,..,..

. - 6 STYLE AND CREATIV ITY

~
.
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. ¢;. Jsa,-~-~ ~
':P .cf., f,/p
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WHAT Is MEA N T sv STYLE?
. ,;·-t
·,, , -: :.. : .._
• /' {1 deception happening m irnni of u;s. In mu,ll·,11
:f"' ..,, .,,,--;. theatre the deception IS en~n more ob\·inus. i.,r
)' . .. . .. " Theatre is probably the o nly a rt form that is firmly n cre the performers will break tnlL> s.m): o r JarKl'
"1!-r-:,;,:c~
• '>: . -

'" . ' based on Jakery. Actors may devote much lime and
....t (.•J.;.. .. . "' .....· effort to create a c haracter built upon truth and
in a ma nner that is nstens1bl, quue n d,:·ulnu , bur
actually has the power 111 m11n, u, thn.ll1!:h ,1
rooted in reality. but. in order to present that truth
~ i~. and rea lity convincingly to an audience. they mu st
gamut of emotions from l,>u!:hlcr 10 ll'i1rs. ·
The set designer IS o n.: ;,f the mo,1 ,1i:1111k,u11
employ a wide range of techniques that arc
'i(j
.
'..:,"'FJ actually calcula ted to deceive. Juliet is no t really in
conspirarors in 1h1s deception sirKc II L' hL· or ,he
(' who cn:atl'S the world m \\'h1ch II can take plan· .
. if love with Romeo a nd the actor playing 1- lacbeth is

.
The designer. in rnllaborauo n with the din.,:wr.
n ot really a murderer. It is all foke. must carefully co1151der thc nature o f thi.s arulinal
. The sam e mig ht be said of the set designer's world of the play lur operJ ,,r balletl and creat" .i
"('
work. Even if we decided to present :\lacbe1h·s spt.-cial space that not only prondc:. th•· ph\'S1,·,,I
' castle at Dunsinane as realistically as is humanly requirements o f th" action but .1c1ualh· goc,, mud1

~
possible. built from real stone and timbers. it \\'o uld
still be an obvious fake for \\'C \\'Ould need to
remove at leas! part of the castle wall so that the
audience could see w hat goes on inside. \.\'e \\'Ould
also need to remo\·e a large part of the roof to light
ii efn c ien tly. and through the windo\\'S we would
see the back wall of the theat re. unless we placed a
fake sky behind the m . In a ny case. the actors
would n ot be speaki ng nor bcha\'ing like real
people and so \\'o uld no t belong to the realistic
world we have a llempted to crea te.
Theatrical truth goes far beyond the mere
re productio n of rea lity. The theatre \\'Orks special
m agic. and scenery. costumes and lighting a ll
combine 10 convin ce us that \\'hat the actors
present for u s has a particul a r kind of realit y. \\'e
arc persuaded to pa.rtidpale in the ob\·iuus
Ol'l'OSITI:: Coll11111·s an· l't'r!/ 1111ick w cre11tr 11111I cm,
so1111•ti1111•s bt· er lidp i11 eswblislii11y co l ours ur
101111/ llllCI 11•:r111rt1/ 1/lllllil il's 11p1,rupri111e IU ti
protl11cli o11 . This o ue wcrsJor /..\/. Su111/t'·s p/11u
Riders To Thl' Sea.
furt her than thi.s. h<,-commg an mu:gr.11 d i:mc111 ,,f
the whole artistic creation .
It is nut su1Tiden1 mt·rcly to prc,,cnt the physical
locmion of a seen" in " rea!L,11c manni:r. In hi,.
book Tlir Drnm111 1, l11111ym111w11. the \menl·,111 ,tagc.:
designer Robert Edmund JonL-s wrote.::
S..·cnc t.k~•~rnn~ b nut \\ hJl 111,1:-,t peupk 1m11~111L" 1t
~ - a hranr h t i l mh..·rn,>r Jt:,:tiruttn~ l hen: ~ nu
more n:a~ n tl,r ..1 n>tm, l >n J , LJ~t" lu be J
rl·pnx.luctam or JU di..·tuul nk,m th,.111 for ..m dl'.tor
who plays thL· part ul ,J P'llt.i.Hl to ix 'Jf">k-on ur
for an .1ctur \\hu pld,, Dt·dth an thL" ukl morality
play to be dt.·JJ. E, er) thm~ th~1t b J.:1.uuJ mw.l
undt•rg,u ll ,lr.1n~t· mt•t,unorphv,L\. J kuul of "-t'a-
i:hang.c. bcfon.- 1t l.·at1 b.., om'-" truth 1n th~ thea tre.
Cumpar<.'d \\ uh the int<'nur Jc,,1gn ,·r. Lh.: -.ct
J,-:,igner 1, in a quite ,:~trn<Jr<linJry posuwn fu r he.:
knO\\'S in aLh-an, c.: •·wry ,mglc e\·ent tha t will take
plac·t: in the spact: he dl':>l)!L1>. Thus a room un , tagc.:
will ha\·,: diff.:ncat rt-quirt'.lneats and J totally
dilftCrent st\'le if des11.tncd for. xiy. d comedy by :-.ocl
Cn\\'anl. a· drama by StnnJbcri:. a trngedy by
r..-•,• - - ---- -
AND CREAT IVITY
rcw IJ,Fr:A ren/is1 ;,.
room Sl'I for Sl,n/urk
/-lolml's's stud!J 111
221 b Bcrkt•r Str"l'I ; 11
Sherloc k's Las( Cilsc
at 11,c Pitlocl1r!J
Frslivc1/ Theatrr.
Dirt•c(('(/ /111 l.!ria11
Shl'IL011. Ligl11i11!! ''!J
Pm1/ Covell.
Dec<1!)i119
,\1/DDW W/·7 :
col1111111s <1111I tl11s1
sht'ets cle_(i11i11!J 1hr
floor crrntc ll1is 011/.11
pcrrliall!J rt'll/is1ic
room iu cr litrrnll!J
cr11111/,/i11!J hotel.for
the seco11cl 1kt oJThc
Ends or lhc Earth 111
the Timms Centre for
thr Arts i11 Et/1110111011,
C111111clcr. Li1•e video of
the net or 11pstnge
brhintl t/1r window
wcrs J)rojrctrtl Ill the
lmck of the srt cruel to
on-SLClfJI' TV sets.
Dirl'clecl b11 Becr11
Colemcrn. Lighti119by
Ler Livi11gsto11e.
P/1010: El/is Bros
norro,111.r-:r-r: This
room In the
p11111omi111e Little Re<l
Riding Hood crt The
Theatre, Chip11ing
Norton, consists of
not/1i11fJ more 1/11111 n
si11gle J)crintt'tl
frontc/01/1.
S hakespe are or a Christm as pantom ime. lndt'cd.
the room may nol phys ica lly n:scmhl e;, real mom
;, I all.
The des igner musl decide upo n th e dramati c
purpose of lhe room in each case. The Coll'a rd play
may need lU prese nl a n air of fX.' riod cit'gancc and
sophis licalion . wilh a ca refu lly consid1,:r ed
arrange menl of doors and furniture in l\'hich the
action can take place. fl may not be lotally re,1lis1ic
but wi.11 probabl y hm·e at lcas l some clemen ts 1ha1
s ugges t room-lik e qualitie s. The Strindbe rg room
might conl ain little to suggest location . The
dramati sl here is not merely rela ting a story. he is
giving u s psyc h o logical insights into his characte rs
and expec ts u s lo consider their ,ll'lions and
reaclion s in the situatio ns in ll'hich he places
them . The scl needs lo reflect this. a nd the des igner
mid lhe direc tor ll'iJI need 10 discuss ll'ha1 degree or
emphas is is lo be placed u pon the re-creati on or a
realistic period room . ,\ room in a play by
Sh akespea re may s imply not exist physical ly at a ll
and furnitur e and dressi ngs may be min imal. 11 is
Shakesp eare ·s poetic ll'Ords a nd ideas. as
interpre ted and presente d by the aclOrs. 1ha1 1rnrk
the magic here. His plays may be pcrform cd in
literally any period and a great rangt' or
possibililics exists for lht• SCI. from h,mlly any th ing
al all to a highly rnnct'plualizt·d tic-sign like
nothing e1·er seen berore. r\ room in a pantomi me
m ay consist of nothing mort· than a pai1111,:d
Sdectil'I ' n·11lismfor
Dr Stockma11's ho11s('
i11 er J)rotluct ion of
lbsm's An Enemy or
lhc People. s1·1i111/11·
C111111tlia11 prairies 111
tht• .\l1111itob11 Tlwmn·
C,·,un• i11 \\'i1111i11e11-
Dirl'Ctt'r/ I,!/ Jo/111
1-lirsc/i. Ligliti1111 b,11
Jcrt•Stl'il.
STYL E .\ \ D l'KE ,\ri\ IT Y
hackdot h or II may ht· .in dnt-.ir.il t· hu1h <c.·t lull ,if
lrkks and ~urpri,in g 'IX"t"ial effect-. fht· Jr.:11nJ1 1,
action 1h;i1 1h1s ·r011111· n11gh1 ht.· n.-..1u1n.'II 1<1
accnmn1oc.h11t~ l·nuld 1n\ohl· ,.:h,t1t1~·kf°" ,1u:h •b "
Demon r..:,n g, Ill O aclnr< prl'lt'IHl111g Ill ht· , I ' ""
and a dozen dannng r,imt'l'. It 1, ill .ilm, t,1 ,,·n,111111
,uggt>sl11 111 ,,r p.:noJ II ill
bc l'l'ry rnlnurful ,Ind ,Ill\'
undue reganl fur hi-11>nc;il
not be h,imp..·r,'ci by ,in
tll"CUral~).
R E.\I.I S \I \'\ D ~\f l R\ US \I
.\ db 1inc11nn shnuld be made t>..·111,'t'n m 1/1 ,111 ,111.J
11aturalis11,. Rt.·ala:--m Wth ,tn ..iru, ,u.: rnn,t·111l·n1 111
la te ninetccn th-t:cntu ry J ram.i. rear11ng .iga111,1
the highly romam, cizt'ci prn1.lun1011, 11·p1,·al 111 th,·
period and rcpla.:mg 1hem ll'llh pla,·, ,1hou1
ordinary pcople 111 real ,11ua111m , . l'n.·111n1,
lhl'illrka l ron,t·n1 run:;. \\ t·n.· lt bl ,L,1dc 111 1:1\ uur ul
a style of pt.•rfor111an rt: 1hc.1c ga,e ., ~n·iucr 1llu ,0 1n
of rl'ali1y. It ll'as. hnll'1.Tcr. ,1111 .in 1111.1~11111.
Ht·alisn1. a!J pn·st:l'Ut"t.l un ,tcigc. t.:an nt·\ l·r he..·
enti rely comple1,·. rhe buunJan L" ur .1 -..:1 ,111d 1h1.·
s urround ing un·h11r.:t·1ure o l lhl." 1hcrnn: ,,n· t1l wa,·,
appar1.·111. rilt'rl'lurc 11c llL't-U lo .:unMtlt-r c ~,ll'lh
how and ll'h,.,.e lht' rc.1h,m ,·mb. 1'11c.la,. 111.11n
Sl."ll inJ:!" in the cornmt·r nal lht·:.urc ,how d "k~ rt1..·
of simplil1L-tl r1.·albm 10 11 h1t:h m,un· 1.11 the 111111-
i:sscn lial de1ncn1!\ ,,n: dm111i.tll"t.L but ka1un.·,
~uch <1!'- Juon,·ay~ ur ,, mUu,, ir-:.m1t..... ,,n: rt*ti.1111t.,L
 RE A TI V ITY
ST YLE A N O C
lly the early years _c11' lhc twe ntieth tentury
arr srnnclirnes
naturalis m was con side red out of dat e ;ind
. . , r"HlllfCS
These tragmcnt. tr) e I •nt s The term
1·1( 1 ·tl>Slntl"l .e·dCllle describe
• .
sc111ngs symbolis m. origin a tin g in Fran ce. becam e the
combinL-d 11• . '. · . 10 m o ve m e nt. Sym boli~ni
'selective rea lism ,s oficn use fa shio nable artistic
all cmpled to present an inner reality. freed r,- 0 111
of this type. . . Is0 include composit e sell in gs.
Realism •can ·1 · . . , • • t the st1111e the trappin gs o r realism or naturalis m . Plays were
. - . • I locations on std gC d present ed in a compl ete ly non-realisti c sty le. olb i
shmnn_ g' sc i era ·I . •Iv rel ated to ea d1 other. as.
. f
Tl 1 SC lll ' IV he l osc ,
c
•
. • - . . in , -.h owin g a cross-sec tio n o
in heig hte ned o r poetic language . Symbolis m is
time.
fur cxmnplc. 111 a se ll ~ . ·t 11·1v consist of an still a viable sty le today but one that holds tra ps for
Of . house OI 1 1 ' • the sci desig ner: a con cept that may intellectu ally
part •' :· •co •ra phica lly disconm:c1cd
arran gement . ~I _d g· 1~spd. , C. 111 •'1,,, be suggested in a ppear to be ideally appro priate to a produt tion
. rac h 111d1v1 lt.l
spaccl~·-1·1·.l: nnnncr and the audience is expected to can easily prove inadequa te or eve n complctclv
a re,, 1s • f·,ct • ·d r sp·1ccs
' ridicul o u s whe n brought to a lo gica l conclusion 0 ;1
. ti that walls arc remove o
•~narc 11c1.:..t1'11,, compress ed to a rema rka ble exte nt..
stage . A setting fo r Ch e khov's T/J,, Sc'"!flll/
gcrnirap 11 •
con sisting solely of a giant seagull might be ,ui
'~·,1unlis11; was also an artistic moveme nt m
·'' ' b · lint~ extrem e example o r thi s .
late nim·t ecnth-ccn tury drama . ut o'., e.
. -d to present ordinary life as accurate ly as
.11111 Abstrac t settings beca m e po pular during the
c
•humanly 'd II
possible. with lillle or. ' ea y. no ' . . .
'llusion early twe ntieth century. The sty le gives 110
Holl'cver. the m l her depressin g plays a ssocia ted indicatio n o r location o r pe riod but consists mainlv
ll'ith the mm·cmcnl shocked and a lienated o f no n -spcc i11c elem e nts su c h as rostra . steps a nd
a udicnc,·s with !hei r subject mailer and the pa nels. creating a sense of universa lity. It is a style
mo,·cmcnt was compa rutivcly short-live d. that is part icularly appli cable to dassic drama .
\'owadays. the term realism is used in the where locations a re 1101 specific and a sense or
rnnlcxl of set design to descri be a style of selling or period is not consider ed lo be significa nt in the set.
production th at present s some illusio n of real ity. such a s in the plays o f the a ncie nt Greek ti co11111I,•11'1u abs1rnc1 s1·11i119Ji,r II protl111·1io11 of The To:mpt'!it
111 1/1 ~
using any .ippropri.i tc theatrica l devices. wh ereas dram a tists .
Tlwrmlik ,• Thl'ntrt·. l.,•111/ia/11•m/. l)ir,•c11•tl /111 Ro/11•r1 Dttl'itl .\l11rVm11 1 ltl.
natu ra lism suggests a production presented wi th In the end . attempts to del1ne sty le pretiscly are Ug/i1i11g l1u David St Jo/i11 .
as little artit1ce as possible. probably futile. l\•lany of the common ly recognii.ed

te rms suggl'st a period n.Hhl'r thiln ii styli: (Slll'h its pilrtll'ul.i r hue,-. :- hould thn c,c d,,r!- ,r 1c:h1.
baroque or art n ou veilu ). o r tend to b..· \·agul' ,md \ \ ': 1n11 1.:uul: l'ak 11r 111tl'11 .....,·.· \ Ih,\\ l , , h 1,1r
l)f
impred sc tsu c h a s dc·,·o ns trur ti\'i, 111 o r po,1- ~d 1L'llll"!\ lP Jc,dt>p .1.., \Pll \\t •r~ 111 d 1. k..., 1~ 11 .

modcrni sm ). o r nwrely refer lo lhl' ll'u rk uf u thc-r
artists (such a s surrealis t o r 13ro:c htia n I. It b
probably belier Ill wo rk instin r ti,•cl v rather lh un tu
111ake a con sc io us decisio n tu ad,; pl a ny spcdlk
sty le. Ho wever. ii is useful lo be fa m ili ar w ith the
le r111s since they arc frequl'ml y band k d a buul in
discu ssions with !he• direc to r.
Se11i11r1Jor ,\ct 2
of Cl,ekl,01• 's The
COLO U R, TEXT U RE A:\D FOR.\!
Cherry Orchard Ill
Tiu• Ro!Ja/ (,!Jn·11111 Anyone vis ually o ril'111 a 1i:d w ill proba bly be llllitbli:
ill!\le aJ ur prt. ·-, di:c t111 g th l.· \. ohlu r, , L, \ 11 ll \\ Ullld .
pc rhi1 p~. if you \ \ l" r l" Lk cnrt1ltng ~uur h\ 1ng, ruo 1n.
Ofl..:11 the d1P1c·,· ,,1 ,111,>ur, 11111 be· '11!4:L"-lt-d h1
LhL' 1n a ll'fl4d!) ~ o u "4..' ll'\.. I lor \ uu r dl.-... 1~11 . I n
i..l~M>d;: it ing h:\. tun.~ \\ 1t h lhl· plav. Uo vuu '-l.'\.'
11·,xx.li :-1011i:? \ k ta li I, Lhc· 11 0,,J lit1 L,hL-d ,111<1
pulbhL, li b 11 in a llJlur,11 ,1;,1,:, b lhl· , tune , lt,1rp
and jag.g,L'tl lll" \ \ llrrl 41J1J ,1nw lh: b, the ntct.al , h11l \
l)r cur roJe,E l'erh ., p, 1o u \ L,u ali.:£1: Lhc tc~tu rc ,,I
111urL' ,oph1!\t h.·a tl'\I 1nc.1kri "1b , u~h ._,!) pl,1~t11...·.
1..:hru111L'. gla~ ur uur rnr. l Jll lhL"'iC h...· lri1n~la ll'd
0

Th1·t11 n·. Etli11/111rali. to resist assoc.:iati ng l"Lllou rs \\'ith tlt:sign it.lea!'! ill a tllhl a -,1 a gl.· x ·u1ng Lh tt t b pn.:td ka l. Jpprc ,pnall.'.
l)in·ctl'CI b!J S11•11lu·11 n~ry early stage. Ho ll'e,·er. do 1101 be o wrha,t y 111 ;. 11 1d art t!'lo ti,.:all~ " t1 1:-,,I~ 111g;
,WrDorwltl. Li![liti1111 CSlitblish a prl'dsi: colou r sc·hcmc. Try n >nsid.:nn g l'h.: I~ p.:~ ut' ,hJpt• .:<ml,1111c'll 1\I Ulut 1our ...:l
1111 A11clr1• 'li,1111111·s. tlw appro priate 11111,•s uf rulu u r bd iJrl' , c•k·, t111 g ,gL'Utlll'l rH.·dl. ruunJL.·J. urg...in1 1.. 1: lh c prupor11t11 1~

l J\J
- - IM
STYLE AND CREATIVIT Y
I (tall. narrow. wide. low):_ aln
hooSC (strmg 11. C
d tbe quality of the
urvt--d angular.
• h
lines you c . . 11 aITect the way l e
Speaking very
undulating) will subhnunad ~-
10 your cs1gn.
audience reac_t_s I
lines and proportions can
generally. honzonta d I ron (think of waves
ive a sense of case an re axa I • • • ·rnd
!1 the seaside). whereas str~tnga.1,~erera1~;1 g'i;a~d~ur
t 1d to sugges
tall shapes ei . G thic cathedral or giant
(ti •nk of the pillars 111 a o h
re~1wood trt--es in California). Lines and sha~s l . a~
pear angular and disorganized create a sense o
ap case (think of fallen timbers in a bomb~
~:ilding). The designer will orten discover ways ~
which these subconscious reactwns can be subtb
exploi1cd. ed
In selecting colours for stage sellings we ne . to
be aware of their emotional content m vanous
strengths and combinations. The subliminal effects
suggested by tJ1e ubs1rac1 qualities of Imes and
shapes as suggested above can be reinforced by a
complementary use of colour. The sense of ease
and relaxation suggested by undulating.
horizontal lines can be emphasized by the addition
of. say. a cool. bluish colour scheme. a sharp
contrast to the crlecl of vertical shapes when
coloured in hot colours such as reds . yellows and
orange. Note th e effed of randomly selected
colours applied lo an gular compositions when
contrasted with the same composition coloured in
hues containing only red and blue. The yell ow
shape near Lhe centre leaps 10 claim allention .
although in the multicoloured composition the
same yellow shape is lost in the general confusion.
Tbese ideas can be subtly exploited in the colours.
tones and textures selected for a stage set. Try
excluding one of the primary colours from the
design: excluding red. for example. will still perm it
dark blue. light blue. pale yellow. gold. olive green.
sea green and a large number of other hues
produced by mixing blue. yellow. black and while
in various combinations. The colour schemes
resulting from this simple trick will be more
harmonious. and the colour omilled may then be
used in specific areas for particular emphasis as
required .
This reS tricted palette technique has obvious
advantages when designing shows containing a
100
S rY I.E .\ , o CR E. \ T l\' IT Y
--
series of colourfu l painted scenes. but it may al~o
be useful when selecting more subtle colours and
textures for settings in serious drama. However. ii
c-
I
is not suggested for use as a rule. It is merely a c--
device that can sometimes help to bring an unruly
colour scheme under control.
-
USING THE CREATIVE
-
i---
IMAGINA TION
The set designer should not underrate the value of
the audience 's imaginative ability. Albert Einstein I
wrote. ·[magination is more powerful than
knowledge·. and audiences are generally Gently rmdulaling. lrori=ontal Vertical lines rnn prot/11u" .~11911/ar. distJf!/<111i:r1/ /inrs 1·m1
remarkably willing to become eager accomplices in lines can produce a sense of ease sense of mve <rml 9m11tln1r. proclur, <r , r,rsr of 1111r11sr.
their own deception. We are familiar with the ease and relaxatio11.
with which an actor can move an audience to tears
or laughter by an emotional appeal to the
imagination. In a similar way. the set designer can
often create physical architectura l or geographical
features better by suggestion than by showing
them in complete. realistic detail.
You may have experienced children playing
with found objects such as an old car body. a heap
of cardboard boxes or a fallen tree trunk and seen it
turned into a cowboy fort or crusader castle merely
by a creative leap of a child's imagination. The
same magical effect can occur in the theatre. if we
provide some appropriate clues. such as those
offered by the old car body or fallen tree trunk. A
Horizontal li111•s 1,lus t1 cool colour scl11•111e. \lrr1il'11/ li11es plus t1 hut cvlv11r s clrrmt'.
scene taking place in a forest. for example. does not
necessarily need to contain a physical
representatio n of trees. You may prefer to suggest
the quality of 'forest' by your design: conspire 1,~1h
the lighting designer to produce the appropriate
mood and leave the trees to the audience's
imagination .
Rather than attempting to design a realistic
Dunsinane for Macbeth. it might be more
appropriate lo fmd a way to create the non-
physical world suggested by the play: a world or
political intrigue and assassination . the
inevitability of a preordained fate. the
machination s of mysterious dark forces and the
omnipresent imagery of blood. Let the audience's
imagination supply the stones and the timbers or :111911/t,r li11ts widr nsrricred colour sch~rrr,.
Angular lines plus a rmrc/om colour sclreme.
the medieval castle.
llll
 ,,
~T Yi F .,,n rRE .\Tl\' ITY
STYLE AND CR EAT I V ITY
express doubt o r in security. play safe and provide
PR 1\ CTICAI.IT IES handniils. The Death or Mrs Condomlne
Note that off-stage access ste ps should always be
rovided wit h sturdy handrails with a white or
Stability an
. d Safety IJOi nl out that your Act I. Scene l
di be ncces.sary 10 itm,i.nous edge l.o eacb step. An aclor leaving a
11 should Irnr Y \II . ·encrv is. by its nature. Summer. 7.00pn1. Tht' rlrymitl!J furn,\hr-,l ,lrtrwrn!J n."m'
Ix· stab1c. 1 sc · bri ghtly lit stage for the comparative darkn ess or
·-
scenery mus1 1111·,s means that I1,ere is of a lnrge .:mmtr!J lr,111s" m S'us..w·r. Frtm h \\IIIUI•"'" iH
1cturcam .
the wings m ay be momentarily blinded by the
a 1cmponiry 51n . k or ·iris shaking. wobbling o r tlie hack ope11 muo " \vrll-ltr-pt qcrrdn1. TJwrr ,~ ti door
an cver-prc..sc . nl n s pl• \'our builder can give abrupt ch a nge or lig ht level.
l,•ndi119 to rite rntmnn• lw/1 m th, .iag,• ldt wall. I< thr
.· , -,hogel 1cr.
even co II ap sing ' . b ou can help by takin g curtain rists. rlrr drmf 00..lu of .\ln- C,mdununr ,~
ood advice about this. uI Y . . , h Furniture discovered lying on rhe Prrsia11 rnrpt'I ,11 crn tu "itu,1,.
g .. . .. uni when cles1gn1ng t e
siab1.b1y 11110 .,cco f ·rny parts or the set tba t Stage furniture is not governed by the same Thr door l ... opens and ,\.Ir C.Jrnlomrnr t ntr". lie.- ~rmtd."t.
structures. Make a note o ' . .. . . . I con siderations as furni ture in rea l lire: To begin /rorror-stnirk. ltis ltantl on t/rr tl,,ork,wb:
. ·pcci·1I reinforcement. such as .i c oor
may require s ' . . .. ,all that an actor with . on stage the term 'furniture' includes boxes. MR CONOOMTNE: /.ly Cod! /. label! ...
tint will be slammed heavily or a " b "Id
;o
is fa ll againsl. You should not expect the lit e_r_
rocks . wooden blocks. tree stumps or, indeed .
a nything that may be sat on . stood on. leaned The door a t st.age lcfi could be hung to open in one or but thc action or opcmng the ,tour rnrn.-, tu111 10
lo solve all your strucl ural problems for you . _and . ~ several ways. Which do you think would be most slcp backwanls frorn the din.'Ctlfln ,n "hllh he
against or generally treated in the way a piece or
any necessary supporting reatures arc constdere cITcclive? is moving.
furniture may be treated in reality. All stage
at the design stage. they can be integrated mto the
furniture and props need to be arranged in a
dcsittn scheme as a whole. Often you will find that Example 1 Example 3
the -necessity or incorporatin g these supportmg manner not only to be appropriate lo the location
clements inLO your structures can actua lly be a and the period in w hich they appear, but also to ,-

nr~
spur 10 1he crea tive imagination rather than a supply the needs or the a ction required to take
limitalion. guiding you in to directions you wou ld place o n and around them . Sometimes even the
nol have considered otherwise. It can be useful to number or paces an actor needs to take between a
take careful note of a ny unstable features in the ch air and a table may be crucial. Many or Alan
model. Elements that lend to fall over or easily Ayckbourn 's plays are n o table in this respect.
collapse in a well-made sca le model will probably Rem e mber th at in a period play actors may be
~~====="I@~
~ c-
have a tendency to do the same tbin g when the set wearing restrictive costumes or required to behave
is built al full size. in a much more formal manne r than we do today.
Handrails shou ld be provided on any high levels Small c hairs can easily be knocked over and low-
We can sec the door opening. bu1 ~Ir Comlominc is This time. the action of opcnmi: the ti.our propels \Ir
or along high runs or steps. An actor who feel s seated sofas can make it impossible for a n actor to completely hidden. We cannot see who act ually says Condominc onto th.: stage. \ \ c ,: an ,.:.1.cttrh 'C.'C h..un
uasare will not be able to perform to the best or h is sit down or stand up with any degree of grace. the line. and his n:nclion to thl" hurnf}·mg, ...th4..'"0\ cr, ,,I ht,
ability. and a handrail in sympathy with the style or Edward Gordon Craig. in his book Scene, wrote wile 's IX><ly.
the sci can often become a valuable design fea ture. that Mol iere could arrange three or four chairs Example2
However. occasionally you may feel th at a handrail on his stage so that they seemed to act ·... and plead
is not desirable for artistic reasnns and you should for the actor to use them ·. and indeed. the design You rm,y think that b.implc I "' the: uh\ 1ou.> dtuh..-.,.
then anticipate a possible problem and discuss the of a w hole set can sometimes be developed around Ho\\'cvcr, E.,amplc l doc,. ha,c I.he po,.,,tble m.,nt of
matter with the director. the cast a nd the a particular arrangement or furniture and props. , uspcn,c: the door npcn.>. bu t then: "' " ,hurt ddm
production manager. Much will depend on the type Two c haracters discovering mutual feelings of bc(orc we Sl'C who b c nic.nng i.UlJ \ \ t: wonJer \\ ho ll
or action planned and whether the actors feel love during a scene. for example. may begin by cau be. Is this tbc dT<'\'.t r"'-!utn:\l .it uu,, part1cul,ir
confident. Often just a thin strip or wood fixed sitting apart on separa te seats. but gradually monwnt , In a thnlkr 11 ,uultl be unponnut that lhc
along the edges of rostra so that performers can move physically closer as the scene progresses. ln a utlknL'C d1>c.> 1101 know \\ bu tlh.. o,e"" th.: boJ }, In
ca_sily feel the edge with a foot will help. Bear in this case the furniture needs to be carefully this C-dSC, E.,ample I may be the pn:fcrn.-d ch01cc.
Ob,1..'lbS your ~huit.·c \\ llh the ,.brector "-> Lh-..11 \O U
'.111~d that theatre differs from real life in that ever y arranged to permit this. and allow the actors IO
actton takmg place during a performance is both agn."C upon the dfcct mtcmk>J.
rehearsed ·111 d t ·1 communicate their e m o tions to the a udience at Again , we can see the tluor opening, and possibly
" • • e_at • so some or the safely t he same lime. The furniture arrangemen t ran sec pa n or Mr Condomine as he discovers Lhc body.
~rc~<1ultons required in everyday life are not
provide the oste ns ible m o tiva tion for each step in
,tlways necessary on stage · Howe\'"~ r, ·,1· per 1·ormers
the m ove towards each o the r. Pe rh aps drinks arc
J02
1,n
 STYLE .-\:-S D CRE .-\T l\'ITY
STYLE /\ND CR!l/\T I V ITY
revea led to u s by specially placed stage lights throughout a performance. often without the
.. f he drinks wblc in rclal ion (usually refe rred lo as lanterns or lumin aircs in This may not be a pmhlcm \\i th som<' textural
pourl-d? The pos111011 o ~ ·t re then becomes au die nce realizin g it. It is possible to chan ge the
projections. but could he 1en · 111,tk o:.1t>k wllh
. •. of ,unu u European theatre). However, these lanterns not q uality of light in m a ny ways: the focus can be
to other pieces . , •d·1·1le steps in l1,c pic1orial 1m.igcs. The lighting d<-signer sho uld ~
,d·ng intern c ' o nly reveal the actors and ~ur setting to the hard or soft. light beams m ay be \\1de or narrow.
important . pro,', '. Where arc the actors to put ahle 10 prondc cou ntcr-kcYstonl-d slides to
a udience. they a re a lso an important creative Light may be coloured . diffused or textured by
sequence of mo, ~- . ll t·ililc 1,lacecl in jusl the com pensa te for thLs. hut he ·\\i ll nt'l-d to kn o w
. I· sscs· ,\ sma •
do\\"1 tI1c ir g •1· · d . ll . 11 towards each other clem ent in their own right. means of gobos. Static or movi ng images ca n be
exactly where the pmj<-ctor is to be pla,,-d in
• hl position could r,iw , ci Until the la tter hair of the 1950s it was usual ror projected in a variety of ways. Chan ges of locati on
ng • . f ·cuing clo\\'n a glass. relation tn the surface r,-cel\'lnit the proi<'CtL'<I
by the merc_acl o sl . f ach 1>i~-cc of furniture ca n a show to be lit by the director in collaboration with o r time in an a bstract set arc often sugges ted im age.
Tl • spcc1nc sly c o c . . . the set designer and the stage electrician . The merely by a change in lighting. However. the
tc . portant role. For example. a scene m Back-pro1enion LS particularly apprupriiltc fnr
lso phy an 11n • programme n ever contain ed a credit [or lighting setting must be designed to allow for the possibility
a' 1icl,' lWO characters have an argun1c~l n_1dy designer. However. stage use since the pro1ector rnn he set low en ough
with the development or new of creative lighting. A set designer who does not
i'5
~~nelil by having one silting on a chair w~;ch a techniques and changing attitudes to stage design
co nsider the needs or the lighting designer is
to provide lin lc distortion. without the pc>.-<Sib1lll y
liule higher or obv iously more co~orta e. I 1an that the actors will walk mrn the bea m. However.
in general. design ers were eventually engaged imposing a severe restriction on h is own work.
1he oll;cr. placing him physically m a slightly you will need considerable dep1h to the st,1gc for it
specifically to create the lighting for a production. Even the latest technological advances will not to be really efft:l."l\\'e. .\ pro1t.'Ction beam rnn
superior position. A scene between a m an and a
The first lighting designer to receive billing in permit light beams to bend around corners or sometimes be bounn .-d around a corner by the use
;,·oman in a small Oat may acquire part'.cula:
Britain was Michael Northen (1921- 2001 ) when simply cut off at a specific point. Involve the or strategically placL-d m1.rrors. but the mtens1lv of
m-crtoncs merely by the presence of a bed m the
he lit John Gielgud's King Lear at Stratford-upon. lighting designer in the creative process at an early the final image will alway~ suffcr 10 some 1!.'< ll'n;.
room. especially if ii is a double bed. .
Even a scene containing little or no furniture Avon in 19 50. The lighting designer is now one or stage. A specia l vinyl maten al for bm:k-pru\t"Ctlon
will incvilably con tain elemen ts that dictate the the set designer's greatest allies. ln fact. they arc screens is generally available 111 wh11c. 0IT-wh1tc.
ac1ors· movements lo some extent. The balcony in often the sam e person carrying out both jobs. Using Projections grey or !most usefully1 black. Inc blm:k rcur-
Ronll'O 11111/ /11/iel. for example. must be placed so Stage lights are not fixed in place. Many theatres Now that projectors can give reasonably sha rp projection screen has the remarkable .ib1lilv
that Juliet on the balcony and Romeo belo w can incorporate a house-hang. with lanterns hung in images even under quite strong ambient light. to provide a really sha rp and d ear. .-ulourt'll.
both be clearly seen as they in teract with each the same positions more or less permanently. al some stage (orten when a production hits projected image. but ,r set aga111St a tlark back-
other. and as Juliet reacts to the off-stage voice of However. these can u sually either be rehung in budget problems) someone will suggest the use of ground it will become almost 11111~1blc when nut
the Nurse. but also allows them to rnacl indirectly more favourable positions or supplemented by projected scenery instead of built or painted in use.
wilh the audience. The characters occupy sepa ra te other lanterns rigged specially for a specific show. scenery. The idea is u sually discussed . a nd then Moving projections are ideal for we·.ithcr ,rntl
yet united worlds. Creative lighting. with perha ps a or both. Until the early 1960s it was considered abandoned as impracticable. Projections should a tmospheric l'ffects. Falling ram or snow. ,·anuus
stream of warm light from the window striking impo rtant to conceal a ll on-stage lights [rom the not be looked upon as m erely a cheap alternative to types of drirting cloud . swirling water .inJ manv
Juliet and cool moonlight on Romeo below. would audience and they were inevitably carerully hidden other forms of scenery. They are a useful. but other efT<.."ClS arc availa ble. but should .ilw,l\'S be
be invaluable here. making a distin ctive colo ur behind borders or other scenic elements. Little severely limited. design tool. and sho uld not be planned at an t:arly stage in tho:: design pron,,,- to
separation between the two characters. which is con sideration was given to the use or backlighting considered as an end in themselves . Neither are ensure the best possible lt-chnica.l L'O ndiuo11, for
eliminated when Romeo draws physically closer to for extra defmition. and most stage lights were they really economical. for not only do they require them lo be really effecti,·e.
Juliet on the balcony and shares her warm light. generally directed solely from the front. Since then. specially designed and processed media to project
Careful positioning or the various scenic elem en ts however. lighting practice has changed but they are quite useless without a ppropriate The Stage Floor
10 permit this and their integration into the overa ll considerably and lanterns in full view of the surfaces to accept the images and a set SJJL"Cially :Vla ny theatres have banked or balcony ,coming. '°
production style is of vital importance. II ca nnot audience have become acceptable. making a much designed to make their use tec hnically possible. members of the a udience may llml that a larye
merely be left to chance. wider range of possibilities available to the lighting To project a clear image on stage you should percentage of their field of vision i;, o.:cup1c:d by the
Play a mental game of 'what if?' with your ideas. designer. Whether to hide or reveal on-stage light provide a suitable surface to project upon and stage Ooor. The treatment uf this vnally importa nt
Whal ff that platform were twice as high ? What if sources is now a design decision to be made [or sufficient unobstructed space. either in front or il ekment should be an inlt.-gral pan oi th,: de,,1gn .
ii were curved? Made of glass, What would happe n each individual production. (for front-projection ) or behind it (for back- The wo rst kind of stage Ooor encoumcreJ by ,1
if the set were painted entirely in red? - or white? - The main object of s tage lighting is. or course. to projection) to give the size of image desired. T he designer is the wry bea utiful a nd ..:.,:pcn,,l\c
or black? Stretch your imagination. Sometimes the reveal the performers to the audience. aiding that larger the projected image. the longer the throw wo<xlcn parquet Oooring oltcn found m concert
exercise can be remarkably productive. process of communication which is the very that will be required. Consult the lighting designer halls and school assembly rooms. The managmg
essence of all theatre. However. il can go much about this. lf it is not possible to place the projector authoritv is na rurallv an..·dous to pn:scn t: iL>
Let There Be Light!
forther than this. intensifying mood. creating centrally you will ftnd tha t the image becomes 'key- pristine ·a pp.:arancc ~J will allow no mul. ,crew
Generally speaki ng. stages are windowless and stoned ·. That is. it will be distorted from a o r spot of paint lo approach 11. This type of lloor i;,
specific atmospheres and reacting to the events
dark. Everything we sec during a performance is
taking place. Light on stage will subtly modulate rectangular image to a trapezium-shaped image. totally lntra,table and th,: only solution is LO cover
104
10 5
STYLE AND CREATI V ITY
• I r'l1 h shc-cts of II uc · •k til)'Wood or
it up enllre Y " " . .1 aintt.-<l noor d oth .
blockboard. or at least • p 11 ors arc only sc111i-
However. most st agc ° .:
thev C' lll 1JC p,11n 1e
!ti or otherwise
permanent so . i ro/ c·Kh individual productio n.
treated as rcqmrc I· ' ·I , or in part. whcn it
I 1 replaced comp etc )
t 1c1 . : . , Manv stages contain trups o
becomes nccess.in. · b 'Id ' ·
. d' •nsim;s and modern theatre u1 mgs
va rious 1mc
r ·ncorpontc · a· st.w.c .. ,
11 oor tha t is specially
~~1~n~ so th; t any por;ion of it may be removed
g I t •Iv if needed This means that you ca n
comp e c .
· b
dcsion steps leadin g. down to the su -stage ar . .
" · for special cffeels, sc1 ·111 a pool of rea I
cle\'Utors
water 1usc a plastic swimming pool liner) o r even
plant a garden with real grass (ii .will need to have
special grow-lamps left on over 11 at mghl) . Most
productions wi ll not require such elaborate lloors
as these, but the surface treatment of the stage_
noor is as important. if not more so. than a ny ol
the other clements in the set.
The si mplest method of trea tin g the lloor is
si mply 10 paint it. This ca n be remarkably
successful on a stage fl oor. bu t. since the audience
never secs the paintwork from directly in front but
always at a sharply oblique angle, much fine detail
will be lost. However. con trasts in texture becom e
106
~ n I. F \ ' I) l ' R F. \ r I\ IT y
more apparent for the same reason , i\ hi gh glo,s
surface will be even m o re rellertive rrom th e
a uditorium and contrasting textures will be d c;,rly
dilTcren tiated. Floors painted to look like marble or
polished wood ca n be particularly effective wht•n
the painted surface h as been gi ven several coat~ of
f emulsio n glaze to achieve a h igh gloss fi nish .
Arwrs 11rrfor111i11r, 011
T he treatment of the stage lloor will often brini:
111111 ul-cov1•rr1l staar
a bo ut a subliminal quality that can g rcatll'
floor in a protl11rtimr
enhance th e set. A conventional box set sudden!)•
of A Light Shining in
becomes a room when rugs and carpets are laid .
Bucking hams hire. i11
. ca 111 a nd fitt ed carpets. if affordable. can make an
amazin g differen ce to a modern room set. Rough
''!I
{I Sl'I tlesi[llll'tl
Hoarr Sclr11l1: m tire
lloorboa rds may be laid where appropriate or the
Ti 111111s Cc11tn• fort Irr
lloo r may be covered with sand for a beach scene,
Arts in Er/1110111 011.
Even stone paving-slabs can be u sed on stage. It is
Cm111dn . Dirertrcl
often possible to borrow them from your Local
l,y Co11rcrd
Autho rity, but beware. beca u se they are extremely
,\/rxmrdro\\'ic:.
heavy, and check tha t the lloor is strong enough to
Ualrti11[1 l1!1 Cat
support them . The sound qua lity produced by
,\111dryk. l'ho10:
these types or lloor surface is often a n added bonus:
Ellis Bros
the harsh sound of studded boots can be very
effective on stone. even producin g the occasional
spark in a dramatic scuflle. On the other hand. The set for Uwla .\ Jill; \ \'uotl illu~trated in masking i, h\' th<' u"' 11f lcn;;t h, ,t hl,,d, 1,11,m
muflled footsteps on fitted carpets create a Chapte r 8 containL-d three different tyl)<.':i of lloor hun µ at lhc ,1tl1.."=" ,11 Lhr.: ,t ill,!C lt.:"J,, 1 ,1r II\ h , lrU.u 11li1 I
subliminal sen se or lu xury, surface: the centre of the stage \\'as rnn:red \\'ilh a , trips abuw the , tage 1bord<·r, 1. f he tx-..t 1,p,.· " '
n eutral-coloured carpet. the surro unding areas fab ril' li,r I h" pu rp,.>-.c ,, u,u<1lh· ,1111'1<k·r<'1.i 111 h,:
were built from rough Limber and the area at the black <·ott 11 n wlnur ,,r blal'k " ""I .,.·r·~<' 111 r r," ,d,· .,
front of the stage was drcSSt.'tl \\'ith real sto ne slabs . dl!n::,dy hli.11...- k. ll l1n-n ·11t.·t·tac , ur lt h.." L' . I'ht· h'l" 111
T h e actors' foot\\'ea r \\'as sclel'tL-<l fur its sound- hlad, legs. tied hy tap,:, tu .i 1111 \\ 11 b,1r, " " llhl he
producing qu a lit y, creating a subtle soundscape of v,~iblc lo 1nu::,t ul thl· c1 LHJ 1c n u: . ...., , 1l ..., u~u,11 10
Most of tire flo or 1v11s con trasti n g foot steps ror this highly poctil· piece. hang a hlack hurdt·r uu tl x."l l>i h th....... 1111111i,:d 1.1tdy
lifted for this s11ulio 111 front uf Lh<'III tu m,L,t.. the-...: th<· borJcr .:an
the11trc procl11ctlo11 of Creative Masking alsu hide. or partmll\' hide. hgh ung bar, 11 dc:-1n:d.
Oedipus Rex 111 Thl'rllr T he discu ssion or sig htlincs in Chapter :-.:o t<' thut it L, u.,u,11ly ll<'l',.,,,,.in tu lcm'C ,11
Clwucl. Tlrcfloorof demonstrated the m eth1xl or es timating whkh leas! u11e u nu,,..,J ..cl ul lh mg lin<-,. 111llll<'Uiateh•
the s11spe11clecl parts or the stage arc in view of the audicnl'c and up~l,1gc and Juw n.:,t Hgl· l>I the hghlln~ b<lr,
platform wcrs mcrde which parts obscurt-d either bv the architecture of b.....:ausc 1he la111<·n1,- take up ,1 co11,-1dcr.1blc
frorrr exptmclccl 111e1nl the theatre or by temporary ~cnic elements. It is amo unt uf ,pa,·c .. \ \'rn<l the n,.k or rm, by keepin g
anti the rest of llu· u sually con sidered desirable to hide off-stage areas a ll dral)<.':i wd l " " ay irom light.s. l'h " Lyp1.:al
floor 1w1s co1•c recl so that stage cre\\'s m ay have ronreak'tl access tu m r,111g<·me111 o ( b.ird<·r. !cog, and lli:huni; bar "'
with stone p111•l1111 the wings and actors can make cl'fcctivc entrances , hmn1 in the ,utawa~ Jiagmm of .i pr=cmum
s labs. Direcli'Cl bu and exits to a nd fro m the perfo rma nce area. 11 b ,ta~c in l'hi. 1ph.'.r ~-
George Ho1111111. also u sually necessmy tu hide the inevitable off- .\lanv thcalr<-,. hmc -cmi-permuncnt. ,olld
Li!]lrting by Pru sta ge cluucr ur Sl'L"nery, prop tables. sound and black n; a, l..111g pic"t:<'> fu r u,-c 1m111<"1iatdy up,,tagc
Ncltl1•r. Phoro: Har r// lightin g equipment. ,if the pro,,...:nium so thill the width and hc1i;h1
JJrr111i/to11 The simplest and most rnnwntional form of m a) he adju, tc<l to a certain extent. l'hc,,c ,ire
\()7
 D

STYLE .-\~D CRE.-\Tl\'IT Y

STYLE AND CREATIVITY
., and paint it to suggest features such ·is w he n the play oft en bega n with the droppin g of a
groundro\·, . - . "' . . c sewn in a diagonal line al the b."lck of each cu r1a in.
.· (vertical side masking) distant mountains. trees or houses. for mst<1nce. if c urtain. rather than raising it. Large stage cur1ains :',;ote th a t this type of dral)l-d t'tle,:1 can only be
referred to as ·tormcnl~: : 1 top masking). The
and ·teasers' (honzo t hide a downsta ge desired . arc always referred Lo as 'tabs' (a n abbreviation of achiewd if tht' curtains are suitably proportio ned:
teaser usually also serves o Some cycloramas arc made from PVC similar to tableaux curtains) in backstage jargon. Thus we a ca rdul consldcrntion of the a,xompan~'ini:
back projection screens and ~ay be lit either from hear of 'house tabs' for the front curt ain or 'black
lighting bar. II f the stage is not completely the front or the back. A backlit cycloran1a has the illustration " ; II show tha t the hehtht of the ,urtam
If the back wa o designer needs lo consider wbs· or simply 'blacks' for the frequentl y used must be sufficient 10 co,·cr o,·cr h;lf tht' !Ptal width
grea t advantage of avoiding the possibility of black curtains. Stage curtains are usually made
hidden by the set. thbe k his scenery Black velour of the opening. This highly theatncal styk ,,mmit
I . t be used to ac. .. d I shadows being cast from the actors or scenery from velvet or velour. but also from a wide variety
w iat ,s o . . (tabs) arc usually a standar par work successfully "; 1h a ,tage "Pl'ning c>I
or serge cur1mns d these can be hung to sta nding close to it. However. it requires a good of other fabrics. Wool serge gives a good light- ·1c11erbmi' proport ions.
of stage cqu1pmbentk an und the tops of the tabs.· dea l of space behind it for effective lighting. just as absorbent surface often used for black tabs. and a Curtains do not necL·s.s;inly ha,·c 111 lll)l'll a t tht·
·d black ac gro · the more conventional cyclorama needs in front. fabric known as Dimout made by intenveaving a
prmn e a . bl ck border. If care is taken to avoid centro:. :\ 111dc. slnltlt' curtam ts ofit·n LL<t-d ln ,1
If enough space is available. a cyclorama can layer of black fabric behind a layer of coloured mid-srngc position.- t'.llhcr flown or "'ml·tirm'S
h•~1~~1~s;~ge\ghts spreading on to these bla~ks.
provide an excellent surface for projections. These fabric is comparatively lightweight. inexpensive. hung on a single tab track to be drawn olT 10 ont·
sp ood . "d can be created to surround a standmg
may consist of anything from projected available in a wide range of colours a nd designed side of the stage. in which c-= it ts rdcrn.-..J 10 <1s .i
a g B t,01black void although usually flattering to
set. u a · · bl · all photographic images covering the whole area or to prevent light behind it from leaking through the 'wipe' or ·traveller·. It can be surprt.singlv dTt..-ctln:
any scenery set \\~thin it. may not be smta e in .
smaller images such as a moon. to weather effects weave. Suppliers of stage fabrics can usually 10 reveal scenes in this wav. .ind. mllt..:-d. u 1s I hl'
~ases. Perhaps the scene is supposed to suggest a
such as clouds or visible sunrays. provide useful swatch-books containing sampk'S of technique traditionally dd~ptcd by the lapancsc
bright exterior location or a black background may
be considered too sombre for a comic piece. ln such Often it will be found that a set provides m uch of their range. Remember that all stage fabrics must kabuki theatre.
cases. the designer may consider a cyclorama its own masking. particularly at the sides. where be adequately fireproofed. Tab trncks may also be USL-d II> move ...:crnc
(usually abbreviated to ·eye'). This is simply a large. any tall structure (such as side walls in a room set) Tabs may be tied to a bar and flown as an y other elements across the stage. Thus screens nr llat
flat. neutral-coloured sheet of light-absorbent may perform a creative function as a scenic scenic item. b ut are often hung on a special heavy- painted pieces. for example. ma~, be arrnni:cd u,
fabric that can be lit either to suggest a sky or 111 element and the additional technical function of duty curtain track (or tab track). with a small move l'rom side to side in ddditiun LO bemg r.us,,d ur
any colour desired. A heavy. lightly woven. mesh masking off-stage areas at the same time. Check overlap at the centre so that they may be opened or lowered by the ll~ing system. Remember that .uw
fabric referred to as 'filled ga uze· is a popular the sightlines. as described in Chapter 3. to work closed horizontally. operated from otT-stage either tracked item obviously cannot mon: bevonll 1h1:
material for cycloramas. but some theatres out whether any supplementary masking \Vill be by hand or winch. limit of Lhe track. so 10 mo\'C uff-,1ai:c ,,nd
incorporate a permanent. bu Ut cyclorama required. Stage drapes can also be arranged to open and completely out of view of the audience. the track
consisting of a smoothly plastered wall. often A musical. needing several scene changes. will close in a decorative manner rather than just being must be considerably longer than um, nurmull)'
curved slightly to enclose the performance area . often benefit from a series of semi-permanent drawn to the sides. Often seen in theatre used for on-stage curtains.
Sometimes a simple. flat. painted backcloth can be portals bridging the stage. consisting of buUt top illustrations and still encountered in old-style Other techniques arc also in LL<e for upcra1mi:
used as a substitute cyclorama or 'sky cloth'. Do and side masking joined together to provide proscenium theatres is the swagged style of stage drapes. :\lost commonly cnt·ountcn:J .ire
not be tempted to paint the sky blue. use a pale. consistent masking for all scenes. A special portal curtain operated by cords running through rings ' profile mbs' and the ·reefer cur1a10 · ur '. \ usm.i n
neutral grey and let the lighting designer provide situated near the front of the stage is often referred
any colour needed with appropriately coloured to as a 'false proscenium' and is a particularly
lights for a much more adaptable effect. useful device in pantomime to mask the top and
Whatever the cyclorama consists of. it cannot be sides of painted cloths. Make sure that there is
really effective unless proper provision is made to sufficient space between portals to allow any large
light it efficiently. Consult with the lighting props or scenery lo pass between them.
designer over this. but it is usually necessary to lt may be a creative decision to avoid any visible
leave about 2.5 to 3m (8 lo 10ft) clear in front of it m asking devices altogether and perform on a
for an even spread of light across its surface. often completely open stage. However. as concealed off-
supplemented by a row of lanterns on the stage stage areas will inevitably be required. you should
floor to light the bottom part of the sky or tint it for be prepared to make some appropriate provision Wht'Ckd run ncr master
a dawn or sunset effect. This lighting groundrow for this.
may be . bidden behind a built scenic groundrow,
either simply straight and painted to match the
Curtains and Tracks
noor or finished in some manner appropriate to the
Curtains have been used on stages as a means or
set. It is possible to design a proft.led top for a scenic t\ rnb !ruck.
concealment since the days of the court masques.
l08
lll'J
STYL E /\ N D CREA TIV I TY .\:-. o CRF. \ T J \ ' IT Y
STYLF .
(no runner s required )
Curtain s tic< to 1ar
-
- i 111 rI I I " ,lrn ,,-
Curtd1n tied to har
II I.inc run s
' I,

I
I
\ '/1 I '
I through

j r I
1!I
I
I
I
curtain rings
on back

[ J,
~-
I
I
I
I
I
),
,
!I ,

I
'--- Note ovcrla p Rerferc11rtai11 or
;\11s1rir111 drape.
'
,','
''
. ___ . , ,•, . ___ .-
~
~
..
I

.·.'
to be
drape·. boLh of which are curtain s rigged desii:ncd with this in mmd. You should fir.1
raised and lowere d in a series o f d eco rative swags acquire plans and 51.'C tinns of um· th.,;11rc:s l..nown
d
by m eans of lines runnin g throug h rings auache to be on the tour list. You ,nil prnb.iblv b,:
in verlica l rows at the back.
depressed tu disrnn'. r Lhill 1hc ,r. ,t.t.,,, n 1rv
co nsidcr.i bly in dimension,, and fa<1li11cs:" 1h" 111;11•
Desig ning Sets to Tour mea n tha t you must dc,,rgn ,1 -,.-1 1h,11 c,111 h.·
n will
Genera lly. a set design ed for a specific locatio compl'L-ssed or cx tcmlt-d 111 as many dirt.'Cl1uru.
"'
t a
not be able to tour to oLher locatio ns withou possible. Howev er. the n·ul problem is nur mt-n:h·
is
consid erable amoun t of adapta lion. so. if a show filling your set on lo a 1o1nc:ry of , rages. bu1
it s hould be designe d and built
expect ed to lour. t·nsurin g tha t the si!lhtliu ~ also 11ork. fhil i "'· 1h.r1
-s
with this in mind from the beginn ing. So metiml the import a nt clemen ts can bt- -..:en cb1rlv un
has been very success ful. it is
when a produc lion every stai:c and tll.11 concealed. uff- , ragc Jl't"il.'> ,,re
S1Vagycd curtai ns. decided to take it to anothe r theatre or even
to
a ppropr iat ely hiddt•n at au ven ues.
has
several . then the produc tion m a nager usually You should c:ndc:.i1·our tu rh.....-o,·c:r ,11 un early
tor
Curtain tied to bar to explain patient ly that Lhe set hns bt.-en built stage:
stage
ils specifi c locatio n. often n differe nt type o r
ere.
than one that might be encoun tered elsewh Wheth er any of the: wnues la.:k any lllll (ur
it
and frequen tJy built i11 silll in a way that makes fucilitics you !'(-quire 1, uch <1, .i 1lymi: ,ysltcm Ji
load into a lorry. This
imposs ible to disman tle and Are any of tho:: tlymg ,y,tcm , un-
es.
is not careles sness but a sensible use or resourc countcnveightt-tl,
will need to be of a mo re
If a set is built to tour it \Vha t type uf lorry "tll be le,(_'\J lur the 1nur,
and
solid constr uction . design ed to be taken a part Wha t are its in k rnal dimt:r:wonsi
reassem bled a s quickly as possible. This means Will tht tour c:m:uu nrc:r <111v di1TtcuJ1 gc:r -ins i
1and
emplo ying dilTere nt tec hnique s and dilTcn.-m Tha r is. can the: s.:enc:ry easily be unloadt-tl from
of
more expens ive) mmeri als. and a method the lor n · to the: ; wi:e: II is no'. w1ho:,-.in:J of fu r
more
constr uction that deman ds co nsidera bly sccnc:n•·to have to be manha ndlet.1 up a \\ 111Jlng
Lime and effort. stairrn ~. in which case. large pit-ccs ..:an prc,.enr
l\luch or the burden or constr uctini: a !>Cl to tour a M"rious prublc:111.
will fall to the builder. but it also needs tu
be I low 111u1·h timl.' 1viU be ,wa dablc fvr -.cuing
Profile or corrtou r wbs.
I JO
111

CREATIVITY
STYLE AND
·npublic pcrfonn-
. portant: "~ d d to
, This is ,nost un . . hts? Is it in ten c
up. . start on Monday ~11gd· - This cou ld be
ances I • sun aw
rcct the set on t 1e d . I ,a' to sturl the get -111
e . •nsive. It ,night be c'CI< "·,rl on the Monday
::ioading from tl~c lo;;\~,~ {ccncry. light the
,norning. rig hght,. ~ dress rehearse and play
·how, set sound lc,·c s. the smnc evening.
s . rfonnance on
the opening pc ssibility of including any
This allows no f.'mcult to rig or assemble.
clements that are ' I
•II be erected on Sunday.
If YOU arc lucky. the set '.' I Mondav for rehearsal s
- , d )' night leavmg '· f - ·
lit on sun a . . 11nal adjustments. l I1• is
and any necessary Tu day nights . leav111g
cd to open on es
dc-ci d ·dark· for rehearsals or tee -
Mondays complete1Y xtremcly fortunate. You
nical work. then you are ; This schedule leading
1
may even ha~~1~;;0:m;nce depends to a large
up to /h~o~hc i;ature of the show: a musical may
cxten . u 1~"1 orchestra and will need to have
be usmg a ~ . .
. to rehearse with the new mus1c1ans. or
nmc • d I II and have to
sometimes extras are recrmte oca y
be incorporated into the production. Scene
changes may have 10 be rehearsed with the local
stage crew. On the other band. a small cast s_h ow
with a single standing set might be comparatively
simple to open on the same night as the get-i n.
As designer, you will not be expected to tour
with the show. but you should certainly be at the
first venue to sec the show in and oversee the build,
dressing and lighting or your set. You should be
paid all your expenses for this, including travel.
hotel and meals and, or, as an alternative, an
agreed daily subsistence allowance. Minimum
rates and conditions have been established by
British Actors' Equity, so. if you are working
professionally, you shou ld certainly join Lo enjoy
the benefits offered by the Union and make your
own contribution lo any future negotiations. Keep
all receipts to reclaim expenses either from the
management or the lnland Revenue at a later date.
Some Legal and Financial Matters
The copyright of the set design automatically
belongs t~ th e ~esigner. You do not have to register
it nor clam, it m any formal way. This means that
112
an legally reproduce your design \\'ithoui
no one C
c • .
your permission. and a pro,ess1onal tlc~igncr
• expect a payment for any perfonnunccs
sIIOU Id . I ...
• for which he has not .been contracl~c 1111t1ally. He
wil l sometimes be offered the choice between a
r ·cd weekly amount (a royalty) and a percen tage
~~ the net box office takings. It wil_l not be large, less
than 1 per cent is normal. bu~ this may amount to
quite a large sum if the show 1s successful. You will
need to weigh carefully which you think would be
the more beneficial: if the show is not a big
attraction. you may be grateful for a low fixed
amount. but if you expect the show lo play to
packed hou ses at every venue. a percentage m.ight
be much more profitable. lf you are to receive a
h percentage. you can expect to be sent a copy or the
box office receipts.
You may need to discuss billing to establish
exactly how your name is to appear on publicity
material. It is usual for the designer·s name to
appear wherever the director's nan1e appears.
usu ally in the same size of typeface. Do not be
embarrassed abou t asking for this, even if you arc
working on a semi-professional or amateur
production it is a good idea to establish this
principle. lf things have gone disastrously wrong
and you do not wish to have your name associated
with the production, you have the right to ask for
your name to be removed from all publicity
material, including the programme. However. this
should not affect any payments due to you and it
does not mean that you have resigned your
copyright.
Read your contract carefully and do not make
a ny assumptions. Once you have signed it
everything in it is legally binding a nd anything not
in it carries no weight at a ll. Dates for the delivery
of the designs and the model should be clearly
specified. and you must meet these deadlines. cl'en
if you feel that they are unnecessary. If you are
made an offer over the telephone, ask for it to be
repeated to a partner or any friend who happens 10
be with you . A verbal contract can be legally
binding. Fees a re usually paid in three instalnicnls:
one third of the total amount on signing ilic
contract. one third on the approval of the designs
and the final thlrd on opening night.
Sometimes a succc.....,<ful show will he revived a t a
l,itcr date. Remember th.it. altho ul(h the actu al
sce nery belongs to the management. the copyriih t
of the set belong.< to you . You must he appro.1chcd
fo r your permission for the reuse of your dcsign .
Expect to be offered a percentage of your original
fee and . or a lternatively. a further royalty or
pe rcen tage of the profi':5· You m~y also be a~kcd t_o
carry out some add1 t1o nal design work at this
sta ge. and this wo uld mean an additional ft.-c. of
co urse. Your designs. the actua l sheets of paper
with your original renderings o n them . and the set
model belong to you and should be returnct.1 to
you. unless you have agreed to sell them or give
them away. Your perm ission should be asked if
they arc to be reproduced in publicity ma terial or
o thenvisc exhibited. but do not expect any
payment for this.
You may occasionally be given the opportunity
to sell tbe copyright of your set outright. In this
case you would be resigning all interest in it and
the management may carry out any altcrations or
use it in any way it wish1.-s.
If you are working professionally you may be
able to use the services of a theatrica l a gen t who
can sometin1es be a great hdp in finding work by
putting you in touch with managements or
directors who might be interested in employing
you . Your agent will also draw up contracts for you
and should be able to give you good advit:e about
your career in general. Your fees will probably be
paid directly to your agent on your behalf. who will
forward them to you aller dt'C!ucting an agreed
percen tage. Sometimes your agent will be willing
:,. T\ I. E . \ '\ I) CR F. \ TI \ . IT Y
lo nckann, )"\l U mCln.:y ,r you n,-ed II t,..·f,,n· Y{'llf
fc-cs ,,re p.1111.
Rewar,' of agents who nffcr tu 11nd vuu w,rl 111
return for il r,-e p.,1d 111 .1d,:tnl'<'. ft IS ~n-lY ,I ,:u,>d
idt'a to l'Ol.:r inrn this typ.: ,,r .1rr..1t11tt'ml'nl: lml,-., L
it L~ someumt!S m~rclv ,, lhsho nt."SI ,, --; 1v t.lf' makuu:
money from young .1~d 111, ..cpencnn·d .l<'Slgn,•r,_ ir
you arc a thea tre Lk::-11:n ,,mknr . ,·uu n,ulJ l,,.·
approached by somt~m; daim1111: 1<; h..· .,n ,l).:<' ll t
making you lhLs typ.: of olT<T ,1t, \1>ur ).:r.td u,;t lun
show. You have been w11mt't1! There L". ,11>.-.ulut d\'
no guara ntt'C that you will t'\'lT be olT<-n't1 ,1 ,.. h.
Stick with 50mt~me who h,Ls reputable ,-rnkn11.1b:
ask for a wt.>b site .ill<ln--ss ,tml "''C wha t uth<·r
cl ients arc on the agent 's lb1s . r,~, milnv dt-s1i,:1wN
could ml.'a n tha t you mav be last u, llm, fur ,,n v
availabh: jobs. but. on the other hand. no do,i,:m·r.
al all might mean that the ,,gem IS 111cxpcn <·1u-,-tl
in this p.1nkul.1r lidd.
Reml.'mbt:r tha t .is ,1 sclf-t'TTlpluy.-cl. fn-.:lamT
designer you wlll bt: responsible fur pm•mi,: yo ur
O\\Tn im.:omc tax and , ..uion ..d ln~ura nn:
contributions. C:Ct 11110 tht· habit 11r -..iv1ni,: ,,II
receipt.<: and tr..wd tu:keLs. huwcvl·r 111~1g1111it·ant.
tu reclaim as ..:.xpcnscs ,11,:mn>l tax. Du 1101 for,:ct
items such as rm1ga:an<=1. photogrJph..-<. up,..
theatre scats. <ubscnpliun, tu pmf1..-...,11111al
organizations. a prupur tmn uf your tdq>hl>nc bill.
the .:o., t of hea lin g yuur wurkpla,c. ""rk duth<--< Of
you p.1int your sccrll'ryl .ind ,mart duthn tu ,war
tu first nights and "milar occ-.i:.1u11., fh c S...:ttclY ol
Brit ish Thea tre DL>:>1gncrs ha,. " !l'.'.itlct ulfcr111i:
advice about these ma tters. ,md yuu might Ill..: tu
consider employing an ,u.:cou ntant.
I I I
_,.d AutoCAD 2000 - (DonG iovann i.dwg]
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3 1r-:::: 7 COMPUTER TECHNIQUES

[ 1Q a a'~□ constr3
~ ~1
m~ ~ • @ ,.::> ~ ~ ~ ~ II 3 Ijj ® I @ @ @ ® 6J ®

[I[® ® @ 1 fDt 21+ oi@ ~ ~ r1V :°' I r6J =°' w tfi1 ~Cil r®J .t5J I~o ~
I

You do not have to use a comput er - set dcsirmcrs

have worked happily for centurie s without · one.
1lowcver . they do offer us a range of tnols th at
opens up a host of such exciting possibilities that a
designe r would be foolish to ignore them
comple tely.
..:>
B AS IC COMP UTER GR APH I CS
o BB
Compu ter-gen erated images are now commo n-
CJ place. but a distinct ion should be made bt:twcen
r two basic types of compu ter graphic: bit-mapped
and vector- based. The comput er can display a
0 picture by looking a t it as a series of closely aligned .
the image fil l· to ,i mor1.· 111 ,111.1~~.ihlc ,u,·. t l1w ,,1
lht· m,N P, >pul.ir ti1rm,1h " 1hL· 11'11; ,,r II '\ ;
''.Jrigrn:illy dt·,dopctl h~ the l•1m1 l'h11t11)!r.1plwr,
l,u,ld. ,ind pronnu n,,~I ·1il\·-r,·:: n," lllrtll,lt 1,
ab~e to comprl'~., lhl· •, 1.1 ,t ,tm,1u n r, 111 Pll turl·
tnlormtu 1nn mtu \l"r\ , m..111 till , H, , \\l'\ l 'r 11
ac hicn:s th~~ by ,l1!!111I, de;:r. 1d1ni: th,· 11 11 ,,,:,· ,·, 1d 1
time it t, ~avcd tn 11 rile. nu, I\ rx· II 111~111,ll .,
referrL-d lo lL'\ ·1t~, v-. l'hu, n.-l,1.1d1r1 !.! md ~1, Ill!.! , 1
JPEC tmag~ x·,cral llml.·, l(>r n:\\ nrk111\!. 1., 11 1
rL-sult in ,1 notrceabl,· Je;:rnd,lt lf>n ,~1111\ ,1k 11t 111
rontinually making phu101:np1e, imm ph,,1i,.:11 p1,·,
It is ~Iler to curnpk·tc \\ Or\.. t1n , 1 p1L,11n, 111 , """ ·
lossy forma t lsuch a,, nFF t ,rnJ , omprL--.., .,, 1 ll'FC

m~ little dots. The dots may be of any colour llhe

compu ter can display more colours than rnn bt:
,inly when all work on II rs c11rnpk·1<·. \t, ,-_, ~r, 11,h "·,
software \\'ill allm, m u tu d, , lhL, ,11111,· ,... " j,
c~ recogni zed by the human eye) and very small
indeed. perhap s 1 .-WO clots per inch (clpi ). though
\'c.• rtor-ba~-d ~n1ph1l· ti,rm a l~ ,tun.· nturm . 11 1011
in H c:orn pk·tl'ly liiffl'rl'nt \ \,1 \ . ln~ll"tu.J , )I x ·t.·111!.!, the
~ 9J it is rarely necessa ry to work at such a high ima~c il!) a .)l"qUL'Ol'L' ul \..·olourt-tl dut,. l h1~ tu rnt,tl

IJ;e1 :a resoluti on. The little dots arc rcfcrrt!d lo as picture

clemen ts. commo nly abbreviatL-d to ·pixels' and
views an irnag,t: ,,~ c.1 ,,,.,_.nt, u1 JL'l>lllt'lrtcul ,hulk"'
anti rernl'm ber:- thl· 1i,rmul,1l' rL'\llllrL'll 111
. fa display ed as 'bits' , which arc the tinit'St amount s of
informa tion the compu ter can handle. A pkturc
rcprotlU l't• them . l'hu, " ,1 r..1q;h1 line 1s '<'t:11 ,,,
joming pu,rt1on I tu p,r.,il!un 8 \\ 11h .i line ol the
~ Ii · compos ed in this way is referred to as 'bit-mapped '. appmpm lle width <111J l"L•luur. Kl'\. tanglo, dhp,.cc,.,
polygons a11J ,o mi J rl' rcmcmbcn:,I bv Lhc
It is an excelle nt method for display ing rnrnplirn1cd
picture s such as photog raphs. but. if the image is cu111pu1cr u, the -.11n,· 1, ,I\. tugrlhL·r 1, tlh the
enlarge d. the rectang ular pixel blocks rapidly colour. ll'Xlure ur palll"rll tu IUI the ,h,1p._--. 11
become appare nt. ueating an unl'ortu natc, blocky n:quirL't.l. fhi: grl'"l dlh-anlilgc ui this lornhtt L' 1h;11
effect. the image may b,: L'nlarg....J or rt'llu,....J rnJcl11 111cl~
In using this method the comput er must \\'ithuul lu:,.ing tnlL"gnly dOU brcak1ng up inlu
remem ber huge amoun ts of informa tion for cad1 obl'iou, pixd bln,:k.. h-.·tor ;;rnph,c:. Jrc Lhcrcfure
image. so Illes can become su large that sp,xiul partkub rly , uitablt' 10r ll"<'htucal Jr.:iwtng, . .ind
compre ssion techniq ues han: to Ix· uSt-<l tu rl-dU,L' thb b tht' ll'\.hrnqul· LL'<-..! by all Jr.:ifung prugrai rb.

~~-.-
l'h'--· romputt.'r. tl,gt.'Lhcr \\ ith lb \ an, 1u::,,
ddju1Kt~ :,,u,..- h d::,, prm tcr. .....·aru1L·r ,tnJ J1~n,d
of II l'Ulllp11 1a 111011ilor ~C'rt' l'II ll'i//1 II ,a llll'rtl, ha, n,m lx-.:ome illl mili,,pcn:,able Luol lur
lalDDICJ Model OPPOS /Tla: P11r1
lhn•c•-c/i111r11sior1t1/ c/igillll s1·1111oill'I cn·1111·tl i11 Lhe set dl-,,1~11er. ,md 11 \\ UulJ bc dillkult lu
cumempla1c - \\ odJng 1111huu1 the many
~ommand: ' layer 1l11wC, \V.
!Command : 11-;

[16'-51/16", 12'-9 3/16'' , 0'-0"

J SNAP~R10U □RTH0 P□LARnosNAP □TRACK! Lw'T!fMODEI
 COMPUTER TECHNIQUES CO \I Pl"TE R TE(IISIQLIES

virtu,illy any angle. AutoCAD then allows you to

. h·is offer in spi te or the fact that
ad vantages 11 , 10 · . 11 . , create layouts quickly showing plans. elevations,
only a few of its possibilities arc yet explmte, iy set sections and perspective renderings that can be
designers in general. printed out to scale. all from the one digital model.
It is even possible to apply colour and digital
COMP UTER DRAFTING tex tures Lo the model. establish appropriate light
sou rces and produce a near photo-realislic image
Most designers now use compu ter-aided design
(CAD) software 10 produce swge plans and other of the finished
set.
One serious disadvantage of AuLoCAD is Lhc
technical drawings. although thc 1racht1011 al
a
·hand-drafted· tc•c hniqucs have by no means been high cosL or the software. It is very expensive:
abandoned. ~ lany designers find thal drawing by reduced version. called AutoCAD LT. is available at
hand is more suiwd to creative thought than a much lower cost. containing most or the same
drafling on a computer. one great advantage of the tools bul lacking the facilities for 3D modelling.
drawing board being that it is possible lo view a Students can usually obtain software on licence
large drawing in its entirety rather than m the from their college or university or al least at an
pie~emeal style offered by a relatively small educational discount.
monilor screen. However. CAD does make ti AutoCAD is not the only drafting program
possible to work 10 a high degree of accuracy. and. available: TurboCAD from rMSA does not have all
once 1he necessary techniques have been the spectacular facilities offered by AutoCAD. but is
mastered. stylish and detailed sheets or technical a first rate program. available in several different
drawings can be produced with speed and versions. at a low cost. CorelDRAW also has some
compura1ivc case. excellent drafting tools alongside a remarkable
The industry standard drafting sort ware is now range of tools for graphic design in general.
AutoCAD. by Au todesk Inc. This excellent program Whatever software you buy. do not e>.1)Cct to sit
offers many techniques lhal are quite impossible Lo down al your computer and instantly use all Lhc
achieve by 1radi1ional means. There is no need to facilities it offers. Some software is much more
work to scale when using AutoCAD since all user-friendly than others. but to make the best use
objects arc drawn initially at full scale. reducing or or a complex program such as AutoCAD you will
expanding any part or the drawing to a convenient need to spend many hours learning how to use it.
size as you work. Scale becomes a consideration The best way to learn is to attend a course: reading
only when you plot your drawing to hard copy and the manual alone will not give you Lhe necessary
select a paper size for the print. For this reason , it is exercises you will need to gain familiarity with the
unwise to make a definite statement of scale on the techniques. and feedback from an experienced
drawing. as is good practice in hand drafting. until teacher can be extremely valuable. However. if this
you know what the scale or the hard copy will be. A is not possible. some good instructional books are
clearly dimensioned rule drawn on the page ls a avai.lable. containing a series of gradated tutorials
more convenient guide lo scale in CAD work since and exercises. such as the 011e Step at a Ti111e books
this will remain correct whatever Lhe scale or the by Timothy Sean Sykes (see the Bibliography): the
printout may be. Needless Lo say, Lo add Lexi and Basic and the Advanced course are published
dimension lines. which are particularly tedious separately. You will need the Advanced version if
when working by hand. is a much simpler matter you have Lhe full version or AutoCAD and wish to
when working with CAD. experiment with 3D modelling.
However, perhaps ils greatest advantages are David Ripley offers good. inexpensive.
achieved when working in three dimensions. distant-learning courses in AutoCAD for
Advanced AutoCAD users can produce a digital JD theatre from his web site CAD4THEATRE al
model or a complete set and stage. or even an entire www.cad4theatre.org.uk, and also the freely
theatre. which may then be viewed on screen from down-loadable official CAD Stamlards for Tlr!'lllre
I 116 11 ;-

_I
COMPUTE R TECHNIQUES
document [rom th e same sit e. which attempts w ormeatechniques
·.,c dr·1[tino conventions such as the u se
stan d ard 1;. .: t- . . . ,1•.
of layers. line-weight s an d dimensinnmg st) cs.
OTHER SofT\\1/\RE
Adobe's l'hotoshop is probably the most popul a r
hit -mapped graphics program avai~abl e. It
cont ains a wide range or tools ,md specia l effects
for manipulating irnagl's. and it s com parat ively
user-friendly interface means that e,·cn a beginn er
ca n quickly come to terms with it. A cut -tlown
version of the program is rrequc ntly packaged
with new comput ers. so that you may !ind th at
you have it ;ilrcady installed on your s~stem ..
Rather more useful to the set designer 1s the
CorclDRAW graphics sui te. consistin g of several
interrelated programs. the m a in ones being
CorclDRAW. a vector-orient ated prog ra m that can
be used to prod uce technical drawin gs. and Corel
PIIOTO-l'AINT. a bit-ma pped program tha t offers
excellent tools fo r man ipulating ph otographic
images. II is easy lo switch between programs
and elements can be easily imported and exported
[rom one to the ot her. The extraordinary wealth
11 8
offe red by this comple te package
n s thcll it may take som e lime lo become
familiar with ever ything that may be of use.
but a few hours spent working through some
good tutoria ls will rapidly be repaid. If
budge tary con s iderations limit you lo only one
software package. this would probably be the
o ne lo choose.
For th e designer who finds it diJ!icull to come to
terms with u sing a mouse instead of a pencil or a
bru sh. a graphics tablet a nd sty lus may prove
inva luabl e. This comparatively inexp e n sive piece
of hardware offers a drawing surface that is
sen s itive to a pen-type stylus. You can u se ii with
either hand (a big advantage for left-handers) and
it has the feel of a brush or a pencil. T he graphics
tablet may be u sed as an input dev ice with most
good sort ware packages. including Pholoshop a nd
Core l PHOTO-PAINT. but dedicated software such
as the very user-fri endly Painter program
(origin a lly from MetaCreations. but now handled
by Corel) is worth consideration .
The Poser software from Curious Labs is a
program you can u se to create fully poseable.
photo-realistic. three-dimensional characters that
Photograph of part
of a set model with
digital figure cre<11ed
i11 Poser Pro softw11rr.
s11perim11osecl 10 givt•
sc1ll1•.
you ca n then ex port lo other program~ ,ind use Lr,
peop le your sci designs. in corporating th t'm in rull
colou r inlll pho tographs of the model or rendering
t he m s imply in outline to add a human sc,ilc 10
tcc hniec1I draw ings. The interface is non-sta ndard.
bu t fairly si mple to grasp.
VR Worx fro m VR Toolbox Inc. is a progra m
design ed to produ ce the interacti\'e 3n0-deg rcc
pa nora mic views seen on some web sites. However.
11 may also be u sed lo convert photographs of your
,-ct models into a forma l tha t can be rernl,·cd on
scree n by usi n g the m ouse to be looked a t from a ny
;ingle. It is pa rtic ularly e ffec ti ve for viewing sets for
1hcatre-in-the-round . You will need a digital
ca mera (see below) to take the photograph.~ and a
small turntable to revolve the model in reasonably
accurate increments is a grea t help. [or you will
need at least thirty-sLx pictures of the model. 1akt'n
al about every JO deg rees as it is rotated. The
computer identifies any elemen ts in each pkrure
that rel a te to s i.milar clements in the next picture in
the sequence a nd welds them a ll together into a
continuous. digital loop. any part of which rnn be
viewed on screen. steering around the resulting
pa norama with the mouse or keyboard . It is also
possible to zoom in and out of the image to some
extent.
A scen e change can be animated from the St'l
model in the sam e way by carefully photographing
the change in small. individual steps (not row tin g
the mode l in this instance). th.:n running the
resulting series of pictures through the soflware lo
produce an interactive animation or the sequence
that can be controlled with a mouse in the same
manner a s the revolving panoramas.
ADDITIONAL HARDWARE
A colour printer to produce ha rd copy of your
designs is indispensable. Fortunately. printers are
now extremely inexpensive to buy a nd even the
cheapest can produce surprisingly good n:sults.
However. bear in mind that the manufacturers
realize that you are going Lo nc.-cd a rnnstan l supply
of ink cartridges. a nd this is how they makt: their
profits. The cartridges vary considcrnbly in price
and the amount of ink they rnntain : some contain
ro ,11•1 fFR Tfl"fl"t.l l' ES
the ,1,tw,I pnntmo h .. cl 1 h h
,. <,I · ' ". •~ n·pl,K<'I.I wuh
e.ich nc,, ra rt ridv.c. l'h<-....· g,•n<'r.1lh !?I'<' the: t-e.1
rc<.~lt,. bu 1 <Ire more t:Xpen,1\l' In rcpl.;,.,_
o print llul largc .._.,·.,t,,, dr.mmgs rnu "ill nn-d
acce;.\ LO a rnmmcrcial-siz(' plot1e; rh,-sc an- ver.
L'X J)Cn\1\c to buy and rak,· up ,1 ,on.,.-kkral>I~·
amounr of ,p;,cc. but if rh<· rl11,;11re ,·011 .ir~
\I Orking rnr d,)CS nor own nnl', m~ llO(lli
commcrci;il cnpy bu reau ~ h;n c them_ fhc plo~tl'r<
ca_n produce h1v.h quali t~ pnnb up tu .ibou t
I , 11t·m I 'i[1 1 w1tfc and of ,-1r1ually any length.
Check ca refully what form at Ls preforrcd. lk
prepa ring your drawmgs properly ITT ..idv.int:<' s..,
th a t they can be pnmed our w11hou1 ,111,· fur1her
adjustment you i.:an ntkn save both i1 mc ,ind
money. You may lind it is possible 1n t:nnn<'CL,·1nir
computt·r direc1 lt> " remote plmtcr b\' ,i n ln t;rnct
lin k so that you ran -end \'OUr work to 11 al the
IOlll:h or a key. Just as yo;1 would IO ~our uw n
di.:sktop printer.
Second to a pnnlcr. there is little doubt that the
piece of ha rdware mo:,1 useful to .i set dc:<1gncr 1~ d
scan.nl'r. Again. Lhis n,'C'd not be an cxpem1,·c pkcc
of equipmcnl. but 11 prorn.fcs a way of pull ing un\'
hard copy image mto your computer fo r
subsequent manipulauon. \ lakc ,un: thai you hu v
one with a lit! tha t lilb tug,h enough 10 ,1llow
imagL'S lo be sc,mn<'li from th1,k rcfcn:m:c bouks.
Not only will you be <1ble to S<..t.n pit:1ures. bu t ~milll
thrcc-dim,·nsiona l ubjl'CIS , uch as model fur111111n:
can ulkn be cff,·ctin:b· ,..,·,mn,,J tou. f his gl\ t:> ,ou
the opportu nity lo incorpomtc 11 ITTlO a phutugmph
of th,· set model. ,..,·en 1f the dCtual mudd " ,1.lrcady
in lL'it! in the work,hups "r rch,-ar-;1[ h,111. lk\\,;1re
or s.:anning ,ll an on: r-h,gh n..-.:iluuo n. \ou "111
only rarely 11,'\.-d 10 scan a t h1g,hcr 1h,m ,1buu1 I ~ti
dpi. and gener.iUy ; ~ dp1 worl,. \\ ell 1n:mcmbcr
that the World Wide \\"cb rnnnot Jc,p[.,~ J ll\'
picture a t a higher resoluuon lh,111 -: .! dp1 1.
It is perfectly ~ible ru ,..-.ill phutO!,(raplc, ur
artwork a1 a high cnuugh re:,uluuun tu be pnn1L,.f
out in fldl colour on a large-,calc plotter .ind
applku to a hard ,urfa,·c ti,r US<' 011 ,mgc. " ' \Uur
set tor The .\lml1u111 t1I \ r 11u e. tor cxampk. ..:uuld
in,·orpomle your own large-sn1lc phou~raphs
taken un the actual Rialto. L.,.,,tJ 1111,1g11 mtl\cly.
rather th an mercly III an i.lllcmp( 10 IX"' ,de ,1
11'1
COMPU T ER TECHNIQUES

r The digita l mn<lcl must he foci lo lhc m print er

in a format it ca n understand . Tht mos1 common
formal is ST!. lstc rtolith ograph l and many II)
l" O \t l'l l F. R l ~ l"ll',l~llE S

it is then mcrd) ,1 m, 111,·r of hut1n)! th<' print

,nodcl ling programs (including ,\ utoC,\1) 1 will
a llow you to export to this format. The procL·s.s i,
, implc. once you have a cquired the knack of
o ricnwting the model so the dimensions fro m 1hc
point of origi n produce no ncga ti1·c numbers. II'
your computer h as <111 Internet link to 1hc print er.
huttnn 10 d1,p.-.1d1 lh<· d,11,1 <lnd. la ta. rnllt.'C tim:
the mocld . Thc prn,<-;,< , an ix· a i<·ngthl' ,m~. Th~
;"r
'.11°dcl />tm c;,.,,..,,,,,,
was pnidu,<-d by a 7,.:orp
Z-tll<l ,D pnnra 111 ,lb.ll11 eight hours. and cc-.;t a
i:nocl de;,I IL''--~ lhan lhc matcnills Jlone \\l JUld cost
10 build II a., a rnnvcnt1nnal modd .
. The ma..-hme work~ b1· 'pn nr in!! ' l"n>ss-s..-ctions
ol the model on tn a <"l•n· thin layer nf piaster dus t.

Isom etric rendering of"

3 D set model constructed
inA1110CA D.

photographically realistic background . Lbis then be immedia tely rejected. However. the
technique can produce some effective results. Th e inve ntive designer will soon discover many other.
resolution you use will depend on Lbe size of Lhe less obvious uses.
final image. so in this instance it may need Lo be If you h ave made a rough sketch model as
very high. Be sure to use a matte print to prevent described in Chapter 4 it can be touched up on the
glare [rom reflected lights: avoid wrinkles forming computer with a bit-map graphic program such as RIG/IT: Set model tlS
in the paper by using double-sided tape or a spray Photoshop or Corel PHOTO-PAfNT. concealing or pmd11cnl in 0111•
adhesive to attach the prints to the scenery (paste correcting the inevitable inadequacies. adding /Jil'ce bu the Zcor/J
or glue will inevitably stretch and distort the paper colour and texture and even drawing on furniture Z400 3D printl'I:
with disastrous results): and take care Lo avoid and dressings. T he pic ture might be completed by
infringement o[ copyright if you use any images adding an appropriate Poser figure to give a sense
other than your own. of scale. and you have on your moni tor screen a
Digital cameras arc rapidly becoming the good. speedily produced representation of the
photographic standard and replaci ng the type that ftnished set. even before you begin the lengthy
uses film. For the designer. they have the great process of building the fina l presentation model.
advantage of producing immediate results which Having created a deta iled digital model of a
can be easily downloaded Lo a computer for stage set with a program such as AutoCAD. one
manipulation in a multitude of ways. The set can not help wishing tha t it were possible just Lo hit
designer will find it to be a really useful creative a print bunon on the computer to produce a real
tool. as well as a means ol' keeping a pictorial tangible model and avoid the hours of work which
record of his work. Tbc ca mera has an obvious use a model normally takes to build. This possibility
in taking photographs of research material and has become reality beca use 3D printers arc now
can be used to photograph props and furniture to ava ilable. The printers arc very expensive to buy. Thr Zcorpl-100 JD pri111n Thr acuwl prima is
show lo the director for itpproval w ithou t having to but you may find th at a commercia l company or 111tire right. d,r u11i1 iu th<' crn1rr is for
go t~ the in~onvcnience of actually transporting an educationa l establis hment near you USL'S one Re11rof printed 111od1•I showing b11cki11!JS 111ul uirbrnshi119 a11d the uni I 011 dtt' lt'ft is for w11x-
unwieldy obJects lo a rehearsal room . which might and will allow you to h ave access lo it. /Jl'l •off Slt•ps. co111i119 tlrl' 1111tpu1 fro m 1he primer.

120 12 l
COMP UTE R T EC H N I QUE S
using an inkjet printer head with a su ga Mva_te r
binding agent instead of ink. Wherever the bmd,n g
agent touches the plaster the du_st_ hardens.
creating a solid cross-section of the d1g1t_a l model.
The printer continues adding a nd hard~nm g layers
of plaster unt il the model is com plcte.1 he model 1s
then excavated from its bed of plaster du st a nd
cleaned ofT with an air brush. The com pleted
model is already durable enough to be held a nd
passed around but may tben be coa led with wax
for a more polished look and extra durability. T h e
models are rem arkably deta iled and the meth od of
production completely avoids the problem of
undercuts that plagues convention a l casting
techniques. In fa ct. models may even be printed
out with built-in movin g pa rts if needed. A coa t of
gesso provides a suitable base for pa inting in the
usual way.
The actual hardware is surprisin gly
unspectacular a nd, although cost places il fa r
beyond the reach of most of us. it is not so many
Isometric rcudcriuy of a ]acobemi I :2 5-sca/cfumilure procl11cecl by the JD pri11ter11111l pai111etl
chair modelled in AutoCAD.
with youac/1e (the Jc1cobem1 chair Is i111/w top 1,hotoyraph),
122
years a go that even a convenli un a l colour primer
was far too ex pen sive lo be con sidered seriously fi ir
home u se. It ca nnot be lon g before 30 print ers
become ava il able a t a reason a ble price a nd arc <1blc
lo produce m odels fur us in full colour loo.
Once fa mili a r with the mode llin g techniques
involved. the set design er wi ll find m a ny uses for a
30 printer. At lhe m oment. there is a size limita tion
of about 2 5cm x 20cm x 20cm (l Oin x Sin x Si n )
on most printers. but printing out a model in
section s rather th a n in on e piece becomes a
positive adva ntage when it com es to pa in ting it.
Furniture can be printed out from a digita l libra ry
of models on your h ard drive. to a ny scale a nd in
a ny qu a nti ty. a l a very reason able cost. Lhus savin g
h ours of fmi cky work.
ll can be an exciting experience lo explore your
digital set m odel in a virtua l reality immersion
e nvironment (or 'VizRoom ') if you h ave access lo
the technology. The VizRoom is a cubicle about 3111
(10ft) squ a re. with w alls m a de of back-proj ection
\Veari11g a
sti-reoscopir visor
mill steeri11g with a
;oystick, the show 's
light i11g desig11er Lee
U vi11gsto11e explores
the comput er model
of the set in the Viz
Room. V11for1111wtrly.
a photogra1,h c1111 yiw
011/u 1111 i1111deq11ate
impression of
the remarkably
ro11vi11ci11g JD
experience.
screens. Behind these \\'a lls. la rge. angled mir rors
redirect projectors towards the sc reens. Wearing a
specia l stereoscopic visor. you stand inside thc
cubicle a s the digita l model is projected on to the
wa lls. The effect of reality is sta rtling. tht! image
a ppears at full size (much lar ger than the VizRoom
itsell) a nd is sha rp a nd convincin gly threc-
dimen siona l. a lthou gh . if you reach out. your
h and will pass throu gh the appa rent ly solid
structures of your set. You can navigate through
the environment by means of a joystick. passing
through doors to the back of the set or drift ing up
steps to higher levels.
Techniques such as these arc still in their
infancy a nd are. unfortu nately. not yet ava ilable to
most of u s. However. computer-based technology
advances expon entia lly and it is im:vitable thm
these. ,md even m ore rema rkable tcchniqut>s. will
soon become commonplace. I am most grateful to
Dr Pierre Bo ulan ger of the Department of
Computin g Science at the University of Alberta for
g ranting m e this experience. ~lore information
about the Universi ty's VizRoom may be fo und at
www.cs.u a lberta .ca / -pier reb/ VEDP l .h tm
l'll \\l'l TE R TF.C ll~I Ql'E S
U S I NG T H E l :-.:TE R'\ ET
The Internet has bet:n usetl a~ a r=:-Jn::h tool for
years. oft en. unfortumu dv. to the c~clusion uf
books or origin al sourct-s. but there IS nu dcnyi ng
its va lue. Howe\'er. fur the ,ct designer 11 IS also a n
extremely va luable commumcation tool. Many
designers now own 1h,·1r own web ,ite and domain
munc and han: disco\'cn.-d the advantages or
having a port.folio of their \\'Ork and a CV a\"ailable
un-linc. Howc\'Cr. there are other ways io which
th.: Internet can be used by set designers. For
insta nce. it is not ilifficull to sel up a tcmpomry
web site tha t can be accessed by th.e director or a ny
other member of thi:, produ,'tion team who can
th,·n sec pic1un...,; of the model or rek vant reference
ma terial. download plans and other tec:bmcal
drawings. check on scheJules. send emails to other
me mbers of th.: team and c\'Cn sec tht! p~res,, of
a set as it is buU1 and painted in th.e worksh ops or
set up on stage.
Some In ternet sen ·,ce pro,·idrrs 1lSPsl will offe r
frl-c web spact! to their customi:,rs. but lf you wou ld
like to hm·c a profes:,iunal-soumling domain namc
12 3
COM P UTER TECH NIQU ES
ro ,11•1 fFR rrr11 , 1Qn :s
you wi ll
for you r site. such c1s www.my namc .com. dl'd to 1he
need Jo renl the space and regist er the
name. It ;~ pl ,111, and 11nrkin!! dra11111!!-, 1wre 11plna
offer a a pho1n graph of tht• final n,IJ(fd .
nol difficult to do. ~lany comp anies '""· and
type uf
comp rehen sive packa ge and will help you 1hrou gh . Your . 11 eb si te rnuld ab., indud ,• rh,·
abow or
the set-u p proce ss. 1n1erac11\"c 11c11 or 1he modd descnb..-u
"S- II is
i\11 web pages need to be l~Tille n in 11
spec ial <hon video clip,; demo nstr,tttng see1w r hanl!t
can under sta nd. The also ~ibl e. or cou rse. 111 <el up ,t lll"b-,:
a,;, m 1h,·
la ngua ge that a ll comp uters
set bein1-:
comm onest is called HT~IL (hyper-text
ma rk-up work.s hop,; <o 1ha1 anyone ca n s..-c 1he
it lo0ks like const r utied ill any lime rncr<'ly by l,'!!gln g on 10 i,
,_..,
WOJIIIUlGJl8AWllili..U.1J langu age) . If you would like to sec what mill·
~
on a ny web from lhe web sue. Hnwe\"cr. 1h,· techmci,ms
d ick with your right mous e butlo n

'l!RMlltO..PllAWlllaW
(TNW)
-·
WORKING DRAWINGS Ill

......
WORKING DRAWINO!I IS)

STAGE SECTI ON
, I.EFT:Page of a Lempo mry website set 11µ
page and look for "View sourc e· in the
tha t appea r s. The odd-l ookin
sec o n scree n is the actua l code used
g text
pop-up menu
tha t you then
to crea te 1hc
not welco me bemg r.ln1t=d a, lhcv work.
sure I hey a rc qunc happy <1bou1 this
proceeding.
so mak~
befun:

ll hm·e
STAGE SECTION
for a J]rocl11 ctio11 of Villag e of Idiots 111 will help .'\"01 many members of the learn \\i
~a ge. Many progr ams arc available that
(PO'ftllft ld--...) (\Jn- '°'1'1"11t,11C1'4Bo0tl)

re mstall et! on the ir

SCHNAPPS WAGON GROUNDBOWS
Red Deer College i11 Cm"' da. Direc ied by vou to conve rt your page design s to HT:\IL dcdica 1cd C.-\D snflwa
dr.twlngs
CUCK HERi fOR A PHOTOGRAPH
Of THE MODEL Lynd a Adam s. of the most comp uters. so ii is a good iclc.1 tn mdud c
(,\ lacro medi a ·s Dream weaver is one ll'ort ab lc
1~11•=e11 !.RI.D/1,!f;
D.UIJIU
ll!llll
l REW\\ ~PhotogrnJJ/i of set mode /from l/1r
Village of Idiots wel,s ite.
popu lar). but it is not difficult to learn
you then need no special softw are to
own site. Elizab eth Castr o·s book HTML
~ff:\IL and
sci up your
Jvr tlw
in s.:wral dilTcre m fo rm a Ls .. \dnbe"s PDF
Docum ent Forma l I L,
may be read by any computer 11·>1 h
useful in 1h1s n!>pect sint-c it
the rn.-ch·
is it i,'OOC.l
/ Q11ifk starc Guid(} is an downlm1dablc . \ dobe R.:ade r <;olhv;:1n:. It
\\'oriel Wide \\'c/1 (A \lisua you updat e 1hem so that ti is
idea lo dale pages as
exce llent tutori a l. if a drawi ng h,is Ix-en chan ged
a web sire obvio us ill a glance
The illustr ation s show two pagt'S from since ii was last vie11-ct.1 .
produ ction of \Iii/ag e of Idiots. The
create d for a Settin g up a dl-dira tet.1 web ,nc for a n int.lil"l
dual
a list of 1hc
home page (not s hown here) con tain s show may s..-..·m like an unnecessary
ltLx ttrv.
1hcir email
entire produ ction team. with links to Howe n:r. hin-in g made rhe effort oi dotng
II ono:c.
of conta ct. Evcry ont' 1v.:1s er ~huw
addre sses for ease adap1ing the code and .:on tm t to anoth
set up and
conta cted imme diatel y the site was is a simple ma uer. and the case of
.:o ns tant
given the addre ss so that it could
be chet·kcd is " grt:at
nrst dt-signs 10 rnm111unka1 ion between all dep.1rtmcnlS
opme nts. The g on
regul a rly for devel adrnn tagc. For 1he dl-sign.,r. 11 makes 1,-orkin
ing the nrst
a ppear o n it were rough sketc hes follow more than one show a t a tune a mui:h mun, pr.1 c-
mawr ial
discu ssion s with the direct or. Reference ticablt: idt:a Ix-cause he t-an always -cay
111 do,-.:
resea rch was added shortly uploa d-
resulting from
lollowed COrllal"I with lht• progress of a produ ction.
afterw ards. Ro ug h desig ns appea n:d nex1. ing new dt:Sign s or re1isio ns ro the old ones. c\ c11
. Event ua lly
la ter by photo graph s of a sketch modd during a ny period s of necess a ry ab,,en ce fro m ba,,c_

drow)
The painted model (apart from the groun

[ RETURNTQ
.&ET DESIG NS MENU
11
124
I -' ~
-
8 MOVING SCENERY
·1 he sets we design are often not expected to remain
,ta tic throughout the entire performance. They
111 av be rt-quire~ lO change or modulate in many
1, a)' S to indica te a change of location or lO suggest
,ome psych ological or stylistic c hange of emphasis
lor artistic reasons.
A CHA:'\G E OF LO CAT IO N
\lany das~ic plays. s uch as those by Bernard Shaw.
Ibsen or Osca r Wilde. frequently demand changes
111 location from scene 10 scene. Sometimes the
script will cun lain derailed descriptions o f what the
playwrighl expccL, !he localions to look like. Shaw
is notorious for his long ;cl descriptions. In the last
;,cl of l'J/!Jllllllion he even dcscribc.-s the pictures
hangi n g on 1hc wall, of Mrs Higgins's house ln
Chebea. You ,hould always pay allt·nllun lo whar
lhc playwrigh l ha, 10 '>i.1y. but lhc ,;ct dt-scriptlum,
arc ofte n w r ill cn for a lhea lrc of ii different period
and of a ver y diffcrcnl 11a1urc from lhc 1heaLrc of
1oday. In F.dwurdian London pluygoers l\'Cre
co 111 c n1 10 wail for 11fleen ur lwemy minute,
bet ween scen es for ii scene c hange lo uc:cur. Now.
111 less leisu rely 1i111t·,. 1w feel 1h:11 :, lengthy w11l 1
break, 1hc 011w of 1111· pcrformann: a111I los..~ the
11ud lc n cc·!-t eo11l'c1 11 n 11inn . M> \\'l' d l·1 11i111tl 1hat
,t·cn c c h ,,n ge, 1akt· plan, 111 its 111111· 1111w '"
pusslhlc.
We , h u11ld flr,t consider whetlwr 11 1, really
11 cce,sary lo d1a11g1· 1h1· :-cl al ull. \ 'k11>ri1111,
e n joyed p rod11 .-1lon, of Shak1•,pc11rc lw the greal
111•1·u, rr1: i'/11111 n ·11I ,·11111111 ,111110- 11111l 11111 r,•11I
11•1·/111kl1111 !<, l1111 1w111r, 1•1·r/or111l 11111111 ,, " ''
rr•11n•.\ f•111 l11 11 I /11• Sltl/J1 • of II 1/l/11 11lil1t1 1•1/ 1/ u-,u r,· /11
l m1ls No\l'rrt 's 11 l1111 C"" · 1•1,.,1,, I Ill\ /I m,
actor-manaic.-r Sir I lenry Irving that took place
withm a <,cquen..c or lavishly designed scL~.
HowC\er thl, wa, ccrt,1inly not Shakespeare ·,
intention, and t,xJ.,, we generally lL'iC a much
more stylistic Lypc , ,t.tging lhat aUmss the
playwnght to speak in a mon: direct 111dnncr to the
audience w 1Lhou1 the encumbranv t elaborntc
scenic effects. A = i ,11rpk ..rdio mu1.ht ~ .. 11
that is needed lo ..;uggo, \ cnu.:~ n Th( \lfTr/111n1 o/
\ i'nirt. for example. with an) ni:ces,,ary change of
locauon sug:1t..,tL'tl merely by the .u.ld,uon of ,,
drape. a door. a window or .,.,me enurely ub,trJLt
clcmcnl. \\e now IL-nd IO .:um:enir.uc up.m
creating a ,tagc cn,1ronmenl \\1llun , huh the
play may be perform~ . rather th,,n n:pn..-.cnuni: ,1
scrks of ,pct·,nc l11c,1Lu1tl$ f.d\\Jrtl Gordon ·r.1111
wrote 1hal he pn:lcrrt'tl the 1,,,rd ·pliiet,· IO ~ nc
·... it b ,., plan, 1f 1t .,._-c,n, re-JI 1t L, J ...:enc ,t It
seem, fabc.
Ctt F.AT 1 n Sn: , E C 11 ., , cEs
l'hb type of \Celle chungc may nOI Indicate any
,pcriO,· c hange of locat1011 and may not l!\'t:n ho:
rn11,ldt·rc'<l ,·-..scnt1al 10 the pcrfunn.m.:e but It c,m
111l e11 br111g ,111 ,1JJt-..l d1mc1Nun t • d pl" .Ju,11011 b,
,111,:gt•sth1g ,11111,· lund •I poetk. ,,nbu,· o r
pwd111lo111l':1I 11L"1th1. d.inl,111~ 1h,• 1<IL·u1
.-xprc,-..,d <1r ,ubtlv 1lkd111µ mn,,J or ,11111,.,ph,·r,•
111 1na11,• tliff1.·rcnt '"'"'
It 1~ 11m, quilt· u,uul for suigc llghUnit tu
1111>Llul111t· , uhtly during u "=· t:\o't:n thuul!h there
111,l\· h...· 110 11h\ 1uu, lu1,m:al ~u.~n h.uch J:, J J._,wn•
brrnl,. ur '""'" ,m· , '" 11.:h111t,t 1111 " 1,unp or llt,thuni:
" llr( I 1nµt,tcru1µ 1lw .: h,,n~e ~llmlurlv. 11 b
,11111t·11111,·, fl<'''lhl,· h•1 st1111c ph)-.JA.·ul dum~e 111 the
st·L 111 11<.·1h1rn 1 1he --.1111e t,I" l'i .irll,-tJt' fu11t't1u11
I Ill' ,11;'-, 1111p,1nvln~ p1l·tur...~ ,ho\\ ,1 ....:tun,-:. hi, .,
I _,
,-

MOVING SCENE RY
The Blasted Oak and Tl,e Monkey's Paw
On the Shropsh ire form \\'here I \\'as born and
brought up. there stood a hul(c oak tree. Ont· night ll
was bl0\\01 d0\\11 in a great !(ale and lay lor u long
time on its side. the spacious hollmv lrunk cxpused
and branches slickinl( oul al odd angles. II quickly
became a wonderful nalural advcn1urc playground
for the children in the villnge: il could be a castle or a
pirate ship " ·ith no more prcparul ion than a mere
statement of the fact. Tm Blackbeard . and l"rn on
the deck of my pirate ship. sec." The trunk instantly
became the ship"s hull. 1hc brunches became masts
and the hollow trunk provided a "below decks" area
for prisoners taken in balllc. or course. il did nol
really look like a pirate ship at all. and aft er lhc
passage of many years I lind that I can only vaguely
recall the precise for m of that old tree lying on its
side. HO\\"C\·cr. today I still have clear mental images
of the pirate ship. the cowboys· furl. the crusaders·
castle or the space ship that il became in our games.
production of Dylan Th01m1s·s play U11der Mi lk
ll'oocl. a poetical play describing a clay in the life of
a Welsh fi shing village. The play begins in dark-
ness. but. as dawn breaks. the black background
slowly revealed a small patch of illuminated sky
that opened up almost imperceptibly slow ly. like
the iris of a camera until it reached its maximum
extent by the end of Act l . The motion was
reversed during Act 2. until night fell once more by
the end of the play. The set itself was extremely
simple and all the props were mimed by the actors .
giving full rein to Thomas·s poetry.
In the production described above. th e selling
expanded the ideas presented in the play in a poetic
and artistica lly satisfying way. However. th ere arc
inherent dangers in this type of design. It is easy for
a production to be com pletely swam ped by an over-
designed set. The designer needs to be on his guard
against this and should always be willing to
sacrifice a concept when it becomes merely sell~
indul gent.
128
S C
fi;;i1 11 rc
In check is the amount of off. .
. I
." ·;,il ahlc: 1f a ol or scenery i, lo '--\ •ll(C '-P,llC
1
' . IJ\..' mc1\l"(1 on
·rnd off stage. 11 must he stored "'>m
' . -... CW1\Crt in
Si milarly. our stage sets need nol litera lly represent th e wings. If there 1s a workshnp or lo· ti
• d 1ng C1(~•~
the physical locations of scenes. It is often more - t1·oin ing the stage this might pro\•id. .
,1 1 . . . rd u~ ul
r
important lo provide the facilities required. leavin , ·s1on1ge urea . . bu t you will need to ch"ck • thmn.
the rest to the audicnce·s imagination. Neve~ i\·ill be available for use <lurin g all pcrformanfe,
underestim ate the power of the imagination in lhc , \,\'lla l stage cr_ew will he ,1vailablc lo opcrat~
th eatre. Audiences are surprisingly willing scene changesr Bear in mind Lhat mcmhcr~ of
10
supplement our work with their own imaginations. the stage management . electricia ns and sound
There is a well-known theatrical tale of a production
techn ician s will probably hm·e Lheir own jobs
of Tire lvlo11keu ·s Paw. a famous ghost story by W.W. 10
do during a ch ange and will not be able lo assi~l
Jacobs: at the end of the play a wife opens the door lo in moving scenery. so a special crew will need
the ghost of her son who has been killed in a hideous 10
industrial accident. After one performance a lady in
the audience complained that she had been
ex tremely distressed by the overly realistic mangled
corpse that was revealed by the opening door. In fact.
the director had decided lo show nothing at all - her
imagination had supplied its own ghost. Let us
Under Milk Wood at
design our scenery lo stimulate the imagination. not
loconfme it. 1hr Timms Crntrt·for
the Art.s i11 Edmo11to11 ,
Ccmatla. ,\s clau
breC1ks. a smC1ll arra of
sky is rl'vt•n/cd /whim/
a simplt- set. Dirt•ctc,l
PLANNI N G SCE NE CHA N GES by Thomas Pt•acockt•.
Lighlill!J '1!1 U't'
Having decided that scene changes are desirable. Livi11osto11e. Plioco:
they will need to be carefully planned. Here is a list Ellis Bros
of things to check on initially.
• Establish whether scene changes are to occur
during a scene break. with the audience
remaining seated. or whether they are to
happen during an lnterval. when much more A11proach i11y 110011 in
lime is available. Often . as in the plays of Under Milk Wood.
Sh akespeare. for example. the script does not Tiu• sky wimlow is
indicate where intervals are expected LO occur opc11 lo almost its
and the decision is left to the director. Usually f111/1•sL1•.1:11•111. D11ri11r,
the second part of a show is shorter than the the scco11cl half of tht•
first a ncl sometimes the director will decide upon 11/ny the ope11i11r,
two intervals or none a t all. This needs to be closl's mui/, us 11iyht
fi rm ly sct Lle<l before any scene changes can be falls. tht' lmck!Jro11111I
planned. is OIICt' llf/llill
• W h at technica l facilities arc ava ilable? Is there rom11lt•tt'/y b/11ck.
an adeq uate nying system ? An impor tant Photo: Ellis Bros
ll'J

MOVING SCENERY
Victorian actor-manager Sir Henry Irving. who
111ounted 111a ny spectacular productions al the_
Lyceum Theatre in London. engaged a crc1'.' ol
eighty carpenters. fill y property men and thirt y
·gasmen ' for each pcrlc>rmance. Now we are
luckv if a crew of six is available.
Is th~ scene change to ~cur hid~cn b,eh!1~d-'.he
house tabs or in view ol I he aud1cncct II 11 1s lo
h,ippen in view. what kind of lighting may be
expected ? Frequently scene ch anges arc ca~ned
out in low-lcn:1 lightin g or under a blue !1gbl.
Anv operation taking place in view ol the
audience needs to be particulurly smooth and
cl'ficicnt and to work in a h alf-li ght will often
force the crew to ll'ork more slowly. One major
advantage of an exposed scene change is that
the audience will tolerate a much longer wail.
enjoying the glimpse of ba ck-stage activity.
Actors can sometimes be persuaded lo assist in
these changes. but you should bear in mind that
in the professional theatre actors carrying out
this type of work can demand 'push and pull'
payments in compensation for replacing a
member or a stage crew. The actor is not simply
being diflku l1. this is an Equity regulation.
WAYS TO MOVE SCENERY
Handling Flats
If scenery is lo be moved. it must be designed for
this to be possible. The most obvious method is
simply for stagehands to manhandle it. Until
recently. fl ats were usually canvas-covered and.
although unwieldy. even large ones could be
moved (or 'run') by a stagehand working alone.
Now. if we require flats they are usually made from
plywood on a 3 x l frame. often attached to each
other by means of pin hinges. However. this
method has the disadvantage of taking some time
lo manipulate the pins into position and is not
generally suitable for use in scene changes. For
many years flats were traditionally fastened
together by cleat and line and this method is still an
effective way Lo provide a good temporary 0xing.
Experienced stagehands will often take a pride
in the ability to flick the line over the top cleat of a
tall flat with great accuracy. For the less skilful.
130
a monkey-stick will help; the stick remains hang-
ing from the line al the back of the nat when not in
use. Today. of course. scenery will only rarely
consist ol' joined-together nats. so many other
techniques arc utilized , depending on the nature or
the scenery.
Using the Flying System
If a theatre is equipped with a well-designed flying
system it can be used in a wide variety of ways.
Any painted cloths or nat pieces of scenery may be
attached to the bar on a set of flying lines and
easily raised into the fly tower above the stage and
out of view of the audience. Witb simple flying the
movement is swift and graceful. and. as the
operators are entirely out of sight. the move is
often permitted to take place in full view of the
audience. This is the traditional method of moving
from scene to scene in a pantomime. The action is
usually designed to alternate between full-stage
and frontcloth scenes. Thus. after a scene such as a
market square. composed of cloths. wings and
built pieces occupying most of the acting area. a
painted cloth is lowered in front. hiding the entire
set and leaving just enough space downstage of it
for the action of the next scene. The next full-stage
scene can then be erected behind it. ready to be
revealed when the frontcloth is flown out again.
This means that a succession of colourful scenes
can be presented without a break.
Flats and built pieces may also be flown. Whole
sections of built walls, even with elaborate
a rchitectural features such as doors. windows and
mouldings , can be easily flown on a counter-
weighted flying system. However, remember to
check carefully the size of any projections since
they can easily obstruct objects flown on adjacent
sets of lines. especially bars of lighting equipment
which take up far more space than a flat piece of
scenery. Note I.hat it is particularly important to
make sure I.hat any opening doors are firmly fixed
in the closed position before such a piece is flown
out. A door swinging open when it is hanging high
above I.he stage may have disastrous results.
Individual items such as chandeliers may be
flown on a specially rigged single line from a
temporary pulley in the grid known as a ·spot line·.
nicc a \I
1lpwa rd angled deal .
(slighl ly higher than hnc)
0
Counter- , .
g q q
Grid
WCi!(hl
crndlc
in lop
posilion
,.J- 1.oadm g µ llcry
- Fhm~ hnt"<
B.tr tmms lo b,: Onwn ,tre olllJch,, t It> 1h1, 1
D
pcloc:k
Flyg,, llav
I
Counlcr-
ABO\'E: Laslri11g flats togrtlrer wcighl
with c/t>ats and line. cradle
•1I
.
Rope lock lor floor lc\cl operauon
RIGHT: How a co11111enveiglrted
flui119 S!JSLCIII works.
enabling this type of object 10 be precisely In thea1 res with liIT1Jted flvmg , paco: doth.- ma,·
positioned. II is sometimes possible to fly very large. sometimes be nown out of , oght by tumbling. :S.uto:
built objects by raising them o n two or more sets or thill two adjacent sets of lines arc nn.-t!L'tl 10 du 1hi,..
lines operated toge ther. but remember that this will
usually prevent the use of any sets of lines between Trucks and Re\'Ol\'es
those you are using to ny the objL'Ct. NL-t-dless to A truck in theatrical tcnntnol~• , imply llll'a r1:> it
say. whatever scenery is flown must be designed platform on "ht"t'.ls. It provitlc,, .u1 utl'aluablc
and built to be stable when suspended above the method of moving scenic u111ts on <1nd off , tai;c. or
stage. Anything falling from the flies. even quite changing the position of all or part of a s.:t dunni;
small objects. could cause a serious accident. a performance. but then: ,ire som.: rc,tncuons tu
In theatres without a flying system it is ollcn still bear in mind:
possible to use painted cloths by rigging them to
The ba,c of th,: truck m~ be high cnoui,;,h 10
roll up and down like a roller blind or Lo be drawn
contain the wh,~ls or castor,._ It "' -a[i: tu
on and off s tage on a heavy-duty curtain track (tab
assume 1ha1 15cm (6 m l will be high enough to
track). The track will need to be long enough to
accommodate the hem y-dut~ Cd.Stars normally
allow the cloth to travel completely out of sight to
used. including thc: thidmt.,,. of the plat fom1
an area where it can be stored without obstructing
top. The bUtlder \\ tll al.low d ck-anuKc of abuul
the movement of other scenery.
I 11
MOVIN G SCENERY ~10\'I :-,; c SCE\ ER\'

1cm (Jii n) beneath t.he truck lo accommodate

useful 10 place the pi\·01 off-centre so thm the
any u n e venncss in the noor and allow wedges to
be in serted. truck is mo\'ed across the stal(e to a different
position as it revoln:s. Indeed~ the pt\'01 pomt
Operating , sce ne ry designed lo travel on a lruck must be
_}line , uatcly s upported . II may seem somewhat may even be set at some distance ,l\\'a\· from th<·
ut1eq h. l b t · · truck. connected 10 the truck·s ~ b\· a Ila,
red undant to point t 1s ou . u 11 is a grea t
metal arm at noor level. ·
tation. for instance. to stand a nai upon a
Cross-section tern ~ g platform and imagine .that the truck ca n Always check carefully thnt there is , uJlkicnt
through roller movm stage space to allow pi\'Oting trucks 10 turn. Do
Back of doth be revolved to show ftrst one side then the ot~er.
th.is by cutting pieces of card 10 rcpl'(."St"nt \'Our
Wit • h 0 ut providing any means of supportmg
trucks to scale and. " i th pins to ilrt as pi\'~ try
t1I a t na t · However. trucks can be used far more. out the moves on a qage plan tst.'C Chapter It)
Note: Roller must extend for a inventively than this. The accomp~n}:ng
considerable distance beyond fo r detailed descriptions and plans of som~
.
d 1agr ams s how an irregularly shaped. . p1votmg
cloth so that operating lines actual scene cha nges in\'olving mmrmg and
· cannot slip off. truck used lo show first a conag~ mtenor scene pivoting trucks ).
with furniture and then an extenor .view of the
sam e building. The structure tS designed to be It is a common misconception that the bt...""1
Cut notches for 3 x 1 battens self-supporting by setting na~ at angl~ to. each equ ipped stages contain a rc\'01\'mg ,t.,gl·.

Fix end of
opera Iing line
OJ othe r. The technical necessity of des1gnmg a
vi a ble structure has resulted . i~ a vis~ally
inte resting shape. Note that 1t 1s somenmes
However. ii is aL'tually quite unusual to find ,,
theatre with a built-in rc\'olve. lor 11 Is gcncrallv far
more advam agcous to have a m ·ol\·e built lo the
to roller Cut ply formers
approximately Build roller from 3 x 1 battens
30cm or lft spaced with ply formers and
diameter covered with skin ply. Truck in Truck in
oIT stage oIT stage
position position
Holl' 1o ronstrncl n roller cloth.
··.. ··....··
- - - ;·-,:······ .. ,,_-
T_·'"'
ru·a~,.-in--,
·. .fu stage-..
___ ~ ........ ~·: :a .,/ position ··.• -::: t
c::==:::c========-:::c~--

-1 Flying
lines
Limit or
flying
- -1u---- Cloth

/
/
Pros. Pros.
Moving trucks on and otT stage
Pros.
Com1g~ intmor

<, , '
~<:-~_,·
/
/

~ Ii ····.:.:::.>::::.·······:- - - :
~<::- ,,·
# , Sightlinc ~ -✓ ==~ g_
~j ' Cloth Co~~-' Pivot
.....,.
/
__ ,,·"
========
;

c=:::.::::!+~I I es ■
Pros. l'ros.
A: Cloth in view B: Cloth tumbled ·scissor· or ·jack-knife· trucks

T11m/1/i11!111 cloth .
ABOVE: 1
\lfovi11g trucks. -------------
------- -------
RIGIIT: ,\ pivoting truck. counge ,-ierior

132 Ill
r MOV ING SCENERY

. . xi and set in just the right posilion wh c'.1

s1~e r~ : for a specific show. A revolvi ng stage is
ti is n k vith a fixed pivot point. IL may or
e ntire stage from wall to wall so th a t the tru cks
m ay be opera ted sm oothly w ithout havin g to
negotia te a c h a n ge in lloor level. T his w as done for
merely a true . \ . . ·l, ·ipe· however. it wi ll t he production of Peter Pan described below.
a ' not be c1rcu 1ar m s • . . Th e sa me interior/exterior collage set shown in
m ) . bl be limited by the restrictions pomted out
incv11a Y • I ·d 1 10 a previous diag ra m s h as certain a dva ntages when
f a revolvi ng platform is p ace o1
a bove. I ,. .. 5 (( in ) step placed on a revo lvin g stage. Now there is no
I t e noor 1J1crc wil l ~ a 1 cm '
norma sag Th' ·. not a lways a necessity for the step runni ng through the interior:
all around the edge. ts is . .
' b if a completely na t lloor 1s furniture m ay extend fur ther downstage and
disadva ntage, u I · h t f car pets could be la id on th e lloor. Th e exterior may
. ed it may be necessary 10 hu ild I e res o
reqmr · • I
the stage noor up to the same he1g , 1 as ,c rev
ti , olve n ow include features such as a tree and some
.
If the show is a part icularly clu borale one a~d you garden furnit ure. An area of a rtificial grass might
ced 10 move trucks on and off a stage th a t has a lso be incorporated .
~n built up to acconunodate a revolve. it m ay be Th e accom panyin g diagram dem onstrates a
necessary 10 carry tJ,e buil t-up lloor across the method of using a revolve to contain three built Three sets 011
n revolve.
Pros.

sets. Note tha t these sets do not completely mask at be set in posi tion behind it. Scene cha nl(cs took
the sides: this is n ot necessa rily a problem. as black pl ace in short blackou ts durinll which the cloth
side m asking could be provided or a false was raised. the revolve rum~ ! through I so
proscenium or por ta l bridgi ng the revolve could degrees and another backdoth \'«IS lowered 1111 11
provide a ppropri a te masking. place. In this case. two portals were used fo r
Th e stage plan overleaf is from a n a ctua l downstage masking: one for the London ',(;enc:s
production of Peter Pm, a l T heatr Clwyd in Nor th a nd another for all the :'llevcrland scenes. This was
Wales. Settings consisted of a series of trucks set a case when the entire stage noor. from w,111 10
i on eith er side o f a large revolve. Backclom s were wall. had to be built up to the height of the n.·volvc
He??n
h
~ na. ,
: flown in near the cen tre o f the revolve. hiding the
upstage part of the revolve so th at trucks could
so tha t large trucks could travel ngh t olT ,tagc 111111
the wings.
~ i
~
: : : : : :1: ::::::
Pros. Pros.
Cottage interior

The Home 1mder 1/ie Gro11111lfro111 Peter Pan at

ABOVE: Set 0 11 a revolve Th eatr Clwyd; ll1e mode/for the scene Oil tire
(fi rst posilion ). dow11slage sidl' of lite rl'volve sltow11 i11 tlte sltlge
pla11 Ol'l'rleaf. Note the use of mi11it11uri=ed
RIGHT: Set 011 n revolve Pros.
-------~--- Pros. costume desig11s used 10 make cut -out.figures w
Tire Home u11derd1e Ground Oil s1uge. Dirrcre,/ bu
Pnul Clr11111berlai11. Uglt Liug by Ruben Urubu.
(scco11cl /JOS ilio11 ) . give scale. Photo: Barry Ham ilto11 Plrow: Barry Ham i/ro11
Collage exterior
134 I Vi
MOV I NG SCENE RY
\1 0 \ l:•q; SCE :--.; ERY

Fla;

~~~~~~ ~~~ ~~~~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~~~ ~ ~~~ ~~~ ~1-~~ ~r

I I ···· - --
' I
I I
I I

Tl11• pirate ship f rom Peter Pa n m Tlll'ntr Clw11tl . Tlw

,\ROI'#!:
m otlelforthe scene 011 thl.' 11pstn_q,.. sitle of tl1 I' rt'w1/ve i11 tlw
singe plan opposite. Plroto: Barry l-la111ilto11

.... RIGHT: The pirate shiJJ 011 stage. Directed bu Paul Chnmberlnin .
1
: 11i ;, :, Li{Jlllill{J by Robert Oml,o. Plroco: Barry /-lami/tv11
/!"'I .::
..
'y
• I I ::
} I I : :
I: I : : I
Moti ve Power Ir a truck is R>q uircd to tra\-d along a pR-c1>c
' I I •• I
T he simplest. a n d ofien the best. way to mo\·e any ro ute it will be lll'CeSSary to provide some ku1d of
l:ffltlh ---t ~---~---- -t=---· --------l-----·
-- - t!ttfH1 : scen er y built on w heels is simply tu push u r pull it. guide to prevent it l'rom wandering.. \ good mcthu,I
VI :: and . if a scene c h a n ge is to take place o ut or view of is to lay a temporary board floor O\'Cf the stage wuh

. .. f •••,
ll \ :
-- -~--!,:i
sI ,I 1-t , 1
::
::
• •
: :
:
:
I
:
the a udien ce. this w ill probably be the preferred
m ethod . Even when scen ery is req uired to travel in
grooves cut into it in appropriate posulon:-.
creating tracks for the truck to foUow. ,\ mcral P<-'ll

lilr. ; H • I:
-·r+-:: --- --- :_ 1J
JJ I I :
••
:
:
'
l
full view. opera to rs can o fie n be hidden beh ind the
truck if the scen er y it carries is ta ll eno ug h .
However. trucks and revolves may a lso be opera ted
from Lhe truck base can then be dropped mtu u
g roove to guide the truck to the desiral posu,on.

11 ! by a cable a nd h elical win ch system. powerc.-d by

h a nd. electricity o r hydra ulics.
Remote operation is usually achtc\'(.'t] by ,, track
and skate system. Here. the groo\-c oon1auu, "
metal skate a ttached to a winch-opcralL'll c,,blc

''
---.:' Su rfon· or fa lse noor Cuidt· m trut..~ bit..x· L'1lgug.o tn '\kJIL'
I lrd\ 't"Uing Ul groo\t: Ul fal~ tloor
t I

t : : . .... ---
i~: r i
---- -- --- - - -- - -- -- rt - -
! -H--
-- -h
l
r -+--
t i• i1 j l lf : I I

------------------1nr-1r------1-1-u---t --
j l! 1 I JJ : I t

Cable in fa lse noor pass...-s over Skate aum.:h<-J 10 .:,oblc

Win ching II truck . pulleys to um] from winch 1rnwb Jlong grou, c
I 36
11;-

MOVING SCENERY
travelling in the false Ooor. A peg f~m the tru_ck
base engages in the skate. thus prov1dmg motive
power and guidance simultaneously. .
Trucks need to be securely fixed mto th~ir
.
positions on stage so that they do not s~1iJl
accidentally when in use. Several types of brakmg
device are available. usually allached to the
upstage side of the truck to be operated by . a
stagehand"s foot. However. if condition s permit.
often the most secure method is simply to use
wooden wedges kicked under the base at one or
two strategic points. A boll fixed to the base of the
truck. dropping into a hole drilled into the stage
noor. can give a really secure temporary fixing. but
this means manoeuvring the truck into exactly the
right position for the peg to align with the hole.
It is possible to move trucks on air castors that
work like miniature hovercraft. They are capable of
lifting heavy trucks and moving them about the
stage very smoothly under remote control. gliding
on a thin cushion of air. Because the truck is
lowered to the stage Ooor beh,veen operations and
no wheels arc involved. they provide much greater
stability than conventional castors. They require
an air supply to operate. either from a compressor
or from a built-in system such as many theatres
now have for operating pneumatic tools and paint
sprays. The noor surface must be smooth and level
for successful operation . The Hispaniola truck
described in Chapter 10 was moved using this
method.
,-- Air
1
' A run of periaktoi standing side by side with
I
I
''
I
~-~,- ♦ '
Air __ ____ ,
Air castor.
138
....
I
\ l O \'l :,.; G SCE:,.;ERY
Sinking and Rising
Victorian theatres often contained elaborate
machinery lo enable either scenery or performers
to sink or rise through the stage Ooor. Typical of
I
these was the 'slote· or "sloat". an elaborate
arrangement of tracks a nd counterweights that
was a sta ndard piece of equipment in large
theatres in the middle of the nineteenth century. ll
is still possible lo detect some traces of these
machines beneath the stages of one or two of our
older theatres. If this type of effect is needed now a
special lift is installed for the show. and this can be
an acceptable system if the stage Ooor is one of
those constructed with removable sections. The
lifts may be operated manually. electrically or by
hydraulics. However. few shows now require this
type of effect. although it is difficult to imagine a
production of Don Giovanni without seeing the Don
being dragged down to the nether regions on a
stage lift at the end of the opera.
Periaktoi
Imagine a prism set on end and you have the basic
shape of periaktoi. The base is simply a triangular
truck. pivoted at the centre. If three Oats are
arranged around the sides of the triangle and
joined at the corners. the truck may now be turned Pcriaktoi used for a changeablr pictorial Prriakroi iw,dfor cha119rublr
to reveal each side in turn. In the days when all background. profilrd wings_
scenery consisted of painted Oats, this was a
method often used to change painted wing pieces
swiftly and smoothly. Today it can be useful in
pantomime where painted scenery still abounds
and swift transformation s from one scene to Pertaktol
another are essential.
Pcrinkrol (Greek for ·surrounding the acllon'.
10 comedy. tragedy or satln:. The use ol p,nuk1 01was
their corners just touching can sometimes provide singula r perinkros) have a long and distinguished elaborately de\-eloped dunng I.be Rcmussancc aml
an easily changeable back-run. cycling through history that dates back Lo the theatres of ancient used by the architect/designers oi the SC\'Cntc:t:nlh
three different faces or they can be used for Greece and Rome. although no one can say with century. including lhc great English designer ol
changing profiled wing pieces, by designing the certainty exactly what they looked like nor bow they court masques. lnli;, Jones 11 571-- 163.!). Compli-
were used. They were nrst mentioned In a treatise on
profiled edge to extend beyond the triangular base. cated ma1:hlnery undi:meath the stage floor was
It is possible to provide more than three changes by architecture by the Roman wTiter Marcus Vlu-uvlus sometimes used 10 mau series of them rurn or pi, -01
(70-1 SBC) who described periaktol set into spaces In simultaneously at both sides of th., sroge. '° lha1
hanging additional Oats on to the offstage sides.
the theatre facade that could be revolvtd to show scenes could be changed in full view of the audience
ready to be revolved into view. Used imaginatively. different sides painted wi.t h backgrounds appropriate wilh no stagehands visible.
periaktoi can be a valuable scenic device. They may
even contain doors or other built elements.
provided that no parts extend beyond a circle
described by the corners of the LTia ngle.
l l'J