The Music Man
Roadside
Theatre
Heidelberg, Germany
May, 1999
Costumes Provided by Theatrix
Directed by James Sohre
Musical Direction by James Sohre
Related Links:
To view The Music Man drops visit the Scene Painting page.
For
more photos, visit the Roadside Theatre The
Music Man page.
In mounting a show of this size on the rather small Roadside Theatre stage, there needed to be some creative ways to establish the various locales. The overall approach became one of creating impressions rather than trying to establish realism. The stage was framed with two large lattice-work false prosceniums to give the impression of a small-town home in Iowa. The backdrops were painted in an impressionistic style to avoid realism and to give the play a "remember when" quality. Other rolling units were brought in at various points with different elements painted on each side that added interest to the stage picture and provided the director with interesting obstacle to block around. The lighting, which is mostly bright to accommodate the big songs and large cast, was allowed to come down at special moments, such as on the Paroo porch and at the footbridge to enhance the romantic spark between Harold and Marion. Also, the show curtain was on scrim to allow transitions as well as a nice moment during the final Harold and Marion duet. .
