Shirley Prendergast

Merris Shirley Prendergast (June 15, 1929 – February 26, 2019) was a theater lighting designer notable for being the first African-American woman admitted to the United Scenic Artists’ lighting division in 1969. She was also the first African-American woman lighting designer on Broadway in 1973.^[1][2] Prendergast designed lighting for Broadway shows such as Waltz of the Stork, Amen Corner, and the Paul Robeson one-man show.^[3] She designed lighting for fifty years, well into her mid-80s. One of her last productions was Zora Neale Hurston: a Theatrical Biography in 2016.^[4]

Shirley Prendergast
Born	(1929-06-15)June 15, 1929 Boston, Massachusetts
Died	February 26, 2019(2019-02-26) (aged 89)
Other names	Merris Shirley Prendergast
Occupation	lighting designer

Early life

Prendergast was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Dorita and Wilford Prendergast.^[1] She grew up in Boston and New York.^[4] She studied microbiology at Brooklyn College, where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1954.^[3] She worked as a bacteriologist with the New York City Health Department and focused on her art when not at work.^[3] Prendergast took a lighting design class at the YWCA (Young Women's Christian Association)^[5] with Nicola Cernovich, a designer with Alvin Ailey's dance troupe.^[3] She then went on to study lighting at Lester Polakov's Studio of Stage Design.^[3]

One of her first jobs was as a lighting designer for the Negro Ensemble Company; one of their shows, The River Niger, went on to Broadway where she became established in her new career.^[3]

Awards and honors

• AUDELCO Award for Lighting Design (1974)
• AUDELCO Award for Lighting Design for Unfinished Women... (1977) ^[6]
• Obie Award for Sustained Excellence in Lighting Design (1997)
• Winona Lee Fletcher Award from the Black Theatre Network (1998)
• AUDELCO Award for Lighting Design for The Dance on Widow's Row (2000) ^[7]
• AUDELCO Award for Lighting Design for Knock Me a Kiss (2011) ^[8]
• United States Institute for Theatre Technology’s Distinguished Achievement Award in Lighting Design (2014)^[3]