Theatre students learn from hair and makeup design legend Jerrilyn Duckworth
Duckworth taught tone matching and shared stories of resilience from a career dedicated to designing makeup and doing hair for diverse skin tones and hair textures.
Jerrilyn Duckworth (center) poses with students and instructors after the Makeup Design class.
On a recent visit to Interlochen Arts Academy, theatre guest artist Jerrilyn Duckworth led a makeup design class that quickly became something more than a technical lesson. Students gathered in the Harvey dressing rooms with brushes and palettes, learning how to match tones, understand undertones, and build skills they could carry into rehearsals and performances.
For Tristan Lysonge, a fourth-year acting major, the takeaway was immediate and practical.
“ Being able to find my tone and know what makeup I should be wearing is very nice,” he said. “I'll always have that in the back of my brain whenever I'm doing my own makeup from now on.”
Duckworth, a working costume, hair, and makeup designer, regularly visits schools to share knowledge through her initiative Bridging the Gap. Her workshops focus on real gaps in the industry—especially around working with diverse skin tones and natural hair textures—and give students tools they don’t always receive in traditional training.
At Interlochen, students responded not just to the content, but to her presence and charisma. Lysonge said she reminded him of friends and family from his home.
“ I'm from Kentucky, and a lot of my friends are also from the South,” he said. “She reminded me of my family and friends, and she was also just a great person.”
That sense of familiarity made the learning environment more open. Students asked questions, tested products, and listened to stories from Duckworth’s career. For Lysonge, hearing how Duckworth overcame obstacles added another layer of meaning to the experience.
“ I really respect her drive and the way she doesn’t give up,” he said. “She’s experienced racially-motivated threats and hate mail from people in the industry, and she still kept pushing, even though she had moments of wanting to stop. That was so inspiring.”
Before coming to Interlochen, Lysonge was often one of only a few Black students in his school. He said those experiences still shape how he sees the theatre industry. Visits like Duckworth’s offer both practical tools and a clearer sense of what a career can look like for him.
“Even after four years, it's still crazy to see the kinds of guest artists that come in,” he said. “We get to hear from so many professionals who are already in the world that I want to be in.”
Jerrilyn Duckworth teaches tone matching for makeup with the help of student demonstrator Tristan Lysonge.
For Alijah Cambridge, a fourth-year acting major and president of the Black Student Union (BSU), the visit extended beyond the makeup design workshop. Cambridge interviewed Duckworth during a theatre company meeting and helped organize a dinner with BSU students so they could continue the conversation in a more informal setting.
“ The interview was such a breath of fresh air,” Cambridge said. “Talking with someone like Jerrilyn, a Black woman with so much experience in the industry, made me feel so empowered. She gave us so much insight into how to treat people, no matter who they are.”
That conversation left a lasting impression. Cambridge said it helped her see a clearer path forward—not just for herself, but for how she wants to show up for others.
“It's just so inspiring because there was a point where Jerrilyn was like me, just another student wanting to get into the theatre world,” she said. “The way she supported us made me want to become that person for others.”
Duckworth’s visit is one example of how guest artists shape the student experience at Interlochen. Through workshops, conversations, and hands-on experience, students gain both practical skills and a sense of belonging in the fields they’re preparing to enter.
Learn more about theatre at Interlochen Arts Academy, or explore Jerrilyn Duckworth’s Theatre Makeup Design course through Interlochen Online.
