Theatrical Sets

I usually don't take a lot of photos of the sets I build, but here are a few:

In the spring of 2017 we did a show that took place in a subway terminal. We had a train (dressed to look like many different trains) that periodically came and went throughout the performance. The observant audience members noticed that the train they saw onstage was substantially longer than the off-stage space we had available, which left them to puzzle out how we fit it into our available space (the answer is that the train telescoped in on itself when out of view of the audience).

(photos coming soon)

In the fall of 2016 we put on our own version of Back to the Future, featuring a DeLorean that took the entire previous summer to build. It had working lights, opening gull-wing doors, and flip-down wheels, and rolled across the stage as if under its own power. We had to adjust the dimensions a little to get it to fit on our stage, but other than that it was a pretty accurate recreation (considering it was 75% foam).

A Houston businessman bought the warehoused parts when the DeLorean Motor Company went out of business, and they now sell those parts individually, or if you prefer they can put them all together and sell you an entire "new" vehicle. As fate would have it, one of my wife's former students is now the service manager there, and she gave us a personal tour of the warehouse/factory and provided valuable references for our construction. She has our sincere appreciation!

In the spring of 2014 we did a Scooby-Doo show, where the mystery took place backstage at a haunted playhouse. I got to have fun with things like swinging walls, levitating boxes, and a spooky portrait that emitted fog and looked around with glowing eyes.

In the spring of 2011 we did a Gilligan's Island themed show, where we turned the main stage into the Castaways' camp and used side platforms for other scenes (including one where I, as Gilligan, slid down out of the ceiling on a coconut tree). The tech tables in the back were hidden behind an "SS Minnow" facade.

In the fall of 2010 we needed a rolling train car for a murder mystery. I later helped the school's choir to redress the set with a Polar Express theme for their winter performance.