Toy Shop Design
The Toy Shop designs and builds all the sets for all the theatre shows, concerts and television productions at The Renaissance Center. They also created a good deal of the furniture in the building.
The Renaissance Center’s Toy Shop won the 2002 Set Design Midsouth Regional Emmy for its work on sets for television productions at the center.
Leading this talented team at the Toy Shop is Robert Cooper, who has been designing and building scenery since 1966. An Alabama native, Robert’s extensive career includes being the first scenic designer for Opryland USA, the scene designer and technical director for the Jenny Wiley Summer Music Theatre, the technical director for the State University of New York College in Purchase, NY, the assistant director for The Center for The Arts at SUNY, and master scenic carpenter for Universal Studio’s hit television series, In the Heat of the Night.
“In the Heat of the Night was the first regular prime time show shot entirely on location in Covington, Ga.,” Robert said. “I was the only carpenter with scenic experience. The rest of the carpentry staff was farmers.”
Robert earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Scene Design Technology from the University of Illinois-Champaign with graduate studies in theatre at Michigan Stage University and graduate studies in architecture at Georgia Tech.
While in Georgia, Robert also did design and construction work for the Salvation Army Museum and the Atlanta History Center, a 28,000-square-foot facility built by the Atlanta Historical Society that opened with six different exhibits all on the same day.
It was this highly successful and noted work with exhibits that led Robert to Nashville. While there, he was approached by Doug Jackson, executive director for the yet-to-be-constructed Renaissance Center. Robert was asked for his expertise to design and create London city streets for the Michael Faraday Science Theatre, a replica of Faraday’s laboratory in the early 1800s.
Robert and wife Linda live in Dickson County and enjoy hunting for unique items at yard sales, estate sales, junk stores and auctions.
“The original intent of the Toy Shop was to build the scenery and props for the center’s performances, television studio and the science theatre,” Robert said.
Yet since its inception, Robert and his team of carpenters have designed and built the furniture for the Multimedia Department’s video control and editing suite, the ticket office, CyberSphere offices, Computer Lab, Learning Lab, Art Gallery exhibit structures and CyberCafe tables. Robert gives credit for the Toy Shop’s success to his highly dedicated and energetic staff, which includes Eddie Nichols, and enthusiastic interns.
Eddie Nichols is a proud alumnus of Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Communication Arts. Eddie spent 7 years at Green Enterprises in the entertainment business before coming to The Renaissance Center. During his time at Green Enterprises, he worked in numerous entertainment mediums such as videos, film, television and live stage performances.
Some of his more notable work includes HBO comedies for George Carlin and Chris Rock, Christmas in Washington for the president, A&E’s 4th of July Celebration for the Nation, Celine Dion’s Farewell at Radio City Music Hall, Country Music’s Benefit for 9/11, MTV’s X Games, TNA Wrestling, the Dove Awards and the opening for Monday Night Football broadcasts, which won a regional Emmy award.
In addition, he also worked on the first Nashville Star, CMT’s Crossroads, the Flameworthy Awards, updated the CMT Studios and numerous music videos including artists such as Garth Brooks, Martina McBride, Alan Jackson, Jessica Andrews and the Shania Twain Thanksgiving Special. Eddie’s versatile credits also include the Rockettes Christmas, staging for a special Nickelback, Filter and Montgomery Gentry concert, Independent Films such as Existo and Masterpiece Theatre’s A Death in the Family and scenery for still photography.
Eddie also appeared on stage in the Renaissance Players 2005 production of Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus and APSU productions of Buried Child, MacBeth, As You Like It, while directing Bug Man’s Coming. He lives in Ashland City with wife Tracy, an adjunct professor at APSU who has directed and performed in several productions at The Renaissance Center, and daughters Chandler, Madison and Kennedy.
He has been employed with the Renaissance Center since May 2004.
“The Toy Shop is given a tremendous amount of latitude in what we do,” Robert said. “Reading the script becomes our pattern. We do very few construction documents, just sketches, and then I rely on the staff’s expertise for problem solving.
“We take our work seriously but we have fun doing it. That’s the success of the Toy Shop.”
Set pieces from some theatre and other productions at The Renaissance Center are available for rental by theatre companies and the Toy Shop is available for hire for set design, construction or consulting work. For more information on The Renaissance Center’s Toy Shop call (615) 740-5579.
Contact
| Robert Cooper | Sr. Director of Design Services | (615) 740-5579 | |
| Shayna Jarman | Toy Shop Intern | (615) 740-5579 | |
| Eddie Nichols | Carpenter | (615) 740-5579 |
Take the Tour of Toy Shop sets
