Today we’d like to introduce you to Danika Yacik.
Hi Danika, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
As a child, I always loved being involved in the arts and as soon as I was able, I began performing in theatre productions. My time on stage in middle school and high school inspired me to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Musical Theatre at DeSales University. In the summer of 2014, I worked as an intern at the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival (PSF), where I discovered a love and talent for Scenic Art. The simple task of priming a piece of foam sparked my passion for painting and from there, I knew what I wanted to do as a career. I continued my program at DeSales and worked as the Scenic Artist and Assistant Scenic Charge Artist for PSF’s 2015, 2016, and 2017 Seasons, Post-graduation, I attended the two year “Scenic Artist Training Program” at Cobalt Studios in White Lake, NY. At Cobalt, I received concentrated training in Scenic Art techniques, like creating woodgrain, marble, and signage. My love for the craft grew, and I was fortunate to share my time with 4 other incredibly talented scenic artists from around the country. After graduating in May 2019, I moved in with my fiancé in Georgia. Thanks to another Atlanta-based scenic artist, I began working in June at Dad’s Garage, a comedy-improv theater company in the Old Fourth Ward. Working at Dad’s Garage grew my profile and reputation in the Atlanta theatre community. Since then, I’ve spent time working at the Theatrical Outfit, Alliance Theatre, Horizon Theatre, and Actor’s Express and my passion for theatre production still burns bright.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Not always! The programs I attended could be very demanding at times, which exhausted my mind, body and spirit. But honestly, my love for the work and my peers has always helped carry me through those difficulties. The hardest challenge I have had to face so far was the loss of live theatre, and therefore income, during the Covid-19 pandemic. I had several jobs lined up in February 2020, and by mid-March, they were all postponed – and ultimately canceled. I know I am not the only theatre artist who felt this loss. Live theatre still has not fully recovered, which means that I, and hundreds like me, still struggle to fill my schedule with work sometimes. I feel very lucky – because of the wonderful people I have met in the theatre community, I was able to still make some money, even if it wasn’t painting for stage productions. Over the last 3 years, I’ve spent time creating murals and set pieces for commercials, print advertisements, and TV shows. I painted commissioned works for friends and family. I even painted the exterior of an Airstream Trailer for a client I met through Dad’s Garage. My sincere hope is that live theatre will make a full recovery and that the artists that make it happen can get consistent work again.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am mainly a freelance scenic artist, which means I take the designs and renderings for a particular production set and use my knowledge and experience to make them a reality on stage. The theatre’s Technical Director and carpenters build the structure of the set and I apply paint, foam, and other mediums to bring the pieces to life. Over my years as a professional, I’ve particularly honed my skills in woodgrain, brick, and being able to see the layers in a design. I’ve been the Scenic Charge Artist at Theatrical Outfit since the winter of 2019 and have been a part of painting numerous sets at Dad’s Garage. I’m proud of my personal growth and perseverance as an artist. I am especially proud of my ability to bring to life designs that have felt totally impossible at first. I care a lot about my craft and because of that, I am probably my harshest critic. I want to make the Scenic Designer’s vision come to fruition and create a beautiful backdrop for the stories the audiences come to see. Theatre is made possible only by the collaboration of many artists, and I take my contribution to it very seriously. I love what I do and I want that passion to shine through my work.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters most to me is making sure that I, and other theatre artists behind the scenes, get the recognition we deserve. It’s very easy to highlight the on-stage performers in productions but also very easy to forget those who work behind-the-scenes… There are a lot of people backstage and in pre-production who might never have their work noticed. While the actors and directors are spending many hours a day rehearsing and blocking a show, there are also electricians, scenic artists, carpenters, costumers, and prop designers giving their time and expertise to create the finished product you see onstage. In many cases, audience members will only learn these people’s names by reading a program. These artists are not typically credited in reviews or articles that talk about current productions. Actors, directors, and designers give their time and energy to put on the show, but without countless other creatives and their hard work, the final product would not be possible. I want to use my platform to increase awareness of the other, less visible, artists in theatre that play a critical role in creating the productions that the community enjoys.
Contact Info:
- Email: dnoellescenicartist@gmail.com
- Instagram: danika_noelle_scenic
Image Credits
Danika Yacik, Andrew Palmer
