre and dance, design brings stories alive around the performers. Lighting design can transform the story moment to moment, connecting the audience to the action and to each other. As a whole, the story is what drives the design. Broken down into each moment the use of color and the power of transitions can be used to create the mood, atmosphere, environment, and bring out the emotions driving the story forward. Through these elements, lighting is able to subconsciously pull the audience into the story and action.

For every production my goal is to capture the audience from the moment they walk into the theatre until they leave at the end of the performance. I utilize transitions, pacing, and movement to transform and carry the audience through the story. Each lighting cue is carefully considered to pull the audience into the performance, directing their attention to the action while building and transforming the world around them. Color is another element that I strongly use as a communication tool. Through color psychology, color is able to capture the viewer while informing them of the themes, moods, emotions, and emotional journey being told on a conscious and subconscious level.

No matter the production, the story and experiences in the theatre connect the audience together, leaving an impression long after the performance is over.

Catherine M. Pratt is a Las Vegas based Lighting Designer. Recent credits include Catch Me if You Can (Bishop Gorman High School), Again and Again and Again (Opera Las Vegas), School of Rock (Super Summer Theatre), La Bohème (Opera Las Vegas), Spring Music Spectacular (Bishop Gorman), Follies (Metropolis Theatricals), The Mousetrap (Signature Productions), Prelude (Laguna Dance Festival) Les Miserables (Bishop Gorman), Winter Music Extravaganza (Bishop Gorman), Pippin (Bishop Gorman), Behold the Man- World Premiere (Opera Las Vegas), Something Rotten (Super Summer Theatre), La Traviata, Approaching Ali, A Capacity for Evil (all Opera Las Vegas), Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (Rainbow Company Youth Theatre), Elf the Musical (Sierra Repertory Theatre), Letters to Lily (Opera Las Vegas), Proving Up (Opera Las Vegas), La Canterina &Der Scheuspiedirektor (UNLV Theatre Opera & Nevada Conservatory Theatre) Little Shop of Horrors (Nevada Conservatory Theatre), Last Dance (UNLV Department of Dance), Yesterday Today Tomorrow (UNLV Department of Dance), Marcus; or the Secret of Sweet (Nevada Conservatory Theatre), and Brushstrokes of Motion (UNLV Department of Dance). Catherine has also served as the onsite technical director for Laguna Dance Festival (2024) and works with the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus on their concerts held in Hamm Hall on UNLV’s campus.

Catherine also holds a passion for education and strives to work within educational settings whenever possible. She works alongside students at Bishop Gorman High School, sharing her knowledge and training them to run followspots and the light console for all productions. Each fall she teaches Vectorworks Drafting at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Through her graduate studies, Catherine has received the Joe Aldridge Award for Outstanding Graduate in Design/Technology (May 2022), 3rd place in the 2021 SETC Design Competition for her Lighting Design of Marcus; or the Secret of Sweet at the Nevada Conservatory Theatre, and was chosen as a mentee in the 2021 Fred Foster Mentorship Program.

Outside of Catherine’s work as a lighting designer, she has experience in stage management and electrician work. She works full-time with 4Wall Entertainment as the Prep Coordinator in their Las Vegas location.

Upcoming Projects:

- Winter Music Extravangaza- Bishop Gorman High School (Las Vegas, NV.)- December 6th, 2024

- Living Nativity- Green Valley Baptist Church (Henderson, NV.)- December 12th-15th, 2024

- Be of Good Cheer- Las Vegas Men's Chorus (Las Vegas, NV.)- December 15th, 2024

- Jesus Christ Superstar- Bishop Gorman High School (Las Vegas, NV.)- February 21st- March 2nd, 2025