ME and Dame Agatha

It was just the other day that I realized that between stage designs and virtual designs, I have created environments for four titles from the canon of Dame Agatha Christie (one title twice) and have wicked designs on a fifth.

So just for fun, a very short look back ...

The Mousetrap
1993 - The Bathhouse Theater, Seattle
1999 - Tacoma Little Theatre
(sadly, no photo evidence of either)

Ten Little Indians (or And Then There Were None)
2004 - Tacoma Little Theatre
Images by Jason Ganwich

SHOW # 2 - The Best Christmas Pageant Ever - Lakewood Playhouse Dec 2019

Possibly the simplest set i have designed in a long time.  But that's really what the space and the show required - simple elegance, flexibility, and an opportunity for lighting to really push the storytelling.

Directed by John Munn

MODEL

PRODUCTION SHOTS

MORE Show #1 of the 2019-20 Tacoma Theater Season

Calendar Girls at Tacoma Little Theatre was such a great experience in so many ways. Not only was the show itself meaningful, and the dedication of everyone involved apparent, it was a great experience in designing.

I believe, and many of my colleagues do, that the future of stage design is in digital scenery for a variety of reasons. This show was a further testing ground for that idea, in a context that did not involve a big-box-budget.  And it worked!  The hard scenery was minimal and flexible - providing a frame for the story unfolding.  I created 13 digital backdrops for the show, depicting different seasons, times of day, and subtly following the dramatic arc with certain palette and movement choices.  

The video above shows a selection of those backdrops, in the order they appear in the show. Learned a great deal from this experience, am very pleased with how it came out, and eager to apply my new knowledge to another project.

SHOW #1 of the 2019-20 Tacoma Theater Season

Number one of five this season.  Awaaaay we go!

Show #1: Here is the video footage and snapshots of the virtual model of my design for the season opener for Tacoma Little Theatre's 101st Season: Tim Firth's Calendar Girls.

Click on the individual images. and video embed to enlarge.

The virtual model gives you a really solid sense of the design in its space, and never needs to be dusted!  A media plot is under development to help support the sense of time passing, and the scenes that take place outdoors, on "John's Hill." This model, and the video media that are planned as part of the design, will all be created in the virtual world of Second Life ®.

DRAFT of set in "John's Hill" mode 7.14.19

Overhead view of revised model as of 7.20.19 in "Church Hall" mode

Revised model as of 8.4.19 in "Church Hall" mode

BLITHE SPIRIT - Tacoma Little Theatre - October 20 - November 5

Directed by Chris Serface
Photo Courtesy of Chris Serface

33 VARIATIONS - Vashon Drama Dock - October 4 - 8

Video of Virtual Set Model

Production Stills 

(click on images to see larger)

Designed both scenery and projections - Directed by Charlotte Tiencken
Production Photos Courtesy of Lisa Work

LA CAGE AUX FOLLES ~ Tacoma Musical Playhouse May 16 - June 8

An elevation and some work light shots before Opening Night.  Production photos to be posted as soon as possible.

Original Elevation of the La Cage Proscenium pieces

This set was all about a gesture (*extends arm up and out, and flexes wrist*).  It was about a gesture of joy, and of acceptance - embracing the truth of who one really is, and what is really important.  We went for the graphic representation of that gesture, most easily found and expressed through Art Deco. 

The show has lots of blurred lines in it: gender, loyalty, morality, love.  Those blurred lines help accent the journey to what is real and important - the lines which should never blur.  So we put Art Deco (where lines seem clear) in an environment where you are never quite sure when you are totally in and totally out of the influence of La Cage Aux Folles.