Best of CASE District II Award
 

Institution: Princeton University

Title of entry: Princeton Stage Combat Intensive Blends Swordplay, Safety, and Certifications

About this entry: This video documents Princeton’s hosting of an Intensive in Stage Combat, a rare, two-and-a-half-week professional training program held at the Lewis Center for the Arts that brought together internationally recognized stage combat instructors for the first time in nearly a decade. The primary audience was the broader theater and film community with the strategic goal of demonstrating how Princeton contributes to the field by hosting high-level professional training and opening its spaces to the wider theatrical community.

Conceived as a public-facing news piece, the video captures classes, rehearsals, certification exams, and interviews with instructors and participants. I focused on the dynamic visuals, personable characters, safety concerns, and artistry to make a highly specialized discipline accessible, allowing viewers unfamiliar with stage combat to understand both its technical rigor and its strong community.

The finished piece highlights Princeton’s role as a host and supporter of theatrical arts and illustrates how the Lewis Center connects professional-level training with undergraduate education and regional outreach. Participants included Princeton students, regional actors, and educators, underscoring the program’s inclusivity and impact.

The video will be used to promote the workshop publicly, reinforce Princeton’s stature within the theater and film industries, and communicate Princeton’s commitment to community-focused professional arts programming. By documenting a once-in-a-decade gathering, the piece functions both as timely news and as an enduring record of Princeton’s engagement with the performing arts. Its visual, accessible storytelling makes a specialized practice legible and engaging for a broad audience, serving as a model for documenting theatrical arts initiatives.