Video transcript
@The Arts Unit Art Bites – Elements of production design

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STEPHANIE: Hi. My name is Stephanie, and I'm a drama teacher at Crestwood High School. Today I'll be guiding you through a series of activities to help strengthen your knowledge of the elements of production. The elements of production include direction, dramaturgy, design, technical operation, and stage management. In the preliminary course, you will explore elements of production in performance as a component of your studies. You can also choose directing and design as individual projects in HSC drama.

Today you will take on the role of designer, focusing on set, costume, and promotion. And don't worry, you won't need any fancy equipment to complete the activities. You just need your imagination and materials found within your home.

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For this lesson, I will use 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' as my example. You can do the same, or you can choose a text you have studied in class. Now, you're probably familiar with this classic. Written by Lewis Carroll in 1865, it has been adapted to stage and screen many times. The children's story follows a young girl named Alice as she traverses a fantasy dreamscape filled with absurd and nonsensical characters. For the sake of brevity, I'll just be focusing on Chapter 7 to inspire my designs.

Here are the opening lines to set the scene, Chapter 7, 'A Mad Tea Party.' 'There was a table set out under a tree in front of the house, and the March Hare and the Hatter were having tea at it. A Dormouse was sitting between them fast asleep, and the other two were using it as a cushion, resting their elbows on it and talking over its head. "Very uncomfortable for the Dormouse", thought Alice. "Only, as it's asleep, I suppose it doesn't mind".'

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Let's begin with our set design. In film and theatre productions, designers will create a white card model, or model box, a three-dimensional blueprint of the intended design in miniature form. These models are built to scale, usually 1 to 25 metric, which means the set design is 25 times smaller than the real size of the space.

When thinking about your set, it's important to consider the visual impact of design in the space, using elements such as shape, colour, or composition to enhance the performance. So what's your vision? Are your ideas appropriate for the intended audience? And are they suitable for the dramatic and technical needs of the play?

You must also choose a stage type which will accommodate different scenes and transitions. For my interpretation, I was inspired by the black box of studio theatre spaces typically seen in small, independent venues. But there are many other stage types, such as a proscenium, a thrust stage, or even site specific.

For this activity, you will need scissors, a glue stick, and tape to construct your model, in addition to paper or cardboard. Copy paper is suitable. But if you do have cardboard-- an open parcel, empty cereal, the lid of a pizza box-- you might find it sturdier to use.

Begin by constructing the base of your set by folding it or piecing it together according to the stage type you have chosen. Once you have your base, you can begin to add details to dress the set. Create furnishings using your paper or cardboard. And then use other materials to bring your ideas to life. Play-Doh, empty toilet paper rolls, thread, old magazines, even just coloured markers-- pretty much whatever you can find around the house with your parents' permission. Use your creativity and try to think outside the box. Aluminium foil, for instance, makes a great substitute for a mirror.

Here's my work in progress. Because I'd like to use lighting and projections to create certain special effects alluded to in the text, I've elected to keep the walls fairly simple. My next step would be to paint the walls black.

The initial setting of the text is a hot summer's day, which is why I've included a tree in my design. I constructed this out of leftover cardboard and coloured pencils. The tree would remain in each scene, as it's rooted in Alice's reality. To add interest and emphasise the surreal landscape of the text, I also used a page from an old colouring-in book to form the stage floor.

I've created props which can be easily rearranged or removed for other scenes. The table, for instance, could simply be made out of drama blocks and moved around the stage by the actors. The clock, which would be suspended from the lighting rig, could be controlled by a technical operator.

To add a little further detail, I use crumpled tissue paper for the tablecloth, which I stained with a teabag. I also used stickers to suggest what props might go on top. Designers will often use a human figure to convey proportion. So I've used the next best thing and borrowed one of my partner's collectible figurines. If you have something similar, I'd encourage you to do the same.

What do you think I could add to this scene? Or what would you do differently? Feel free to pause this video and draw a rough sketch to experiment with your own ideas. Then start building.

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Next, we need to costume our actors. So who are the characters in this particular scene, and what do we know about them? The Hatter and his companions are maddening to Alice. They talk in riddles and delight in her frustration.

Alice, who is young and inquisitive, is usually depicted in a blue dress. The eccentric Hatter is, of course, wearing a hat. Then there's the March Hare, who is obsessed with teatime, and the Dormouse, who is often asleep.

Now, you can use a human figure template and sketch your ideal costumes. But if you're a fan of a classic '90s moving montage, you could instead ask your family for permission to peruse their clothes. Your parents' formal wear, your grandparents' accessories, your older siblings op shop finds, mix and match. Fortunately, as a drama teacher, I have an extensive and somewhat eclectic wardrobe.

In my interpretation, so how does costuming represent his distinctive personality through the use of bold lines and complementary colours which create a striking contrast?

To emphasise the March Hare's fixation on teatime, I took inspiration from the vintage tea dresses of the 1950s. The Dormouse's sleepy state is highlighted through a nightie, floral dressing gown, and ugg boots. And, in keeping with tradition, I selected a blue dress for Alice, with the polka dot pattern reflecting her youthful innocence.

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Finally, we need to promote our production with a poster design. You can do this by hand using a photo editing software like Photoshop or a smartphone app like Canva. I'll be using the latter, because it's very user-friendly and free.

The first thing you need to do is decide on a key image or symbol relevant to the play. Professional theatre companies will often photograph their cast in a stylized manner, but you can also use inanimate objects. For my poster, I photographed a lopsided teacup. This was an obvious reference to the Hatter's tea party, but the intentional placement of the teacup hints at the narrative's unusual plot.

Additionally, to create some unity in my overall designs, I decided to incorporate the same pattern from the set into the background of my poster. The framing of my image also provides space for necessary text. In Canva, you can select the type of design you are making, to ensure that your dimensions are correct. While I'll be designing a poster advertisement, you could experiment with a social media post instead.

Once you've made your decision, upload your image from the camera roll, and then edit it directly in the app. You can adjust the image with filters and digitally incorporate other visual elements, such as lines, shapes, even illustrations, whatever you need to make your poster stand out.

Lastly, you'll need to include some written elements, such as the title of the play, the playwright's name, the season dates, and where to find further information. You should also include the name of the theatre company staging the production, usually in the form of a logo. You can find existing logos online, but you can also make up your own. I did, Merriman Theatre Company has a nice ring to it, don't you think?

When assessing the effectiveness of your poster, consider the design's focal points, colour palette, and how you have used typography to attract attention. Where do the viewer's eyes go first? When creating your design, you may find that you make several draughts before you reach a final product, but that's all part of the process.

You have now dabbled in set, costume, and promotion, all from the comfort of your own home. Congratulations-- hopefully, these activities have helped you to develop a practical understanding of how important design is as an element of production. Your experience of a text will be enhanced by exploring the many different roles that coexist behind the scenes. And it's one of the innumerable reasons why theatre is so inspiring.

Thanks for watching.

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