After receiving his B.S. in Physics and Mathematics from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon, in 1952, David Thayer (DT) came to the University of Iowa for graduate study in 1953 in what was then called the Department of Speech and Dramatic Art, still chaired by its founder, E.C. Mabie (1893-1956). His initial teaching assistantship at Iowa was in television. In 1955, he completed his M.A., and Mabie hired him as an Instructor of Dramatic Art, his first Iowa faculty appointment. He became an Assistant Professor in 1960 after he earned his PhD with a dissertation entitled "A Study of the Influences of Conventional Film Lighting on Audience Response." He was promoted to Associate Professor in 1965 and Full Professor in 1968.
David headed the Design Program from 1973 to 1996 and the Theatre Technology Program from 1973 until its discontinuation in 1993. He served multiple years as Production Manager for the Performing Arts Production Unit, University Theatres, and the Iowa Center for the Arts. As a consultant for the planning of several University buildings, he played a lead role in the design of the 1985 addition to Mabie Theatre to form the Theatre Building, which featured two new experimental theatres, originally called Theatre A and Theatre B. As Interim Department Chair in 1990-91, David presided over the hiring of Alan MacVey, who began his term as Chair in Fall 1991.
A prolific artist, David designed lighting for world premiere productions of 21 plays, 7 operas, more than 100 dances, and over 150 other productions on campus and elsewhere, including many in the auditorium of the old Hancher over that building’s lifetime (1972-2008). David was instrumental in establishing design as a central element in the American College Theatre Festival, and in 1997 was honored with the Kennedy Center/ACTF Gold Medallion for Lifetime Service. After 42 years as a full-time Iowa faculty member, David officially retired in 1997. That year, Theatre A was dedicated to him and renamed in his honor. David continued to teach on an adjunct basis, attend faculty meetings, serve on committees, and design one or two productions each year until 2016.
Scholarship Fund
The David L. Thayer Memorial Scholarship Fund has been created, started by a generous gift from Judy Thayer, David's wife, to support graduate students in the Department of Theatre Arts' design program. The design program of the Department of Theatre Arts is dedicated to the lasting legacy of the lifetime of excellence that David modeled, in addition to helping theatre artists at the start of their careers. Please make a gift in support of the David Thayer Scholarship Fund today.