Colt McGuire Engineers Stories

Medici Circle Scholar Colt McGuire and his internship at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival

By Gamy Cortes 

Until his senior year of high school, Colt McGuire believed that spending his days coding was his only calling. After gaining experience in scenic construction and acting, however, he found a new interest in theatre, prompting him to work as a technician for a local venue.  

This hands-on experience clarified McGuire’s passion for theatre. In his second quarter at UC Irvine, he dropped his major as a software engineer to instead pursue a double major in mechanical engineering and drama ’27.

“I knew I would miss the more logical and computational aspects of a STEM career,” said McGuire. “After improving my technical direction and increasing my involvement in building sets, I discovered that there were many parts of theatre that combined the creativity of the arts with the problem-solving approach of engineering.” 

Funding Two Worlds

Founded in 2004, the Medici Circle Scholarship supports academic growth and broadens the creative development of its recipients by awarding funding to each Medici Scholar for their specific projects. This unique scholarship program takes education beyond the classroom, allowing scholars to reach their creative and professional goals. Through this scholarship, McGuire’s unconventionally overlapping passions for logical puzzles and theatre were realized in his automation internship at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) in Ashland. 

Image: Colt McGuire.

Designing Narratives  

As a scenic designer for 12 Angry Jurors, an adaptation directed by DJ Maloney, an M.F.A. student in stage management at UCI, McGuire considered how physical space could embody the moral tension within the play. 

For instance, to capture the play’s theme on how justice can be skewed by groupthink and bodily discomfort, the set centered two long conference tables enclosed by large fabric walls, evoking the stifling sensation of men confined together on a sweltering summer day. The visible support frame behind the fabric is reminiscent of the constructed façade of the justice system itself. When taking America’s past into account, McGuire framed walls that tapered outward and backdropped banker boxes filled with records of past cases decided by prejudice rather than equity, evoking historical pressure to conform. 
 
These conscious decisions resulted in a design that did more than situate the actors; it actively participated in the narrative. Yet, for McGuire, labeling himself as a scenic designer or technician or actor felt like a misrepresentation for he is constantly thinking of where all three intersect on stage. 
 
“Having a creative background made me a better engineer and having an engineering background made me a better creative,” said McGuire. 

A Narrative Engineer 

McGuire learned about the automation internship at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) through his professor and Medici mentor, Efren Delgadillo Jr., who had worked as a scenic designer for the OSF before. Delgadillo’s teaching philosophy — wrong turns are not failures but iterations — resonated with McGuire and mirrored his own path: from aspiring software engineer to actor and scenic designer and ultimately to his pursuit of automation. 

“Automation was the perfect culmination of all of my interests,” said McGuire. 

With the Medici and Delgadillo’s support, McGuire applied for the internship and relocated to Ashland, Oregon, focusing primarily on learning rather than logistics. 

“For this opportunity, I had to pack up all of my things, leave all of my friends and move to a new state where I didn’t know anyone,” McGuire said. “That change was already a lot to worry about, so having the financial support of my patron, Valerie Glass, via the Medici Circle greatly reduced my stress. Also, knowing that both my mentor and patron were supporting me greatly helped with the feeling of isolation that the move created.” 

Image: Colt McGuire's scenic design work for 12 Angry Jurors.

At OSF, McGuire’s responsibilities involved design, installation and operation of the electronic and mechanical systems. In one project, McGuire's team was tasked with stress-testing lift casters — devices that, when activated, raise heavy set pieces off the floor, allowing it to be rolled easily into a new position during scene changes. As the only team member with a coding background, McGuire applied his knowledge by writing a code that subjected the casters to sustained stress until the tested component failed, allowing the team to estimate the part’s lifespan. 

“None of my work exists in a vacuum,” said McGuire. “So calling myself a Narrative Engineer felt like the most honest way to represent myself. I am a storyteller but also an engineer. Any other way to describe myself does not tell the full story.” 

What’s Next?

With several projects on the horizon, McGuire is especially excited about an independent research project in small-scale automation, supported by a grant from the Claire Trevor Society. With these funds, McGuire is developing prototypes for automation systems, including a lift caster and a small-scale linear motion demonstration that tests feedback and control systems. 

To learn more about Colt McGuire's work, visit his website at coltjm.com. To learn more about the Medici Circle and ways to support or apply, visit here.