tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1912669500934497251.post3441134421082266314..comments2023-09-29T03:39:03.460-04:00Comments on Gratuitous Violins: Billy Elliot has plenty of scenery to chewEstherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16076517542540421210noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1912669500934497251.post-55044277269586289602010-02-03T13:01:01.369-05:002010-02-03T13:01:01.369-05:00Hey Pam,
Thanks for the comment. Yeah, I thought t...Hey Pam,<br />Thanks for the comment. Yeah, I thought the Billy Elliot set was very effective and like I said, maybe not the best example of "cutting costs" in the scenic design! I think the set should just feel like it belongs to the show, not overwhelm it.Estherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16076517542540421210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1912669500934497251.post-36650882319392803852010-01-31T19:06:56.244-05:002010-01-31T19:06:56.244-05:00I have to agree with you about the set design of B...I have to agree with you about the set design of Billy Elliot. I thought it was wonderful and very effective. I absolutely loved that show. And I really like what Chris has said about not noticing the design when you get it right. I think there is lot of truth in that.Pamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04589606390781637262noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1912669500934497251.post-10555723708570372662010-01-31T14:17:07.143-05:002010-01-31T14:17:07.143-05:00Thanks so much for the comment Chris! You've g...Thanks so much for the comment Chris! You've given me some things to think about.<br /><br />I think in the examples I mentioned, Superior Donuts and The Royal Family, the set design did take me into the world inhabited by the characters in those plays. <br /><br />But it doesn't always have to be so detailed and intricate. I loved A Little Night Music despite the fact that the sets are kind of spare. For me, they were just enough to take me to another time and place.Estherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16076517542540421210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1912669500934497251.post-41416594651769333872010-01-31T13:25:58.277-05:002010-01-31T13:25:58.277-05:00A few days ago, one of my professors at school (wh...A few days ago, one of my professors at school (where I'm studying theatre design) said:<br /><br />"The glory of design is when you get it so right that nobody notices."<br /><br />I think that statement is a good summation of the goal of a designer. Whether a set is technically lavish or spartan is not the point - the ultimate goal is to serve the text. For some productions that might mean a single chair on stage, and for others that might mean complex, intricate scene changes with lots of props and pieces.<br /><br />{{ SPOILER ALERT }}<br /><br />Look at David Cromer's Our Town for instance. There's a play that everybody had insisted for years could only be done properly with a few tables and chairs. But in that key moment in Act Three when the Stage Manager pulls away the curtain and reveals the world that Emily didn't experience, we are able to identify with it much more deeply because of the scenery of that moment. It doesn't distract from the text; it enhances and serves it.<br /><br />{{ END SPOILER ALERT }}<br /><br />I think the debate over big or small is quite silly. The real argument: does the scenery serve the play, or distract from it?Chris Van Pattenhttp://chrisvanpatten.com/noreply@blogger.com