Steel Magnolias The play Steel Magnolias is a heartwarming story about six friends who spend their free time with one another in their local beauty shop. The humorous yet deeply touching story held the attention of audience members young and old. From the set to acting, every aspect of this play created an experience that is truly unforgettable The use of lights throughout the play did not vary often. Throughout most of the play, bright overhead lights portrayed the play’s main set room: a small town beauty salon. The lights created an atmosphere that was not only cheerful, but also warm and inviting. On each side of the stage, warm, more natural lighting was used to make the small outdoor areas more realistic. Lights were also used to convey …show more content…
I knew Steel Magnolias took place in a beauty shop but I was not expecting the detail in which the set was built. The construction of the outside view of the house and an idea of the nature around it as well as the main salon room help to establish an idea of the characters’ personalities. The salon was set up like most beauty shops are in reality: Mirrors, spinning chairs, tables full of fashion magazines, but the small details are what made the set truly fantastic. Things such as pictures on the mirror and decorations like the big southern hat on the wall show Truvy’s personality. Also, the use of a rotary phone and the old wallpaper and the use of Christmas lights in the upstairs windows paired with a wreath outside the door helped to portray the time period in which the play was set as well as the time of …show more content…
Big hair, bright colors, and denim helped to establish the time period the play was set in. Each actress’ outfit gave the audience an idea of her character’s personality. For instance, Clairee wore pant suits and looked the part of a sophisticated, classy former mayor’s wife. On the other hand, Ouiser wore comfortable clothes; often sporting a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt over a t-shirt showing her practical and simple lifestyle. The use of jackets and scarves portrayed the change in season and helped establish the different time frames from scene to scene. The costumes reflected each character well and were fitting for the time in which the play was portrayed. The use of sound helped to create a story behind the scenes. The sounds of Drum’s gunfire and Ouiser’s dog barking create a humorous event outside of the set. This scene of family/neighborhood craziness is relatable to any audience member in some way and helped the audience to connect with the characters. The use of the radio at the beginning and end of each scene helped to establish a mood and in some cases a time change. It also worked as a signal to the audience when a scene was beginning or
The sound effects and music for the play was recorded to go with the actions of the character’s and whatever was taking place on stage; for example, when Ian and Chuck would play a game since there was no television they needed sound effects to better depict them playing a game. The music used in the play was relevant to today’s period and fit in well with the scenes, like when Ian says he’s going to get a job the song “I’m going to win” fit in perfectly, because it showed his determination. They also used music to help...
Sound also draws attention to specific scenes and can cue expectations of what will occur. The sound viewers hear first is that of thunder and rain. The external sound is both accessible to characters within the scene and the audience. Although the rain and thunder are unnoticeable viewers can presume that the weather is rainy outside which explains the minimal lighting coming through the windows. Lionel stomping up the stairs, the sound of jacks, and the chewing as the three young boys eat are all examples of diegetic sounds which appear natural. By using diegetic sound viewers perceive the story as more realistic because it places the audience within that scene. The use of the recorder and orchestra music is also important because it adds drama to the scene. When Susy picks up her book the loudness of the music increases which intensified the scene to make it appear more dramatic. As Susy opens the curtains again the music gets louder, the combination of music and camera distance in this shot hint that perhaps Susy saw something of importance through her
The lighting was also very effectively used to show the coming and going of cars on the set. The reflection of lights on the front door of the house were used resemble those of an automobile. Even the final scene had just enough absence of light that the shadows of the characters could be seen sitting around the dinner table and praying by candlelight. At the very end of the performance the candles were extinguished consuming the set in blackness in turn signifying the end of the production.
The use of clothing as a disguise is primarily apparent in its role of covering up the secret sexual lives of the characters. Each time she calls, Henry’s date asks the person on the other line, “What are you wearing?” Her constant desire to know the character’s clothing reveals the importance that outward appearance holds in a sexual connotation; the characters are repeatedly in various states of dress and undress. Nate’s mother, whom Paul refers to as Mrs. Apple, answers her door wearing her husband’s shirt. The incongruity lies in the seeming normalcy of her appearanc...
These strong drama and dramedy plots are structured around two strong dramatic women who emphasise the importance of character to act as a vessel through which a drama can be represented in a variety of settings. In both, 1940s New Orleans set A Streetcar Named Desire and the Illyria-based Twelfth Night, the plot is centred around a woman hiding her identity, in A Streetcar Named Desire Blanche is the catalyst for the plot as is Viola for Twelfth Night, though women in very different times, they are similar in their affect on the audience but differ in how they deal with loss.
A significant aspect of the play is the acting and wardrobe, because it helps demonstrate the personalities of the characters.
Lighting is the perfect way to deliver the mood, which I want to present during the play. The lighting will be dimmed throughout most parts of the play. Most of the lighting will be produced with candles due to the setting and the lack of technology. Also most of the scenes happened at night so we have to create a night time setting with the absence of light. The lighting will be able to add onto the dull and depressing feeling Cyrano feels when he has to live everyday watching Roxane and Christian in love. The increase of brightness will not only correspond with the time of day in the play, but it will also correspond with Cyrano’s increasing hope that he will finally take the opportunity to tell Roxane how he feels about her. I was thinking about incorporating spotlights during the monologues of some of the characters to intensify the attention of the audience on them. Cyrano’s dialogues are so powerful. His words are beautiful and angelic. I was thinking about to only having the spotlight on only Cyano whenever he is on stage, but then I realized that it will distract and interrupt the dialogue between other people on stage so I decided to only have the spotlight on Cyrano during his serious, more crucial scenes instead of the entire
The scenery shows realistic sets in the play. The text is very episodic that show the parts of the events in a story. The conflict shows a rough experience of growing up with adults, who are treating the orphaned boys very abusive and having some troubles on where they belonged. Peter, other boys, and Molly have some kinds of conflicts about being a leader and succeeding the mission where the Lord Astar (Molly’s father) have to send to Molly. The conflict has already resolved when they have completed their mission and kept their group safe. It also affects my overall experience that the conflict between different characters did show different perspectives on how they lead and express their experience of leadership in their mission. The space of the theater was small, but it’s large enough for the actors to perform and for the audience to see. The scenery designer Andrew Breithaupt of this play did show a specific place and time. For example, the beginning shows the ship and what era is it. The scenery is also very real locale in the play, and it’s very appropriate views toward the audience for non-professional and school play. The scenery of this play did show more realistic-moving type, but it did move some parts of the scene that I see in the play. Also, it showed the surprising element of changing the sets than the scene. Costume Designer Amy Zsadanyi-Yale did give the clues about the timeline, personalities of every character in the play. But I believe that the costumes should get focused on connecting the situations in the play. For example, an orphanage that the nameless boy (Peter) and other boys lived should have ragged-looking or something damage into the costumes so it can create an effect on costumes from the scene. The costumes show the conflicts and interpersonal relationships, but I should consider that the social groups in this play should look something different from the orphanage and upper class. Lightning and
The setup of the stage was very simple. It was the living room of a home in the early 1980’s. It looked like a normal household, and it had small things such as crumpled up pieces of paper lying around the wastebasket. It also had a couch, circular class table and a recliner in the living room. The dining room was to the left side of the stage and only had the dining table and surrounding chairs. There was a door in the back of the set where characters entered and exited through. Beside the door was a table and stool where Willum presumably worked on his blueprints for the hotel. The lighting design was great; it put you into the atmosphere of the
The set was well done and gave me an impression of a hotel room upon first sight. It was easily identifiable as a upper class hotel room, fitting the proclaimed prestige of the guest they were expecting. The set was identifiable as coming from the 1930‘s mainly due to the old time props, such as the telephone and the giant radio they had. Fitting of a comedy, almost every part of the set was used at least once for some kind of comedic effect. The characters would get them selves wrapped up in a telephone chord, or they’d be chasing each other around furniture, they’d shove each other through doors, or even hide in the closet or bathroom.
When you first enter the theater, you are immediately in awe of the strongest aspect of this production: the set. The stage features a life-sized enchanted forest with “tress” as tall as the ceiling and a lit-up backdrop of a twilight sky. The tress would move around throughout the performance to make way for different scenes. In front of your very eyes, an enchanted forest would turn into the outside of a charming house with a lit porch and a well. The twilight sky would turn to a starlit sky and a soft spotlight simulating moonlight would compliment the faint sound of crickets. Suddenly the house and tress move around and you’re in a town with a little cart selling baguettes, or a lush dining room with Victorian wallpaper, a chandelier, and china displayed on the walls. The world shakes once again and now you’re in, inevitably, a ballroom. A white Victorian gate opens up to become the walls of the ballroom, and a white marble bridge and staircase appear for the outside of the castle. Adults and children alike were in awe of the craftsmanship and technology.
By the use of visual design elements, the overall production of the play can be considered abstract. For example, the set design uses very little props and forces the audience to focus more on the actors and costumes. In addition, the set designer used very dark and dreary color such as black and grey to display the plague that was taking over the city of Thebes. During this time period that the play produced, the plague has made the people in the city weak, bitter, and unhappy. By using colors that represent this internal feeling that the characters are experiencing, the actors move in a certain way that coincidentally goes hand and hand with the set design. In further detail, the costume designer did a fantastic job of portraying certain status ranking by the color of robe they were wearing. For example, Oedipus was wearing a silk, garnish robe that represented royalty and a sophisticated man. Whereas, the ordinary people of Thebes were wearing dull, grey robes that displayed their lack of social ranking. All in all, the visual design elements were used in an appropriate manner that allowed the audience to get a better understanding of the abstract world that this play took place
To follow the parameters of the production concept being the interior of Kornberg castle, controlled lighting will be necessary, especially with the use of practical lights along the walls of the set to play with shadow. Wash lights should only be used during scenes such as the opening with Juliet and Hamlet which is among one of the few tender moments in the play.
The scripted gives every detail of what the house is to look like and states that the house should be more, “…comfortable than messy.” By having the set look like a comfortable home gives an atmosphere of what many, in the audience, would consider a homely feeling. (Norman, pg. 1) With guidance from Marsha Norman, the author of the play, she displays how she envisions the play being acted out and brought into the lives of the audience...
Clothing of this play is, also, unseen because there is no sense of what time period or location it is so we cannot assume what type of clothing they are