Bits and snippets from the set design life:
Yesterday I helped the carpenters hang upstage fabric drape/flaps for Marvin's Room (they played "carpenters", I played "eyeball"), plus that Production Meeting. Hanging around Fort Worth as two 100 mile trips in one day seemed, um, dumb. So yesterday was teach-myself-computer-graphics day. (See yesterday's post for the results.) I've been sketching fly-in windows for As You Like It - next I need to finish those paint elevations.
Books: Still plugging away at Mark Twain's Autobiography. Good, but a dip-into kind of book. Meanwhile also rereading a charming old D.E.Stevenson semi-autobigraphical novel, Mrs. Tim Christie, about a 1930s British Army wife.
TV/Film: Still enjoying Battlestar Galactica. An addictive show.
Showing posts with label Marvin's Room. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Marvin's Room. Show all posts
Friday, May 6, 2011
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Tech Weekend and Scenic Painting
Things are getting busy, scenic-ly.
Yesterday I helped finish base painting on Broadway Our Way. Theoretically set designers have a scenic artist to "finish" paint their sets (meaning the cool techniques, faux finishes, and/or fool-the-eye stuff) plus painters or carpenters to do the base painting before that.
In the real world of real theaters, base painting tends to be a carpenter job and scenic painting is done by - flip a coin - either a scenic painter or the designer, depending on what talent and money is available. I paint my own sets about half the time and almost always paint something, if only some furniture. Since Broadway is coming up on Tech and there's still raw wood, I pitched in... which means my "real" painting hasn't happened yet. I'm not too panicked though, as panels are finally going up on the framework and beads have been found, so the set may actually (touch wood) get finished before Thursday's first audience. More painting today - Tech tomorrow.
Friday night Date Night? A production meeting on Marvin's Room. Sigh.
The Traveling Lady closes Sunday! Catch it fast.
Yesterday I helped finish base painting on Broadway Our Way. Theoretically set designers have a scenic artist to "finish" paint their sets (meaning the cool techniques, faux finishes, and/or fool-the-eye stuff) plus painters or carpenters to do the base painting before that.
In the real world of real theaters, base painting tends to be a carpenter job and scenic painting is done by - flip a coin - either a scenic painter or the designer, depending on what talent and money is available. I paint my own sets about half the time and almost always paint something, if only some furniture. Since Broadway is coming up on Tech and there's still raw wood, I pitched in... which means my "real" painting hasn't happened yet. I'm not too panicked though, as panels are finally going up on the framework and beads have been found, so the set may actually (touch wood) get finished before Thursday's first audience. More painting today - Tech tomorrow.
Friday night Date Night? A production meeting on Marvin's Room. Sigh.
The Traveling Lady closes Sunday! Catch it fast.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Set Design Day
The last few days have been full of hands-on set design stuff.
Wednesday I was at Broadway Our Way's theater, painting giant circles on a curved wall, using the old trick of chalk tied on a string taped to the wall: pivot that chalk and - voila! - perfect(ish) circle. I pogo-ed up and down with the lift to reach the tops of the circles. Painting them took time as did setting locations for hanging a few more cut-out versions, which meant sitting way back in the auditorium shouting, "Six inches toward centerstage!" to the poor guy then in the lift, as he tied knots.
Yesterday my Apprentice came over. We looked over his latest project and upholstered a bench seat for Marvin's Room and traced out flamingos on bright pink felt. (I love the weird jobs theater hands out.) We also made an emergency bead-curtain-run. After Broadway's TD searched much of town, the beads came from a funny Mom-n-Pop dollar store near me. I had to take what they had in stock, rather than my first choice color, but we'll spray paint 'em, so that's okay.
Wednesday I was at Broadway Our Way's theater, painting giant circles on a curved wall, using the old trick of chalk tied on a string taped to the wall: pivot that chalk and - voila! - perfect(ish) circle. I pogo-ed up and down with the lift to reach the tops of the circles. Painting them took time as did setting locations for hanging a few more cut-out versions, which meant sitting way back in the auditorium shouting, "Six inches toward centerstage!" to the poor guy then in the lift, as he tied knots.
Yesterday my Apprentice came over. We looked over his latest project and upholstered a bench seat for Marvin's Room and traced out flamingos on bright pink felt. (I love the weird jobs theater hands out.) We also made an emergency bead-curtain-run. After Broadway's TD searched much of town, the beads came from a funny Mom-n-Pop dollar store near me. I had to take what they had in stock, rather than my first choice color, but we'll spray paint 'em, so that's okay.
flamingo image by Audubon, public domain I believe
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Model Building
I'm at the very sticky-fingered stage of building a model for Broadway Our Way. I turned in the construction drawings at last week's production meeting and construction has begun, but because it's mounted on a turntable and my Mondrian-ish design has levels and layers, it's a little hard to grasp from drawings alone. So I'm model-building.
A teeny, teeny little 3D grid from slivers of cardboard.
Hence the sticky fingers. It's starting to look interesting... so, naturally, I need to leave it part-built to drive to Fort Worth with fabric for Marvin's Room which is a'building at real life size. Sigh. Still I'll get a lunch in Fort Worth, always good.
A teeny, teeny little 3D grid from slivers of cardboard.
Hence the sticky fingers. It's starting to look interesting... so, naturally, I need to leave it part-built to drive to Fort Worth with fabric for Marvin's Room which is a'building at real life size. Sigh. Still I'll get a lunch in Fort Worth, always good.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Set Design Field Trip
My apprentice and I are off in the car today (into the wind, rain, and lightning!) off for adventures... a field trip.
First stop the copy place to reproduce drawings (okay, second stop, I'm sure to be low on gas), then WaterTower Theater to look at the environmental set (whose grass, the performance report says, needs re-stapling) for The Traveling Lady, then to Fort Worth to talk about the next set there, Marvin's Room. Afterwards Mexican food and some educational bumming around. Possibly fabric stores. Fun stuff.
First stop the copy place to reproduce drawings (okay, second stop, I'm sure to be low on gas), then WaterTower Theater to look at the environmental set (whose grass, the performance report says, needs re-stapling) for The Traveling Lady, then to Fort Worth to talk about the next set there, Marvin's Room. Afterwards Mexican food and some educational bumming around. Possibly fabric stores. Fun stuff.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Schematic Design Meeting
Sometimes with some directors and some shows (every time is different!) and if the table is big enough and the stars align just right, it's possible to really kick ideas around.
Today was lucky: the director and I sketched our way through Marvin's Room. It's a difficult show in that the script is realistic (though moments have a feel of "magic") with multiple, contrasting settings (warm home versus cool medical) and it's being produced in thrust in a intimate, low-ceilinged space, with no wings or ability to fly. Tricky.
I brought research and a very rough floor plan sketch - started towards realistic - together we moved towards more abstract until I think - among the lunch bowls and fortune cookie wrappers - we may have found a solution.
Good fun! Now I just gotta sketch it pretty - so it makes sense.
Today was lucky: the director and I sketched our way through Marvin's Room. It's a difficult show in that the script is realistic (though moments have a feel of "magic") with multiple, contrasting settings (warm home versus cool medical) and it's being produced in thrust in a intimate, low-ceilinged space, with no wings or ability to fly. Tricky.
I brought research and a very rough floor plan sketch - started towards realistic - together we moved towards more abstract until I think - among the lunch bowls and fortune cookie wrappers - we may have found a solution.
Good fun! Now I just gotta sketch it pretty - so it makes sense.
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