A Very Christopher Durang Semester

My first ever scenic design--realized or theoretical--was for the Conservatory's second stage production of Durang, Durang in December of 2014.

The interesting part about this production was that it wasn't the traditional set of one acts that makes up the actual show Durang, Durang, but a somewhat cherry-picked conglomeration of three of his one acts--Wanda's Vist, For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls, and Naomi in the Living Room. We were also working with three student directors to create a unified set for their three acts while also working with the zero budget that comes with a second stage production.

As a first semester freshman, I was vastly unfamiliar with our scenic and props stock, which made the task that much more challenging. I worked with my design mentor, our then-assistant professor of scenic design, Staci Walters, to develop a unified concept for the show. The inspiration for the chalk outline backdrop and furniture came from the idea of stick figure families you see on the back of minivans and SUVs. The figures and clean, uniform lines were meant to draw a stark contrast against the dysfunction families' stories playing out on the stage.

For the most part, the directors' reactions were anywhere from accepting it to absolutely loving it. There was a little bit of debate about the outline of the dog along with the rest of the family, but enough people liked the idea that it made it through to the finished product. A late addition to the set was Naomi's stick figure Christmas tree, which also turned out to be my personal favorite element in the end.

At the time, I has definitively mixed feeling about the whole process, and, for a bit, I was a little bit disillusioned with theatre as a whole. Looking back now, I'm more than glad that I had this opportunity. I definitely learned some extremely valuable and applicable lessons about collaboration, pride, time management, and design as a whole, which I wholeheartedly believe have made me a better student and designer.

Kaylin White, Mallory Echelmeyer, and Robert Rice as Ginny, Amanda, and Tom, respectively, in For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls.

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