Behind the Scenes of The Stage700 Production of The Sound of Music

Many audience members praised the set for this production of The Sound of Music and we thought fans of Stage700 might be interested in a bonus "Behind the Scenes" web-site extra about how the set was conceived and created.

The director of a stage play provides the unifying aesthetic vision for the work and therefore the physical set must support this vision. Directors work with set designers whose job it is to first put the director's vision on paper and then work with technicians and artists to make it real. In the process of rendering the director's vision the creativity and collaboration must flow in harmony with each individual using his or her talent and innovation to support the vision. A theatrical production is a symbiotic organism of creativity with the actors working hard to create the characters and communicate the plot and the technical staff providing the structure that supports them: scenery, lights, sound, costumes and props. The best productions come from the willing spirit of all involved to love their work, respect everyone's roles, and recognize the inter-dependency of everyone involved. When the cast and crew work with unity and respect and do their very best, the performance becomes a time of pride and joy when each person can see the magic happening on stage and know that he/she had a part in it and the applause belong rightfully to everyone who made a contribution. It takes courage and dedication to be a good performing artist; it takes dedication, a true belief in cooperation, and some humility, to work behind the scenes.

The set vision for the sound of music came from the director, James Yeara, who wanted the Austrian alps to be a unifying symbol of the themes of freedom, overcoming adversity, and the virtue of strength that are found in the story of Maria and her Captain. Working as his own designer, he laid out each scene carefully, with a list of construction ideas and recommended materials and presented the plan to the team of adult and student volunteers led by Bill Morrison, Tom and Debi Karpowitz, Jeffrey Morton, and Katie Schmidt. You can see Mr. Yeara’s original plans here: http://www.stage700.org/set.htm. Jeffrey Morton organized a set construction calendar on the web and the mountain of work began.

Bill Morrison and his student crew constructed the three-sided walls (Periaktoi) for the Nonnberg Abbey and Von Trapp Villa as well as the windows, doors and staircase. Tom Karpowitz conceived the idea of, and executed, the computerized printing of the stained glass windows and abbey altar on transparent sheets of plastic which the students then mounted in frames (the photos used were donated by a local photographer). Tom also supervised the construction of the vitally important 3-D mountain used by Maria to enter and in the crucial final escape of the entire Von Trapp family. Layla Wolfgang created the surface of this mountain using moldable fabric from a theatrical supply company (that is re-usable) and then adding moss and edelweiss. Dan Haggarety and Michelle Kennedy aided Layla in the final construction of the 3-D mountain. Debi Karpowitz not only coordinated and supervised the many, varied and colorful period costumes, she also helped in the set creation whenever those "grey areas" of responsibility needed a hand: including purchasing faux evergreen trees on sale right after Christmas and bringing in her father to supervise and execute the wallpapering for the abbey and villa. Students Dan Ibanez and James Moody built the two-story, curved staircase impressively using a cad design program to come up with the plans. They also built the gazebo, ingeniously using materials that were leftover from past productions and building only half of the gazebo so it would fit backstage. Michelle Kennedy added her painting of the Madonna for Maria’s bedroom. Mrs. Jillian Baboulis and students sponge-painted Maria's bedroom walls with a Miami coral color, added gold paint to decorate the bed, reused the balustrade from previous productions for the terrace, and added gold to the tops of the villa windows.

Time and space constraints, combined with a very complicated subject, required the "out-sourcing" of the huge 14 'x 40' mountain that towers over so many scenes. A professional backdrop company located in Peekskill created the mountain backdrop with airbrushed paint on one seamless muslin sheet, using a photograph of the Austrian Alps provided by Debi Karpowitz that had been digitally rendered into a scaled watercolor image. The cost of this backdrop was about the same as purchasing a blank sheet of seamless muslin in the required dimensions. Jeffrey Morton and his crew carefully mounted the muslin on foam backing, allowing it to be back-lit and thereby adding a beautiful depth and a variety of lighting options.

The grace notes of set decoration and props came from a variety of sources beyond the BCHS theatre storage room: the villa couch and stool, and the stage left statue came from Mr. Yeara's home; the stage right statue was selected by Evan Finkle and loaned by the Price Greenleaf garden shop in Delmar; the priest's robe and altar cloth were borrowed from Wit&Will Theatre company, who had received them from as a donation from an Episcopal church; the photographs of Captain Von Trapp were created and donated by a local photographer. This list could go on and on, so it has to suffice to thank everyone who donated, lent and coordinated the objects that decorated and enhanced each scene.

The unifying vision and design by the director, the innovative using of digital photography and printing, the use of professional theatrical materials, the hard manual labor of carpentry and the touches of traditional hand-painting and the layers of mountains, hills, trees and walls gave each scene texture and depth. The careful lighting and selection of colors added veracity and vivacity to the composition of the set pieces. The result was a physical environment worthy of the beautiful singing, acting and dancing of the actors. The combination of the very best efforts of the technical crew and the very best efforts of the cast made this production of The Sound of Music a magical experience for our large and appreciative audiences.