Theatre Development Fund – TDF:Laura Jellinek was working as a model maker in set designer Mimi Lien's studio when she first met Anne Kauffman, a celebrated theatre director who had already staged productions for Lincoln Center Theater and New York Theatre Workshop. The artists connected and became fans of each other's work.
4 comments:
This is such a great designer/director relationship. Being able to talk openly and comfortable with the director of the show you design, especially with scenic design, is very important, because the scenic design directly affects how the show is blocked and how the characters interact with their environment. Being able to communicate those details is imperative. I design the scenery for a show last year, and the director practically ignored me throughout the whole process, and when the set wasn't what he imagined, he was frustrated, which frustrated me because I was as open as I could be with this man, and he still refused to communicate.
Additionally, I totally agree with the idea that "Any good designer is a great dramaturg". Being able to create a setting perfect for a story involves knowing everything possible about the environment and time period it takes place in. I think it's so cool that relationship between Jellinek and Kauffman allows Jellineck to use her dramaturgical knowledge to help Kauffman with her directing choices. its just as important that the characters act the way they would in the story as it is the scenery fits the show. Having someone who can create that perfect set and have insight on the background information that goes with a show, as well as being a good friend, is a great asset.
I love reading about the collaboration that can happen between two different people, and the amazing result they can get from each other. I also love hearing from a set designers perspective and process on how she made the set. It's inspiring to see the creative process of others and what they come up with. I hope that I can work with people in the same way as these two artists, having the ability to fell comfortable to call them out or express concerns while also continuing a solid friendship.
Reading about the way these two artists collaborate and then getting an inside look at their creative process was really awesome. I like how Jellinek said that she’s a “full participant,” how as a partner she is not just shot down in every department that is not her own, but rather her opinion is valid in every artistic sense; she’s almost become the overarching design editor of the whole show, which would be a really fantastic relationship to form with a director that I hope to possibly have one day. The article then goes into discussing the details of Kauffman and Jellinek’s show, Mary Jane. I love hearing their thought process of choosing the direction that they want the set to go in; they bounced back and forth between very conceptual and very literal. The first act being staged in a realistic, Craigslist style apartment really accentuates the themes and motif’s Kauffman seemed to be going for, but the conceptual void-like hospital began to stray. Jellinek was able to reel in her idea and rework the second act to keep a consistent design.
Finding a true collaborator is rare in theater and in high school I was lucky enough to have that experience. On my first show as an ASM, my stage manager and I instantly connected. We seemed to operate almost as two parts of one unit. I feel lucky that I was able to collaborate so intensely with someone. It is an incredibly rewarding experience and, while it sounds cliche, we made each other better. I learned a lot from the SM, but I also was able to help her. I understand, Jellinek’s comment "And at every step of the process I feel like I'm a full participant”. I always strive to get back to that place, because I know my art is better when I am a better collaborator. Part of being a collaborator is understanding the good of the whole vs personal wants. For that reason, I really liked Jellinek’s comment about that particular show, "It needs to be about the play, not about the set". I have seen productions where the concept or set of the production looks beautiful, but doesn’t add anything to the story. The whole purpose of theater is to tell a story. I find that often if a design is too elaborate it takes away from the story.
Post a Comment