Category Archives: Design Stuff

My design work for theatre and other venues

Bit of the ordinary, Design Stuff

Late nights and fighting the dew

I’m in tech right now, listening to the show and waiting for it to end. Waiting for it to end so I can get to work on notes. Tech rehearsals are this weird time when you’re tired from working all day, and excited to see it come together. I find myself dozing off during techs sometimes, from being tired but also to rest up for spending three or four hours painting scenery or doing changes in the lights. I’m getting used to holding a paint brush at 1am. The only problem is when the theater has shop spaces outside. Paint loves to dry during the day when the sun is out. But at night, there is not sun and the dew comes out. All that moisture really gets in the way of getting the set painted. The high humidity extends the drying time of things. That can be helpful for some techniques, but if the humidity is to high it can affect the ability of the paint to stick to the surface. When that happens, it can really slow you down.

Right now, I’m about to do a heck of a lot of woodgrain, and install a railing. By the time I get to post this it will be finished and the show will be open. Fun fun fun.

Bit of the ordinary, Design Stuff

A bit of my house in “This Old House”

I have an entry in the Salvage contest at the This Old House website. So please check out the contest. I hope that you find it in your kind heart to give a positive vote to my entry (Stained-Glass Table). If you also find it in your kind heart to put some negative votes on my competition, all the better…

If I get selected by the masses via the web and the editors of the magazine, then it could appear in an upcoming issue of This Old House. Wish me luck ( get clicking!).

Design Stuff

Kiss Me Kate

The pictures are in! you can view a slideshow of my Kiss Me Kate production photos here. It is by far the biggest show I have done, with the most extensive settings. There were eight or nine locations in a realistic show. Word on the streets of lexington is that this is the best musical in 8-10 years. Now to get ready and strike it on Sunday…

Design Stuff

Another Opening, another Show

Well, it’s has been a ‘long hard slog’ (as it goes in the script). There has been many many long hours on my part, but the show is finally open. You can see the final dress in a nutshell here. I’ll have more pictures available soon. In the meantime I have some progress shots in my Flickr feed.

Bit of the ordinary, Design Stuff

paint, paint and oh more paint.

I have been working madly on Kiss Me Kate. One of the few times here at W&L that I am just doing one part(scene design, lighting design costume design or Technical direction). In this case I am just doing the set design, and it is more than enough. Eight different settings in a realistic piece call for a lot of work. I’m very excited about this show, but is quite a daunting amount of work. And for the first time I have designed something too big, both size and budget wise. We’ve cut some pieces from the show, but the budgets I was given were guesses that are totally inaccurate.

So I’ve set up one theatre as a painting studio. I’ve already gotten through painting the scenery for three of the settings. I’m halfway through one drop for the show, and have one more to go. The problem is that the Technical Director is only concerning himself with the set and not the props, as is the usual here. So I have to devote a lot of time to that as well. Not to mention I have to run the department since I am Acting Chair of the Department. We’ll see how things are at the end of the week, that will be crunch time.

Part of the problem is that none of the students have an artistic eye. So I can’t train them to do the finish work, some of the finish work they have done I just want to do over. Now I know I can’t, but it’s still on my list if I have time to do it during tech week. But that really slows me down, having to do everything.

I didn’t do any work today(I’m writing this on Sunday- Mother’s Day), because there are limits to how much time I should spend at work. Although I was thinking about set stuff throughout the day. I guess I can’t let go. But I’m not a perfectionist, I just want it to be right. :)

Design Stuff

In the thick of things

Currently I’m in the first dress for Oscar & Felix. Sometimes I can’t wait for a show to open because I’m excited to get an audience in. And sometimes I just want the show to be open and done with. This is the Latter. I’ve decided being the Scene designer/Lighting designer/Technical Director isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Mainly because I think the design has suffered. Some interesting things can happen when elements are designed at the same time. However, there is too much overlap and not enough people. As a result we are a little behind with both the sets and lights.

I’ll have time for more later…