Prop Agenda: We just closed and struck Cloud 9 here at Elon University. I was the prop master on the show and built a lot of the pieces. One of the fun (and funny) props I constructed was a grand Victorian-era wedding cake. It was meant to be a bit over-the-top, with a grand appearance at the end of Act One when the hastily-arranged wedding occurs. Part of the visual humor came from the cake toppers; the scenic designer (Natalie Taylor Hart) wanted the groom to be a detailed representation of a man striding atop of a Royal Orb, while the bride would be a much smaller and crudely-made figurine stuck in the cake as an afterthought (the play, for those unfamiliar, deals with gender politics in various degrees).
9 comments:
This cake is really beautiful and remind me of how much I admire and love props design. The props master who wrote this article did a great job of articulating their process, which was really helpful. The job of a prop master is one that I honestly didn't really know existed much before coming to college. It is a really interesting position in the theatre industry, as it combines so many aspects of design and production in theatre. The cake that this prop master made looks so real, and it is really cool how it fits the time period of the show so seamlessly. I never knew that there was such a thing as a victorian cake!
Reading about how this guy made the cake reminded me of how John Ward describes his crafting process - finding random stuff that works. I agree with Jess, his article was well articulated. I was excited to read about something that we used in our props mini to make molds of the picture frame for Cyrano. It just goes to show that if you're inventive and creative and in your building process you can find just about anything that works for the project you're doing. I commend him for his intricate details done in caulk.
This article is really interesting to read because of the materials that the prop master ended up using. And, I feel as though I can use some of his technique in creating projects of my own. The tip I found most useful was the one about plumber's putty. Often I find I have trouble sculpting clay because when I have to push down to add on a shape, the existing structure below shifts, therefore ruining the entire piece. While not perfectly aesthetically beautiful, it dries quickly, and can be built upon. This is perfect for design projects where I only have a few hours at a time to do some work, and the knowledge that when I get back to working on the project, it will be hardened and ready to layer upon is so reassuring. I'd actually really like to follow this blog, because I am limited in the materials that I have on hand, but that doesn't mean I'm limited in materials that I can buy. There's a lot of little tricks that can only be learned through trial and error, and it's nice to have a blog with successes and the methods listed. I would have never though to try plumber's putty, but now I see all of the potential uses for it.
This article is one that I really enjoyed reading because I have a strong love for prop food... I LOVE making prop food that looks realistic. It reminded me of the project I did in the beginning of the year where I created an Apple Pie out of nothing but a glass pie tray, foam, clay and paint. The way that this prop master crafted this Victorian wedding cake is absolutely gorgeous. I really love the way they created the decorations with the silicon. This cakes so realistic its unreal. Along with Kelley, I never thought of plumbers putty as an option, but I can see how it would make a beautiful frosting and adhesive at the same time. I need to make a birthday cake for Playground and I will try some of these and see if they work! Trail and Error is sometimes the best way to find what you need!
I really loved reading this article because as other people mentioned here, I love how much a prop design can create of. It seems like there is nothing that we can replicate with various materials. I remember when Nathan Bertone made an apple pie only with foam, clay, and paints and it looked realistic and impressive. Like Nathan's pie, this realistic cake once again impress me with prop's infinite possibility of imitating things. Especially, I loved how Natalie Taylor Hart not only added details on every part of the cake, but also tried to put meaning even into the prop by using scale of both bride and groom. I think as a prop master, it would be very fun work to do when he or she finds a new way or material to express certain shape or texture just how Natalie found new stuff to apply into her cake making. I hope to have chance one day to make a realistic prop.
Having read Cloud 9 for class last semester and being currently enrolled in props class, this article calls my name quite loudly. The most interesting part to me is the explanation of making the model of the cake-top man from plumper's putty. I have never been a fan of self-hardening clay because I always like to be able to go back over my work and change or refine it, but now I understand its uses much better. Since the clay gains structural integrity so quickly, it is much easier to build the model with just two hands, and to build it in easy steps to get a rough rendering that is exactly what was necessary to model for the cake.
This sounded a lot like one of us freshmen presenting a susan project. Something about how this was written seems like he was young and somewhat unsure of himself but still really excited.
Anyways, this is really interesting, and I love that the clothes are actually make of fabric, I never would have guessed that, and thats interesting to think about changing paper mache to fabric mache. I always enjoy making things and hearing about things that are not made from "conventional" materials. How you can just have a random-junk pile and make some amazing things out of it.
I agree with Kelly about the plumbers putty. That sounds like such a great option to work with especially when your are pretty much designing something as you make it.
WOW! Eric Hart should get an award for his work on this show. That is the most amazing fake Victorian wedding cake with gender inequality built in that I have ever seen. I have read the play cloud nine several times and I deeply feel that the cake adds an immense amount to the weeding scene. Small visual cues like this cake topper are able to bring the audience in to the world of the play with their deep semiotic meanings. I have a dream that one day I can be the props master for a production of cloud nine so that I can make this very same cake prop using muslin and plumbers putty Dr. Hart. Dr. Hart's solutions is simple, cheap, brilliant, and beautiful.
This is awesome! Last semester, I was in Foundations of drama and used Cloud 9 for my case book project and looking at this cake actually looks like it would fit really well with the show. Not only that, but I also made a cake for my high schools production of Peter Pan a couple of years ago and it is really cool to see that professionals are using some of the techniques I used based on my ideas and what my teacher had me do. I also just love how props is such an experimental job. It's so cool to see what comes out of your ideas and knowledge of materials.
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