MAKE ME A SONG

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SET DESIGNER

The Richard Burton Company

By William Finn

Director Benjamin Till

Music Director Niall Casserly

Set Designer Theo Wyatt

Costume Designers Rose Thomas & Emily Cantwell

Lighting Design Justin Wu

Production Photographer Jorge Lizalde

''Make Me a Song is a musical revue, with lyrics and music by William Finn, conceived by Robert Ruggiero in 2006. The revue includes songs from Finn's musicals In Trousers, Falsettos, A New Brain, Elegies: A Song Cycle and Romance in Hard Times, songs written for the Royal Family of Broadway and Songs of Innocence and Experience, musicals that were never professionally produced, and other unpublished songs, notably the title song. There is no dialogue or plot connecting the songs." Designing for end stage proscenium arch (The Richard Burton Theatre).

- RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT -

Working with a music revue without a through-line plot, we were drawn to the main themes of Finn's work. Using bold colours to a specific colour palette across design departments, and eclectic, familiar, items across the set to loosely tie together 30 individual stories themed around 80s New York queer and Jewish culture, the family unit and cyclical motions of life, while keeping a feeling of excitement and joy.

- INITIAL RESPONSE-

My initial response to a script is always visual, listening to the album I made a response board, drawn to bright colours, bold lines, 70s/80s, and the punchy feeling of queer resistance.

The rough response sketch I did then became the baseline of the entire design. Addressing 'how to portray 30 different stories' through the idea of 'windows into different lives', drawing the bright colours in with a rainbow of windows.

- RESEARCH -

Developing onwards, our director wanted themes of different Jewish festivals to be brough into the design, and so I visually researched and loosely assigned aesthetic choices.

The design added onto the windows, below them now creating a 'bizarre living room' for the stories to be told in and interacted with, with 70s/80s feeling furniture, characterful dressing, and elements of Keith Haring.

- DEVELOPMENT -

Set Illustration done digitally (procreate) (left)

In-process 1:25 Physical model (below)

Through model making and collaborative process with the costume designers, I assigned a colour palette and designed a bright, playful space, decorated in Keith Haring graffiti and lots of set dressing and elements for the cast to interact with.