from research to stage

As promised, first-hand research of the team's trip to Ten Chimneys (the estate) to work on Ten Chimneys (the play)

the stone retaining walls that dot the pathways of the estate

the flagstone terrace stairs and fence near the pool

the exterior of the acting studio

the poolhouse... note the flagstones and the furniture

two pictures of the exterior of the set

The stonework walls, the flagstone floor, the stairs, the beam-log construct of the studio... all come directly from the first-hand research.

fireplace inside the MAIN house, not the studio

the plate collection on the north wall of the studio

our docent and part of the interior of the studio. note the balcony, its' railings and ladder, and even the wall sconce on the left. take note of the bit of the chandelier  with the bells you can see in the top of the picture. 

close-up of the interior of the studio (act 2). note the chandelier, fireplace, plates balcony items, etc...

there were three big aesthetic alterations we were forced to make... the first is the fireplace... the fireplace in the actual studio is rather large and stucco-ed. we didn't have room given stage shape and audience layout to use the actual one, so I adapted one of the fireplaces from inside the main house that could be made to fit the extremely tight space we had available for it. the second concession was the floor. because the set is on the turntable (so that we can go from exterior to interior), and we needed more interior space than could fit ON the turntable, we had to let the floor be the same both interior and exterior, which meant the flagstones... we also altered the color... you'll note from the research that the flagstones are all gray,  but we needed more warmth... so we changed the flagstone colors to dappled browns. the last concession was the shape of the studio itself. you'll note in the research that it's a square building, on the set it's trapezoidal. this was done so that we could open up the interior more so that more of the audience could see INTO the room. 

It's been a real challenge to deal with both the practicalities of the play and the oddities of this particular theatre space -- as well as keep the LOOK as close to that of the real place. I'm VERY curious to see how the audience reacts to it all!