In 1956, pioneering African American playwright Alice Childress won the Obie Award for Trouble in Mind, her scathingly funny backstage study of racism in the theatre world that could have been written today (or tomorrow). Wiletta Mayer is a talented but struggling actress who has the opportunity to become the first leading lady of color on the Great White Way, but is she willing to compromise her beliefs to make the career leap?

The Sound Design for Trouble in Mind included 1950s Jazz and Blues. I specially used music from people of color, since this show is heavily centered around themes of racism and prejudice views that still exist in show business today.

The play’s form was realism, so as the sound designer every sound I made needed to feel entirely believable and realistic in the world.

I created the illusion of the exterior door of the theatre opening and closing as actors entered from the busy New York street, and I had to keep in mind what a street sounded like in the 50s verses the sounds one would hear on the street today.

I also created the illusion of applause sounds that came from a tape recorder onstage by hiding a small speaker inside the table that the tape recorder sat on. Collaboration with the stage manger, Jamie, was essential in making sure these tape recorder cues were taken as soon as actors pressed the buttons on the tape recorder, in order to complete the illusion. The tape recorder can be seen in in the picture on the left as well as the table that it sat on in Act II.

Written by Alice Childress

Directed by John Demita

Lighting by Ivan Anguiano

Costumes by Terry Gordon

Set by Qixing Tong

Sound by Joy Cheever

Stage Managed by Jamie Salinger

A present-day version of a classic Greek myth, The Minotaur examines the tensions between family, love and individual choice. Ariadne must choose between her half-brother, the Minotaur, and a handsome hero, Theseus. With refreshing originality and wit, it explores how we break out of history in order to shape new stories for ourselves.

Working closely with my director, Jonathan, I created a soundscape for The Minotaur that was evocative of the locations of the play without being literal. The world of the play was very much abstract, as was the telling of the story itself. These sounds included creaking wood to indicate a traveling ship, or a low rumble through the sub speakers to create the world of the labyrinth. In addition, quick transitions were emphasized by including quick swish sounds to help indicate a change in scene. The sound became a character in the play itself, often times reacting with and around the actors movements, thoughts, and feelings. It was important for me as the designer to find a language of sound for the play that fit just right to help tell the story, and would not overwhelm or distract the audience from the actors onstage.

Directed by Jonathan Muñoz-Proulx

Sound Design by Joy Cheever

Lighting Design by Derek Christiansen

Set Design Effy Yizhou Yang

Costume Design by JoEllen Skinner

Stage Managed by Damaris Eddy

Performed at LATC in Downtown LA

Sound Design and Recorded Voiceover Content by Joy Cheever

We used the instrumental version of the opening and I recorded the ensemble singing on a Neumann TLM 103 in Pro-Tools. Then, I collaborated with the animations designer, Collin Schuster, to create this fun opening! We initially decided to record the opening so it would match with the animation. Throughout the show there were various other animations played with voiceover content. The video was played on a TV screen which I programmed through Q-lab 4.

During Summer 2019 I had the incredible opportunity to be a Sound Intern for Into the Woods at the Hollywood Bowl! I helped load equipment in and out of the rehearsal space, put mics on actors during rehearsals, and once we moved to the Bowl I helped out with various tasks throughout tech since the Hollywood Bowl has their own Union staff. I learned so much along the way. It was the first time I’ve ever worked on a production of this scale and so I was absolutely thrilled to be surrounded by so much talent!

First performed in 1709, this brilliantly witty and fast-paced comedy follows the characters Miranda and Isabinda as they attempt to arrange marriages to the men they love. Meanwhile, the hapless “busy body” Marplot tries to help his friends, but his valiant efforts only succeed in leading them closer towards disaster.

The music transitions, a large part of the design, fit the baroque time period and strengthened the comedic and lively nature of the play. I used music from Vivaldi, as his fast music fit perfectly with the fast paced nature of the play.

Alleyway seating presented an unusual challenge, but with strategic surround speaker placement the fullness of the sound system along with directional sound for source specific sound effects was achieved.

The Busybody performed March 28th - 31st 2019 in the Scene Dock theatre at USC.

Long Story Short is an original Song Cycle produced by MTR and written entirely by USC Students. Students write their own musical theatre songs and submit them to MTR, and MTR picks songs from the submissions. All songs have their own original lyrics and MTR helps to orchestrate the songs.

I designed the sound for the original production, and I also mixed the live performance with a six piece orchestra. In addition, as a MTR board member I helped pick songs and collaborated with the other board members to create a cohesive show. The end result was a success. MTR was set to produce Long Story Short Volume 2, but unfortunately the production was cancelled due to Covid-19.

Othello performed Feb 27th-Mar 1st in the Bing Theatre

Working with USC’s Year 2 MFA Acting students, Othello was my first opportunity to work on a show in USC’s main stage proscenium space, The Bing Theatre.

Each actor wore a wireless mic. Mics and Shakespeare? Yes! The actors were amplified ever so slightly so that the back row of audience members could comfortably listen to the language of the play, which was important to me and our Director, Kate Burton.

The Sound Design for Othello included transition music and real world sound effects. The transition music was used to show the passage of time and to convey mood to the audience. Real world sound effects, like bells, trumpets, and a thunderstorm were taken from the text and brought to life. The thunderstorm sequence when the characters travel from Venice to Cyprus included thunder, waves, wood creaking from a ship, rain, and ship bells. The sound travelled from one side of the house to the other, conveying how the characters were traveling to another land. The storm then faded away in the distance and soft waves on the shore were heard as well as seagulls that bounced around the theatre house.

The play’s music and tone get darker as the show goes on, and the music and design follows that. In the end, after the final line of the play, a bass boom is heard that goes with a blackout from lighting, signaling the dark end to the tragedy.

Download Signal Flow Chart here

Directed by Kate Burton

Sound Design by Joy Cheever

Lighting Design by Eliot Ohlemeyer

Set Design by Qixing Tong

Costume Design by Howard Schmitt

Stage Management by Megan Burns

I served as the Production Mixer for The Secret Garden!

Unfortunately, The Secret Garden was cancelled due to Covid-19. We were just about to go into tech for the show when it was cancelled, and I was in the middle of practicing the mix and learning the show for line by line mixing. I had the privilege to work with Mia-Glenn Schuster, Secret Garden Sound Designer, during the rehearsal process. She had the idea of adding reverb to the characters who were ghosts in the show in order to further build the world of the musical and to indicate to the audience the difference between ghosts and the living. We were in the process of finding the balance of just how much reverb to add.