Set+and+Lighting+Design+Steps 

Set and Lighting Design Process I really wanted to encompass the diversity of the city of Miami. Having been their myself, I’ve experienced its energy and desperately wanted to capture that with my design. I researched architecture within the city and found three categories that interested me the most: Mediterranean revival, Modern, and Art Deco. All three categories had beautiful features, but I decided I wanted to use an Art Deco theme with a little bit of Modern design. As I walked through campus, I began noticing small things like flourishing vegetation and elegant structures that would be perfect for the set. I took pictures and documented them for inspiration. I envisioned a small hotel set back aways from the city but still close enough to see the skyline. I wanted clean, crisp colors such as whites, pale blues, and browns that would be overrun with green vegetation to still give the building a “jungle” appeal. I wanted sparse furniture that would put all of the attention on the actors and their performances. I did, however, want to emphasize the hammock that is used to tie down Shannon as I feel that’s an extremely important moment and the prop needs to be recognizable. My vision with the Art Deco was to use smooth edges with panes of glass to add a Modern feel. I used classic Art Deco lettering to create the hotel sign. For the three rooms that Hannah, her grandfather, and Shannon sleep in, I had the idea of incorporating theme of the iguana into the design. I wanted the rooms to be connected but with an arch to represent the spiny skin of the species. I used my concept board to envision the layout and size of the structure as compared to what would be seen in Miami set still give a secluded feel as if they were still in the jungle. After doing three different sketches, I picked the one I felt represented the play the best and proceeded to create a colored rendering. Along the way, I added a few more details such as a cobble stone walk way to the terrace to give it more texture. I created floor plans to give approximate estimates of the scale of the set. Now that I had the basics, I needed to figure out how to create the perfect mood using differing structures and lights. I wanted the skyline to be painted onto a wooden cut out that would be broken into sections for easy removal on and off stage. A light blue, translucent backdrop would be hung behind this for the sky and several strobe lights will be hung behind this curtain to create a lightening effect during the storm. The skyline should appear black with sporadic flashed of light illuminating the stage. The light that stays on Shannon’s hand will be neon blue at first, but switch into a strong silver lighting as it cuts to intermission. The other detail that needed to be added was the use of the neon blue sign and its function. I wanted to create a stark contrast between the soft colors of the set and props with a striking feature. Miami has several of these signs so I thought this would be perfect and tie into the culture. I originally planned on using red lights, but I wanted something more outside the box, as people typically associate fear and anger with red (both of which Shannon feels). I wanted the colors that typically calmed people to become oppressive and unrelenting. I think that contrast creates a more intense mood. For the last scene, I want the last thing the audience to see as Hannah looks on at her deceased grandfather, I want her to light the cigarette and let it burn bright as the house and stage fade completely to black. Some other affects I would want to use are a rain system in which a PCV is suspended above a certain area of the stage and holes are poked sideways into the pipe where water will evenly flow out of and into water troughs (lined with pond lining) hidden by vegetation. Water will need to be pumped into the pipe at a steady fixed rate that will determined prior to rehearsals. A facet and house will need to be readily available. Clean up to dry any water that did not make it into the troughs will need to take place during intermission after the storm. I would also use a fog machine to spread fog evenly across the stage before the show starts to create an early morning, steamy atmosphere. I could also use this fog machine during the entrances of the Nazi troop to create a larger dream-like affect.
 * 1) 1. Research
 * 1) 2. Basic Idea
 * 1) 3. Sketches
 * 1) 4. Details and Lighting
 * 1) 5. Minor Details