ABSTRACT

There are many ways a show can move and types of equipment that can be used. Determining which is appropriate is, like most good design decisions, made by choices from within the play. These can be based on movement patterns in the design or that the director will use in the blocking. Boris Aronson said he designed Fiddler on the Roof using a turntable because it metaphorically represented the circle of the family inside the circle of the village. Ideas for how the production should move can also come from the structure of the show. In Chapter 4 we discussed using the breakdown of the play to identify patterns in the order of scenes. This can be very helpful in determining a structure for how the show should move. Scenes that repeat should be considered as anchorsscenes that do not move, if possible, and which are concealed and revealed by other scenes. Short scenes can play with minimal scenery within a larger set with lighting keeping the focus on the current moment.