MFA in Stage Design Students 2026
Meet our 2026 MFA in Stage Design students!
Our MFA set design students come from a variety of backgrounds with a wealth of creative experience. These eight students have collaborated with our MFA Theatre Directing and MFA Theatre Producing students on our 2026 Gradfest, producing four shows as a culmination of an intensive year of hands-on training.
Andrew Kirwan - Gradfest Set Designer for Marble by Marina Carr
Andrew Kirwan is an architect and designer from West Cork. He graduated with a Master of Architecture with distinction from Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, Scotland, in 2018. After working as an architect for several years, he joined an international team of designers and makers at Joseph Walsh Studio in Kinsale, Cork in 2019. There, he gained a deeper understanding of craft, sculpture, and the importance of materiality in design.
He established Áitiúil Studio, a multidisciplinary design studio practicing across the mediums of architecture, furniture, jewelry, and most recently, theatre, having just completed his first show, Global Desires, as lead designer for the Dublin Theatre Festival.
Blanca Sánchez Encinas - Gradfest Costume Designer for The Moors by Jen Silverman / Marble by Marina Carr
Blanca Sánchez Encinas started her career in the fashion industry and has worked as a stylist, assistant designer and tailor in her home country. However, she soon realised that costume design was her main focus and passion, which she demonstrated choosing to write her thesis around The Lord of The Rings’ costume design. Having a background in fashion helps Blanca understand the importance of tailoring and the making of the costumes and sees it as a collaborative work between the designer and the crew.
As a Costume Designer, she is focused on the storytelling capacity of it, and its attention to detail. Designing allows her to fully explore her creativity and passion for conceptualising.
Daisy Long - Gradfest Lighting Designer on Far Away by Caryl Churchill / Penelope by Enda Walsh
Daisy Long is a New York-based lighting designer with an affinity for the eclectic, uncanny, and unusual. Frequent collaborators in the States include The Million Underscores, The Fire Ensemble, Mason Holdings, and Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana.
She is the recipient of an IRNE Award, and a National Youth Arts award. Member of United Scenic Artists, Local 829. New York credits include: The Shed, The Public, KeenCompany, BAM, WP, Colt Coeur, Yangtze Rep, The Barrow Group, PrimaryStages, Abingdon Theater Company, Mason Holdings, HERE Arts Center, LaMaMa,AMERINDA, TADA! Youth Theater.
International credits include: Wexford Festival Opera; Lonesome George (Vienna, Austria).
Erica Smith - Gradfest Costume Desiger for Far Away by Caryll Churchill / Penelope by Enda Walsh
Erica Smith is a recent graduate of Drama & Theatre Studies in Trinity College Dublin, where she trained in theatre making and costume designing.
Her recent credits include: Costume Designer for The Pits (director Lisa Busi) (Samuel Beckett Theatre); Performer in Anna (Samuel Becket Theatre); Costume Designer for Men Eating Dinner (Scene + Heard, Smock Alley 2024); Costume Assistant for INOs La Boheme (Bord Gais Theatre); and Costume Designer for But We’re Right (Smock Alley Theatre/Edinburgh Fringe Festival). Erica has also spent time working in costume maintenance at the Bord Gais Theatre.
Jane Boehlert - Gradfest Stage Designer for Far Away by Caryl Churchill
Jane Boehlert is a set designer and visual artist. She graduated from Goldsmiths, University of London with a First-Class BA (Hons) in Design in 2020 and has since worked in visual effects for film and television, where she developed a strong interest in 3D visualisation.
She has also worked in commercial art departments as a set decorator, cultivating a passion for scenic painting, installation, and hands-on collaborative making. As a theatre designer, Jane brings together these varied creative disciplines with a particular interest in designing for narrative storytelling.
Kristóf Nagy - Gradfest Lighting Designer on Marble by Marina Carr / The Moors by Jen Silverman
Kristóf Nagy is a lighting designer transitioning from the music scene back to theatre, where he originally discovered his passion for lighting during high school. Originally from Budapest and now based in Dublin, he holds a BSc in Applied Physics from the University of Groningen.
His professional experience includes serving as the resident Lighting Designer at Kobuci Kert, an outdoor venue in Budapest hosting major Hungarian acts, Lighting Operator at Palace EDM club in Groningen. He also worked as the Technical Director of Broadcast at TRIP floating theatre, where he was first introduced to the world of theatre.
Niamh Kearney - Gradfest Set Designer for The Moors by Jen Silverman
Niamh Kearney is a Designer from Belfast who studied Drama at Queen’s University Belfast, graduating in 2017 with First Class Honours, and began working in theatre full-time in the second undergraduate year.
Her theatre design credits include: Assistant Set Designer for An Ideal Husband (Gate Theatre); Costume & Set Designer for Holding Ground (Tinderbox); Three Pay Days (Kabosh Theatre); Costume Designer for Yerma (Tinderbox); and Scaredy Fat (Skelpie Limmer).
Other roles include: Design Trainee for Young Washington (Iris Productions DAC); Costume Maker for the Mac Theatre and Belfast International Arts Festival; Costume Supervisor for Irish National Opera and Opera North in England; Assistant Stylist for Dancing with the Stars and RTE Guide; Tailor for GQ Magazine and Rod Stewart; and Head of Wardrobe for Riverdance.
Piper Lynn McDonald - Gradfest Set Designer for Penelope by Enda Walsh
Piper Lynn McDonald moved to Ireland from Waco, Texas to pursue her BA in Contemporary and Applied Theatre Studies from Mary Immaculate College (University of Limerick) in 2019.
After graduating in 2022, Piper returned home to help start Silent House Theatre Company as part of their executive team. Piper worked on a total of sixteen productions with Silent House, primarily serving as the company’s Designer and Stage & Production Manager.
Her favorite productions include The Boys in the Band, Crimes of the Heart, This is Our Youth [director Ryan Kirby], Cabaret, Machinal, Godspell [director Collin Selman], and A Streetcar Named Desire [director Bradyn Braziel].