LYNN PECKTAL’S DESIGNING AND PAINTING FOR THE THEATRE, PART 1

IF YOU’VE EVER DREAMT—AS I DID—OF A CAREER in theater set design, then Lynn Pecktal’s books would have been your required must-reads: Designing and Painting for the Theatre, 1975; Costume Design: Techniques of Modern Masters, 1993; and Designing and Drawing for the Theatre, 1994. 

As described “In Memoriam: Lynn Pecktal,” who died in 2016 at age 85, this renowned costume/set designer, author, and teacher began his career in set design at Barter Theatre, the State Theatre of Virginia. 

Image from Barter Theatre. 

Pecktal studied at Emory & Henry College as an undergrad (he would later be awarded a spot on Barter Theatre’s “Walk of Fame” for designing the sets for over 100 shows). His graduate work included stage design at the Yale School of Drama.

Pecktal taught stage design at the North Carolina School of the Arts and Carnegie Mellon University, and lectured at several universities.  

Designing and Painting for the Theatre, by Lynn Pecktal, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1975. 

Pecktal’s is a treasured book in my theater arts collection. See also “Theatre Arts—Benois Père et Fils,”“Commedia Dell’Arte and the Art of The Deal,” “Oenslager on Theatrical Topics,” “Erté, Marion Davies, and William Randolph Hearst,” and “The Theatrical Prints of the Torii Masters.”

Famed artists also work in theatre set and costume design. Above, Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, set and costumes by Marc Chagall, The Metropolitan Opera, New York, 1967. Below Parade, a video by Europa Danse, sets and costumes by Pablo Picasso. 

In citing the famed Jo Mielziner, Pecktal observes, “The fully practicing stage designer, in addition to everything else he must be, is a combination painter, sculptor, draftsman, architect, upholsterer, electrician, plumber, and all-round stage technician.”

Cutaway drawing of the Radio City Music Hall stage, elevated by hydraulic pistons. Photo courtesy Radio City Music Hall via Designing and Painting for the Theatre.  

Following here in Part 2 are tidbits on several of these occupational themes, as well as related ones described by Pecktal in his fine book. ds

© Dennis Simanaitis, SimanaitisSays.com, 2026