Peter Pan at the Barter

I’ve had my head buried in two very different projects for the last several months. The first, which I’ll be blogging about a bit later is the design, sculpting and installation of a massive sculptural fountain based on ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. The second is the design of various set pieces for a theatrical production of Peter Pan at the Barter Theater in Abingdon VA. Years ago I worked with the same theater on designs for the same play that, unfortunately, I never felt were entirely successful, so this time around the director and I came up with a very different approach. In this production most of the scenery in Neverland are large, flat reproductions of my paintings, each layered, one over the other, to create a sort of multi-plane depth of field. The play opens next Tuesday (Feb. 5) and will run intermittently over the next three months. Come on down and have a seat, then tell me what you think, okay?

http://www.bartertheater.com/shows/

These next two images are for painted backdrops (18 x 30 ft) that will start to reveal the technicolor wonders of Neverland.

These two were made into separate hard drops (18 ft high), that will enter stage left and right. And yes, there ARE faeries scampering about amongst those leaves!

And finally, the NeverTree and the Home Under the Ground that will be reveled through progressive scenes during the length of the play. The tree itself is a painted backdrop, approximately 24 wide by 18 ft high. The large Sun and clouds drop and the two smaller trees above will be positioned behind it. Then the space inside the Home Under the Ground is actually cut out (8 x 14 ft) allowing room for Peter, the Lost Boys and Wendy to interact.

It was, of course, a lot of work, but also really fun to re-imagine one of my favorite plays.

Before I go, I want to thank Katie Brown, Ben Nicholson, Derek, D.R, Kyle, Mark, Cheri and all the other hard working folks at the Barter Scene shop for turning my scribbles into hard cold ‘reality’ and finally Rick Rose for asking in the first place.

Enjoy!

Charles