When: Jan. 11, 2026, 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Where: Newman Center for the Performing Arts at the University of Denver, 2344 E Iliff Ave, Denver, CO 80210
Participants will learn and apply principles for soldering in an environment where it is safe to try, to discover how to learn from mistakes, and experience personable, positive mentorship.
The objective of this hands-on workshop is to provide the materials and support needed to learn through doing. Soldering has an easy and quick learning curve. The primary obstacle is a positive first experience, and participants will leave having a working project. Those with previous soldering experience will also gain additional practical applications that can increase their skill-set. With some mentorship and examples of simple best practices, those who desire to pursue soldering as a hobby, or even as a profession, can continue to grow in technique through the process of creation.
While the direction of this course seems minimal, the same principles can be directly applied to concepts like LED decoration, jewelry making, scale and miniature modeling, and building or developing with circuit boards. Additionally, the tools and materials to pursue soldering are inexpensive and widely available.
The day will consist of three separate workshops. Attendees are encouraged to sign up for any or all workshops they are interested in:
10am: LED Tape (Beginner)
Cost: $5/person (Members) $15/person (Non-Members)
During this hands-on lab the participants will:
-Be shown real world examples of successful soldering, as well as production samples that were less effective and subject to failures. The opportunity to see both provides a solid foundation for the basic principles.
-Learn about the tools involved for soldering and best practices for care and usage.
-Learn and apply the process of wire-to-wire soldering to make a testing harness
-Create reliable and secure wiring connections to LED tape.
-Using their simple wire harness the participants will be able to test their LED tape soldering and receive instant feedback on their success. This step in the process is incredibly rewarding.
As the cost and accessibility of products like LED tape have made them more accessible to productions of every size, participants will have the skills to create with these materials. The testing harness is a minimal tool that is a part of many professionals’ toolkits. The LED tape soldering is the same process being used to apply LED tape effects to theatrical productions, concerts, commercial showcases and trade shows, architectural installations, and even household accent and decoration.
1pm: XLR Connectors (Beginner)
Cost: $5/person (Members) $15/person (Non-Members)
During this hands-on lab the participants will:
-Be shown real world examples of successful soldering, as well as production samples that were less effective and subject to failures. The opportunity to see both provides a solid foundation for the basic principles.
-Learn about the tools involved for soldering and best practices for care and usage.
-Learn and apply principles for durable and lasting cable connectors
-Checking for solid solder bonding and preventing wire shorting
Our production bone yards and needs for adapters or custom installation have only been growing, participants will be enabled to be an even more valuable asset in the industry. In addition to cables and connectors, these basic soldering skills are the same processes being used to apply LED tape effects to theatrical productions, concerts, commercial showcases and trade shows, etc., as well as the founding principles for working with electronics and circuit repair.
4pm: Arduino for Props/Costumes (Intermediate)
Cost: $10/person (Members) $20/person (Non-Members)
Participants in this workshop should have prior experience soldering at any level. Bring your own prop or costume Item or use one of our provided masks.
During this hands-on lab the participants will:
-shown real world examples of successful soldering, as well as production samples that were less effective and subject to failures. The opportunity to see both provides a solid foundation for the basic principles.
-Learn about the tools involved for soldering and best practices for care and usage.
-Learn how to manage soldering for pixel effects typically applied to costumes and props.
-Checking for solid solder bonding and preventing wire shorting
Using the Arduino ecosystem will be discussed in this session, however there may not be time to practice those skills during the workshop.
As access to materials has become trivial the demand for individuals who can execute new and exciting ideas has grown tremendously. These basic soldering skills are the same processes being used to apply LED tape effects to theatrical productions, concerts, commercial showcases and trade shows, etc., as well as the founding principles for working with cables, electronics, and circuit repair.
Participants are encouraged to bring a laptop with them and also take the project home and experiment with them. The workshop instructors and a phenomenal online community are resources you can utilize to advance these skills. Arduino is an open source software that is very accessible to beginning coders.
This event was made possible by sponsorship from City Theatrical and Neutrik.