Theatre and stage design
The design industry is part of the creative and cultural industries. The design industry includes craft, cultural heritage, literature, music, performing arts and visual arts. Of all people working in the design industry 7% are in stage or set design.
Theatre design or scenography is the design of the space in which a performance takes place. Theatre designers create stage pictures, i.e. they design the space, costumes, props for a performance.
Some designers deal only with set or costumes, particularly if it is a very large scale production such as an opera, but designers generally create designs for both. Designers also use their skills in areas such as creative events, parades, opening ceremonies, pop concerts etc.
The designer will need varied skills – drawing, painting, construction, sewing, budgeting and promotion. The designer also needs to have an understanding of the text and of the human figure in space.
Stage designer
Stage designers are responsible for the visual concept of a theatre production. They realise a design style for sets, locations, graphics, lighting, camera angles and costumes working closely with the director and producer. Stage designers are also called production or set designers.
Production designers need to be creative and imaginative, have a high level of design skill and creative vision. They need to be good at communicating with people.
The work of a set, production or stage designer begins at the start of the production planning process, and ends on the opening night. A stage designer creates the design ideas, but usually delegates the practical work to others.
The work could include:
studying scripts and discussing ideas with the director
communicating your ideas to costume, make-up, and lighting designers
researching the right historical, contemporary or futuristic details for the production
creating effective designs within the available budget
using computer-aided design (CAD)
building scale models
estimating costs and preparing a production schedule
overseeing set building and decoration
making any adjustments needed during rehearsals.
The production of plays usually involves contributions from a playwright, a director, a cast of actors, and a technical production team that includes a scenic or set designer, lighting designer, costume designer, sound designer, stage manager and production manager. Depending on the production, this team may also include a composer, a dramaturge, a video designer and a fight designer.
The technical aspects of theatrical production are described collectively as “stagecraft”. This includes, but is not limited to, the construction and rigging of scenery, the hanging and focusing of lighting, the design of costumes, make-up, stage management, and recording and mixing of sound.
Stagecraft may be implemented by any number of workers, from a single person (who arranges all scenery, costumes, lighting, sound, and organizes the cast) to hundreds of skilled carpenters, painters, electricians, stagehands, wigmakers, and the like. This modern form of stagecraft is highly technical and specialized: it comprises many sub-disciplines and includes a vast range of history and tradition.
Scenic design (also known as scenography, stage design, set design or production design) is the creation of theatrical scenery. Scenic designers have traditionally come from a variety of artistic backgrounds.
The “stage picture” is the physical appearance of the stage for a play, whether in rehearsal or performance. The stage picture should express good principles of design and use of space. It should be visually appealing for the audience or should express the show’s concept.
The scenic designer is responsible for creating an environment for the production and scale models of the scenery.
Nowadays scenic designers are often responsible not only for scenic design but costume, lighting, sound and multi-media design for performance and are referred to as theatre designers or production designers.
Words & Expressions:
(theatre) stage (set) design – сценография (сценическое оформление спектакля)
cultural heritage – культурное наследие
performing arts (e.g. dance, drama) – исполнительское искусство
visual-arts (e.g. painting, sculpting, photography) – изобразительное искусство
props (properties) – театральное имущество (опора), необходимое для спектакля (мебель, посуда, телефон и т.д.)
a large scale production – крупномасштабная постановка
skills – навыки, умения, практический опыт
drawing – рисование
painting – живопись
sewing – шитье
a production schedule – производственный план
to oversee – наблюдать, следить
a dramaturge – драматург
a fight designer – постановщик сцен борьбы
stagecraft – сценическое (технические аспекты театрального производства)
rigging of scenery – оснащение сцены
focusing of lighting – фокусировка освещения
recording and mixing of sound – запись и микширование звука
make-up – грим
a stagehand – рабочий сцены
a wigmaker – изготовитель париков
Questions:
What does the design industry include?
How many people work in stage design?
What does it mean ‘theatre design’?
What does a theatre designer deal with?
What does the work of a stage designer include?
People of what occupations take part in the production of plays?
What does the stagecraft include?
Who does a scenic designer work with?
How would you describe the set of the play which you have seen recently?
