Stage Sets - Installations

My job as a Secondary Visual Arts teacher has given me the privilege to collaborate with highly skilled teachers from a variety of fields across the creative arts. What is particularly inspiring is coordinating groups of very talented students in constructing, embellishing and painting these sets which, in a sense become more like installations rather than stage sets.

I design, build and paint all sets, coordinating teams of teachers, students and parents throughout the process. 

"AIDA" - Kirrawee High School - 2015

I know I have things arranged in chronological order, but this latest set needs to be at the top of the page. This is by far the most ambitious design and set build I have pulled off so far. It was a huge team effort involving lots of staff and students bringing their various skills together over a very intense week of carpentry, construction, cement rendering, large 3D sculpture, painting and finishing. I had a brilliant team of talented students working all week, and a fantastic team of teachers and executive teachers supporting the whole effort who also gave up late nights and weekends building the heavy stuff that students can't do. I am extremely proud of the large Sphinx Head and the Mummy, both while guided by me, were built entirely by teams of students. The performers, musicians, lighting, sound and production teams put on a fantastic and highly professional show - keeping up the high standards people have come to expect from a Kirrawee High School production.

The designs for this set can be viewed on my front page. Note, in "The Build" section below, students have the designs out in their work space while they are working.

THE BUILD

"Into the Woods" - Kirrawee High School 2006

This was a three dimensional stage set, designed to capture the sense of an enchanted forest. I decided to bring in references to Surrealism, particularly the work of artists Salvadore Dali and Giorgio de Chirico. The trees on the rear flats were constructed using chicken wire and draped in hessian dipped in plaster slurry. The main tree had to be able to take the weight of two adult sized actors. It was constructed with a heavy timber framework, covered in sculptered chicken wire and hessian dipped in plaster. The silhouette was constructed from plywood set about half a metre in front of a cyclorama curtain, allowing for different coloured lighting themes.

"Les Miserables" - Kirrawee High School 2010

Possibly one of the largest and most ambitious projects undertaken by a comprehensive, public high school. The set for Les Mis. opened up all sorts of possibilities to explore a variety of textures blended together (rough timber against masonry, brick and metal) as well as back lighting and "through lighting". Despite its appearance, this set was fairly cheap to build as most of the material came from junk piles, and basic cement render applied over ply wood was used to create all the masonry. I am particularly proud of the the riveted steel which is ply wood with foam balls used for the rivets smeared with cement for the rust texture.


Designs for the Stage Set - gauche and ink on paper

Stage Set

"Leader of the Pack" - Kirrawee High School 2012

Leader of the Pack required a more geometric, precise looking set. The over riding theme was to reference the sets from pop-music TV shows from the 1950's and 60's such as "Bandstand". We also referenced classic American diners, 1960's Greyhound buses and Art Deco interior design.