David Korins, award-winning entertainment set designer and studio owner, inspires Sacred Heart Upper School students with Q&A about his multi-faceted creative journey from initial experiences breaking-in the entertainment business to what's it like designing sets for Tony Award-winning musicals.

Whether it was for Broadway, the movies, live television shows, musical concerts, TED conferences, immersive experiences or even restaurants, students learned about the set design process and seizing the confidence to trust your ideas ... even the crazy ones.

In two decades of creating omnidirectional experiences, David Korins and his eponymous New York City based creative studio has reached millions of people globally by helping brands, institutions, and artists bring their stories to life. David created the worlds for 25 Broadway shows, including the Tony Award-winning musicals Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, Beetlejuice: The Musical, and in 2023 will open Here Lies Love and The Who’s Tommy. 

(The Oscars 2022 set design by David Korins assistant, Andrew)

Among numerous TV credits, David recently created the new design of HBO’s “The Big Brunch” with Dan Levy, “Last Week Tonight” hosted by John Oliver, was the Production Designer for the 91st and 94th Annual Academy Awards, and Grease: Live!, for which he received an Emmy Award. 

Korins is the Director of David Blaine’s newly opened Las Vegas residency, is the Global Creative Director of Lighthouse Immersive for whom he designed Immersive Van Gogh, the highest selling experience nationally in 2021, and in 2023 his work on “Disney Animation: The Immersive Experience” will open in multiple venues around the world. David also continues to hold the title of Theater Designer in Residence for TED's conferences internationally. 

Collaborators include David Blaine, Bruno Mars, Elton John, Lady Gaga, Mariah Carey, Andrea Bocelli, Sia, Robin Eley and Takashi Murakami. David’s work has been presented at Madison Square Garden, Coachella, Gagosian, Lollapalooza and SXSW. Brand partnerships include the NFL, Disney, Twitter, Google, Spotify, YouTube, Microsoft, Sotheby’s and ESPN.