Michael Nevitt (FCHS ’86)
Do you know people like this? You might. There are people who can trace their entire career back to their junior high school years. Michael Nevitt is one such person.
From his beginning at FC (seventh grade, 1980-81), Mike wanted to be involved in theatre… but the lighting crew appealed to him more than trying to land an acting part. It was Floyd Central’s final year to use its “cafetorium”, in the round. The following year, a new state-of-the-art stage opened. Michael took part in every single production, eighth grade through senior year in scenery and lighting.
It provided unprecedented preparation for his education at the University of Evansville, where he earned his degree in Theatrical Design, followed by graduate school at UCLA (MFA in Theatrical Lighting Design). He hit the ground running, with skills in both technical (production and control equipment design) and creative deployment… “choreographing” the lighting to help make the stage come alive.
His resume includes hundreds of live stage productions, television events and major motion pictures. That alone would be a solid record for 25 years in the lighting business. In Michael’s case, these accomplishments are more like the bedrock for an entire additional “uber-layer” of lighting for events… across the US, Europe, and Asia. Here’s a partial list: performances by Ringo Starr and Janet Jackson, FarmAid, the Super Bowl halftime show in 1995 and ceremonies at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. He’s put his creative stamp on the world of combat sports with Top Rank Boxing on ESPN and HBO, spanning 12 years. Coming soon will be similar involvement with Bare Knuckle Fighting.
For all the glamour of these entertainment spectacles, it may be that Michael’s ability to “give back” as a mentor at Floyd Central means just as much to him. He made a very big contribution to the highly sophisticated needs of The SpongeBob Musical (2021), Newsies (2017) and Les Misérables (2013) at FC. Michael was inducted into the Floyd Central Hall of Fame in 2014. And for the past eight years, add this: the role of proud theatre dad to Connor (FC ’19) and Cassidy (FC ’23).
He is currently Principal Designer, President, and Senior Partner at Crossfade Designs LLC, located here in New Albany. One crazy twist about the three Crossfade business partners: each has had his hands in the lighting industry since their early teens.
Read the entire April 2023 Legacy Ledger (Issue 32).