On March 8, 2013, the design team for The Two Gentlemen of Verona met at Rockwood Park to decide where in the park to place this summer’s production. Watch the video below to uncover their answer – then read the following the quotes about what they made this decision.
Samantha Bellomo, Director
Why do I like the space we chose? After walking through the park it seemed like the best location because of:
- The terrain – the slope of the hill works in our favor
- The bridges framing the space behind – I was imagining the characters bounding over those bridges into the audience and onto the stage
- The tree – the huge, oddly shaped, old man looking tree
- The stump – I loved that stump. It is a very very good stump to stand on.
- The possibilities for transforming the entire space – from where the audience will enter to the actors exits offstage – seemed endless in that location
Adam Riggar, Set Designer
What I like best about the location we picked is that it makes a natural amphitheater. The mansion in the back and the tree lines on both sides give a sense of containment and the ground sloping down towards the playing area makes for a nice audience rake – making for better sight lines. I also like the big pine tree that will be directly behind the stage. While we are currently looking in the direction of surrealism as a visual theme, that tree will not only provide a nice asymmetrical compositional element, but will also help support any surreal theme when juxtaposed with a man-made element (most likely manipulated in scale).
Jessica Simkins, Production Manager
From a technical standpoint, this position is ideal because the slop of the land angles in a fashion that helps the audience see the action on stage. It is also close to our main power source, which is useful when running cables. The two bridges frame the area nicely. And….personally, I love that tree.
