CORIOLANUS OR HELTER SKELTER
By William Shakespeare
Scenic Design
Directed & Adapted By Tom Lindblade
May 2019
Lighting Design by Heidi Eckwall, Costume Design by Gypsy Ames
Shakespeare, Brecht, Bacon & The Beatles
Prof. Tom Lindblade devised a modern dress adaptation of this classic play set to a backdrop of Francis Bacon and The Beatles White Album. I was tasked with translating Bacon’s aesthetic into scenic form, drawing from his color palette and textural qualities. The large noticeable brush strokes, created by dragging a wicker broom across the stage, served to evoke the painterly world of Bacon and the bloody world of Coriolanus. Muslin strips across the back wall were coupled with black scrim to allow for opaque and transparent moments. The many instances of fabric or sewing mentioned in the play inspired the use of black duvetyne to create the bars on the gates and along the length of the wall. I really enjoyed immersing myself and the audience in this production, taking the idea of a crossroads and running a large set of forum steps through the house to allow entrances and scenes to take place amongst the people. Because we had a small group of plebeians to play soldiers and senators, seating them on the steps in the audience created the sense that everyone present was implicated as a member of the Roman senate, a beggar in the forum, or a general at a war council.
Colorado College Department of Theatre and Dance - Norberg Studio Theater