Shipwrecked is an entertainment story about the process of making something out of nothing to provide empathy and personify childlike performance. The design is unified through aesthetic elements of detail such as: matching oil rubbed bronze brackets, a contained wooden palette, and natural manila rope. Most items in this design are practical and purposeful, which become the innate quality of the set. A major inspiration for the set started with the crossovers between technical theatre and ship rigging and practice. This led to a transition between the set and the theatre that was seamless and practical, much like the show. To welcome an audience member into the theatre, it became important to embody the entire Caplin space and emphasize that this structure was meant for the theatre, not just this set.
Venue: University of Virginia
Date: 2017
Position: Scenic Designer
Director: Marianne Kubik
Lighting Designer: Steven Spera
This design process started with an exploration of this unique thrust-like theatre. The priorities of the design become an opportunity to immerse the audience in a space that felt Victorian and also full of possibility. This sparked research of Victorian theatres, wooden architecture, ship mechanisms, and how these spaces could collage into a cohesive aesthetic. After these design iterations, the idea was to connect the stage with the audience and produce an arena theatre space into this thrust-like theatre.
