Producing a play is not just about the actors, we have to think about the set, the soundscape, costumes, the lighting and the props. Each of these elements is as important as the other, and a successful production will have a great artistic team working tirelessly behind the scenes with the director.
Some playwrights (and directors - and I personally hold my hand up to this) like to task huge complex challenges for the companies producing their plays, with difficult sets, extraordinary props, flamboyant costumes and complicated lighting effects & soundscapes.
We perform in a relatively small space, with very little lighting available to us, so we quite often have to think outside of the box when it comes to artistically designing our productions. One of my joys is to design a set very early on in the process and on the ‘get-in’ day, compare the end result with my original plan, here are some examples below:
Some of the fun we have is with the wonderfully weird and wacky props we have to find - this is always a great topic of conversation. Listed below are a few of the oddest ones we have had to find/make in recent years:
A Large Feather Quill
A Large Picture of Mick Hucknell
A Town Crier Bell
2 x Large Blue Foam Hands
An Orange Afro Wig
A Bucket Full Of Small Handwritten Insults
A Small Telescope
A Twirling Baton
A Waiters Bell
A Fertility Kit
A Box In The Shape Of A Television To Fit Over A Head
6 x Mr Whippy Ice Creams Per Performance
A Santa Lucia Crown - That Lights Up
A Stick Insect That Looks Real!
An Orange Onesie For A Dog
An African Wall Hanging Mask
A Noose
A 1980’s Payphone
A 1986 Telephone Directory
A 1983 Gold Blend Instant Jar Of Coffee
A Wheelchair
A 38 Smith & Wesson Gun & A German Luger Gun
A Jewish Prayer Book
A Baby Grand Piano (probably classed as a set-piece but….!)
A Dansette Record Player
A Metal Detector
Set wise, I think to build a working Ice Cream Van for Beacons, a Pill Box (that the cast could get in) for Sea Fret and to produce a school classroom for adults playing 8-year-old children in The Flint Street Nativity probably top the list for the most complex sets to date:
I will be looking at how lighting, soundscapes and costumes transform a play in a forthcoming blog but for now, looking ahead to the productions we have chosen so far for 2020 The Green Room Productions What’s On, Eastbourne I can see we are still going to have our work cut out for us on all of the above!
To see what we have had to contend with in our forthcoming production, book your tickets now for some festive comedy fun and come and see Breeders by Ben Ockrent, December 11th - 14th at The Lamb Inn, Eastbourne