NIU STEAM Café: The Art and Science of Live Special Effects

NIU STEAM Café: The Art and Science of Live Special Effects Oct. 7, 2026 6:30 p.m. Fatty’s Pub and Grille (1312 W. Lincoln Hwy, DeKalb, IL) Speaker: Tracy Nunnally, Professor of Theatre Technology and Technical Director, NIU School of Theatre and Dance Science, technology and art come together when creating special effects for live entertainment events. Every minute of entertainment represents many hours of work behind the scenes by specialists in engineering, materials science and mathematics. NIU Professor of Theatre Tracy Nunnally has been one of our most popular STEAM Café presenters. At this STEAM Café, he’ll present an updated talk about how engineering and math help to keep people safe while making them feel as if they’ve been part of death-defying feats. Professor Nunnally will delve into the fascinating details of special effects planning and safety analysis as he walks the audience through the process of moving live theatrical effects from idea to reality. About the speaker Professor Tracy Nunnally received his MFA from Florida State University and has worked in professional entertainment since the 1980s. His contributions include all aspects of theatre automation, motion control, rigging, pyrotechnics, special effects, scenery construction and technical design. His professional credits as a Technical Director span the full spectrum of genres, continents and spaces, and include the world tour and Broadway production of Medea. Professor Nunnally is a tenured full professor, the Technical Director and the head of the graduate theatre technology program at the Northern Illinois University School of Theatre and Dance. Register at: https://niu.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV80TqzrxipEwWkVo