APAP Career Center

University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) Department of Theatre invites applications for a Visiting Lecturer of Costume Technology and Design for the academic year 2024-2025. The candidate, working alongside our full-time Costume Shop Manager, will contribute technical and organizational support to collaboratively produce costumes for our four-play production season. The candidate may teach and/or mentor students in costume production and design, and may also design costumes for up to two productions.   

The successful candidate will work with students from a wide range of social, cultural, and class backgrounds.  We are particularly interested in applicants experienced with inclusive, anti-racist,  decolonized production and/or culturally responsive theatre practice addressing race, class, gender, sexuality, neurodiversity, ability, and/or religion.

Prior to the start of the contract, applicants should have a terminal degree in theatre or closely related field, with a record of costume design and construction experience, either at the university or professional level.  Teaching experience is preferred, but emerging artists new to academic teaching are also encouraged to apply. Additional requirements include excellent organizational, communication, and collaboration skills; and demonstrated commitment to inclusive excellence through teaching, or professional practice.

Candidates can expect to follow university working hours, generally from 9 AM to 5 PM, with extended hours during technical and dress rehearsals.

This full-time, nine-month appointment requires a combination of teaching and service in line with University and Department workload policy. The salary for this one-year, non-renewable position is $48,000 with a full university benefits package. Renewal may be considered at the Chair?s and Dean?s discretion.

UMBC Theatre fosters artistically innovative and socially engaged undergraduates in a leading liberal arts program housed in a state-of-the-art facility.  Using the latest technologies and practices, we experiment with theatrical forms, create provocative new work, and give voice where it is most needed.  Our faculty and students are actively engaged in making new plays in new ways; we have a proven track record of innovative research and teaching. Our undergraduate degree programs emphasize creative collaboration, individual agency and experimentation, critical engagement and embodied practice as research.   The Department serves approximately 125 majors & minors; degree programs include Acting BFA, and Theatre BA (Design & Production, Theatre Studies or Theatre Education tracks), and brand-new minors starting in acting, design/production, and theatre studies.

UMBC is a Carnegie Research I University institution. We are located near theaters in Baltimore and Washington, D.C., where many faculty and students contribute to professional productions.

Required qualifications:  

Applicants should have a terminal degree in theatre or a related field prior to the start of contract.

Demonstrated record of creative practice in costume design and technology at the university or professional level.

Excellent organizational, communication, and collaboration skills

Ability to work independently in all facets of standard costume construction techniques, from patterning (either draping, flat patterning, or adjusting commercial patterns) through to a finished garment, and the capacity to mentor students in the same.

Demonstrated commitment to inclusive excellence through teaching, research, or professional practice. We are looking for a candidate who has practical experience in anti-racist or decolonizing theatre-making practices and making work that specifically intersects with race and identity.

Preferred additional qualifications:

Consent-informed fitting experience that aligns to Department Theatrical Intimacy and Instructional Touch Policy

Experience teaching at the college or university level or similar classroom experience. 

Technical competency in an additional area of costume production, such as millinery, flat patterning, make-up, dyeing and painting, mask or puppets, or related craft content.

Full consideration will be given to those applicants who submit all materials to Interfolio by April 22, 2024.  A complete submission will consist of:

1. A cover letter that briefly summarizes your qualifications and interest in the position.   Please also describe your approach to teaching, and provide descriptions of any significant costume design or technology project(s).
2. Statement of Contributions to Inclusive Excellence that addresses your understanding of the barriers facing traditionally underrepresented groups and your past and/or future contributions to equity and inclusion through teaching, professional work, or public service.
3. Links to websites and/or other media that showcases your work experience.
4. Current resume and/or Curriculum Vitae
5. Applicants must provide the names and contact information for three (3) references. 

(Though we do not require letters of reference at the first stage of the application process, applicants are advised to speak to potential recommenders. The Search Committee will request confidential reference letters from those applicants who are under serious consideration.)

UMBC is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.

About University of Maryland, Baltimore County

UMBC is a dynamic public research university integrating teaching, research and service to benefit the citizens of Maryland. As an Honors University, the campus offers academically talented students a strong undergraduate liberal arts foundation that prepares them for graduate and professional study, entry into the workforce, and community service and leadership. UMBC emphasizes science, engineering, information technology, human services and public policy at the graduate level. UMBC contributes to the economic development of the State and the region through entrepreneurial initiatives, workforce training, K-16 partnerships, and technology commercialization in collaboration with public agencies and the corporate community. UMBC is dedicated to cultural and ethnic diversity, social responsibility and lifelong learning.

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