After graduating from Dreyfoos in 2004, theatre alum Alex Calle went on to study Scenic Design at the California Institute of the Arts where he earned his BFA. Now the CEO and Director of Design for Entertainment Design Corporation, Alex has worked all over the world on public art installations, theatrical productions, and theme park attractions, to name just a few of his endeavors. While busy at work on his next project in Macau, China, Alex found some time to discuss his work with us, his memories of Dreyfoos, and what made him decide to establish a scholarship at the School of the Arts Foundation.

Q: Favorite Dreyfoos teacher?

A: Ann Cadaret

Q: What is the most profound change you experienced at Dreyfoos?

A: Realizing I could tell stories and affect emotion using inanimate objects. Dreyfoos let me experiment with design; experiment with incredible mentors and with incredible resources.

Q: Is there something Dreyfoos could have provided that could have better prepared you for your college and career?

A: I wish we had been more encouraged to tell stories through mediums other than theatre during my time at Dreyfoos. Though theatre is my passion and first love, I've since learned, and have fallen in love with, the stories I can tell in film, television, dance, public art, and installation art. The entertainment world is looking for storytellers that can embrace, mix, and create art with a variety of mediums and it's important that Dreyfoos' artists experiment outside their major and with artists outside their typical collaborator circle.

Q: As CEO and Director of Design for Entertainment Design Corporation, what is your day-to-day like?

A: Running a company with a diverse creative portfolio and splitting my time between the business and creative processes can equal one busy day.

Last year I remember a morning that started with a conference call to Dubai discussing the writing of a fart joke in a dark ride we conceived, direct to a budgeting meeting for a nighttime spectacular show we were proposing, to an engineering discussion on a white water rapids attraction we were designing, to an art direction conference call comparing wood finishes needed in an illusion we designed for a new theatrical production, that lead to a production meeting to discuss the installation schedule of a kinetic art sculpture we were producing in China... all before 2pm.

And strangely enough, I love it. Those are the type of days I live for. I love the juggling of creative and business; I love the wild and crazy projects; and I love that each day will be completely different.

Q: You have worked on many projects, from films to set designs to public art installations all over the world. What area of design do find to be the most challenging?

A: Staying true to the initial and purest form of the project's concept is the most difficult challenge in design. There are so many things / people / circumstances that can derail and muddy the waters of what makes a good project great, it can sometimes be hard to keep on track. It's important to differentiate what's good and what's good for the project.

Q: What current projects are you working on?

A: At the moment we are working on designs for; two theme parks in the UAE, a nighttime spectacular show in Malaysia, and a kinetic art installation in China.