So, you’ve written your script, made your masks and chosen your actors, how can you make your
opening night as impressive as possible? With a little bit of design inspiration, of course, courtesy of
our favourite member of the art elite, Polly Chrome – or as she likes to be called now – Polly-cules.
STEP 1: Decide
where the stage
begins and the
audience ends
There are lots of ways to stage a
play. Do you want your audience
to sit in a single block of seats
facing the stage? That’s called a
proscenium arch. Maybe the
stage could be like a catwalk, long
and thin with audience members
on either side. Or perhaps you
could opt for a promenade
performance, where audience
members are dotted about and
performers move around them?
Your decision will be influenced
by the space you are performing
in, but also by the piece you want
to perform. It’s up to you.
STEP 3: All change
Situations change during the course of
the play (that’s kind of the point of any
story) – think about simple ways to
represent those changes on stage. Think
about how objects can be used in more
than one way. Can a row of chairs
become a bridge? Could a hat become a
bowl? Could a ladder become a
mountain? Could a mop become a lion?
These are all really interesting ways to
add to your storytelling toolbox.
STEP 4: Sketch
Examining your mood board, sketch
your design. You may not use the first
sketch, or the second, or even the third.
It doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has
to communicate your idea to the rest of
your theatre troop.
STEP 2: Think about
your themes
What ideas are explored in your play?
What colours, textures and images spring
to mind when you think about it? Write all
the answers down in a mind map, even if
they sound a little strange. For example,
if your play is about a conflict between a
nature reserve and the city, your colours
might be light spring green and dark
smokey grey. Your textures might be
gently ruffled like a meadow in the
breeze (such a romantic, ed) vs.
smooth, hard and jagged like glass.
Collect colours and images and present
them in a mood board – that’s how we
start every issue of AQUILA, by the way;
with a collection of colours, textures and
images. It’s a great starting point for any
creative project.
STEP 5: Make
a model
Professional set designers
always make a scale
model of their design to
show exactly how it’s all
going to come together.
This step might not be
realistic if you’re just
playing about in your
backyard, but if you’re
working on a school
production or intending
on building anything at
all, it’s definitely a good
idea. If anything is wrong,
it will probably show up
at this stage.