Salome is the second production I will be designing with Theatre Libre and after working with the creative team before there is already an aesthetic language in place. This allows me to dive straight into concepts that I think would suit our company and production.
Being a physical and devised theatrical company, there are still many things to be discovered in rehearsals, which will help develop the design further. This is an exciting process as a designer as ideas can be work-shopped for me before committing to a solid concept. There is also a playful side to how this genre of theatre enables designers, and it is onenot often explored.
With Salome having a contemporary setting, there are many factors that are important for me to consider, to help solidify the 'world of Salome' before rehearsals begin. Which social and class groups do the characters belong in? How do we incorporate the idea of social media being a strong presence in to this play?
We will be using a flexible concept that is very stylised and implies rather than states. By keeping the costumes real and grounded, this will help to balance the design and really define the time and status of the world. We have been discussing projection to help represent social media within our design and I want to have the projection encompassing the set rather than feeling disembodied from the aesthetic.
At the moment we are playing with the idea of a monochrome masculine world with harsh lines and angles, juxtaposed with pops of colour and an idea of packaging and unwrapping being present in Salome’s world.
The straight lines, simplicity and monochrome nature of this design will inspire the set construction and will be juxtaposed with the costumes and props used to add colour.
'Salome' is being performed from the 1st September - 19th September 2015 at The Space, London.