Designing Danny
My embarassment at my utter lack of a tangible design concept combined with my paralyzing fear that everything I was dreaming of would fail has kept me from posting to the blog until now, once the set is finished. I wanted to make sure that my design concept worked--a concept which I was unable to draw and could only really realize by squinting through my mind's eye.
I got the basic idea for the set at the first production meeting I attended (which wasn't the first production meeting, ask eric about that one). Actually, Cassie gave me the idea. She mentioned that she had been thinking about how it would be neat to have large pieces of white cloth cascading around the space, kind of like a wedding veil. I told Cassie that that would be swell, plus I really wanted to do stuff with white. I think white is great, I told her, and it would be a nice contrast to some of the other color palettes we've seen in New World shows. Someone else mentioned that I might be able to get big pieces of white cloth from the Goshen College Umble Center. White cloth: a design concept is born.
With a list of props from Sam, I laid out a to-do list: 1) paint tables and chairs white 2) buy some other white stuff and maybe all those small props 3) hang giant strips of cloth from the Umble center 4) hope it all works (When I told them that I wasn't sure my design concept was going to "work," Danny and Cassie both looked at me and asked in unison "what's 'work?'" For me, it works when I can see it and mess with it).
1) no problem. paint paint paint.
2) This was a little more interesting since I didn't really know what I wanted. While at Salvation Army, I decided that I should buy a wedding dress. I almost bought two, until the cashier reminded me that wedding dresses cost $99. She said that since it was 50% percent off day it was like getting two for the price of one. My brain told me that even at that low low price, I would have exceeded my budget. I picked the prettier one and shelled out my fifty bucks. Yes, this was still two thirds of my set budget blown on a dress which I dismantled and incorporated into the set. You should look for it. I think it is in five pieces.
3) Danny and Cassie helped me hang the cloth. This was the part that I couldn't imagine until it was done. I tried to sketch my ideas a couple times, but gave up once when I figured out (again) that I can't draw. It wouldn't have helped too much anyway, since I kind of forgot a bunch of things about the physical world when I was dreaming up the concept. Thanks to Danny and Cassie for helping me hang these and assuring me that it would "work."
4) The juries still out. You know the show dates.
So, come see the show. Think about it. Ask us stuff about it. Tell us stuff about it. I may even be able to whip up some good ideas about my set concept now that it's there--now that I know it works.