Sample Write Up

Here is a student sample Set Design Write Up. It is somewhat detailed and includes images. However, it does not always justify the choices and explaining how it supports the director's concept. Images should be referenced more frequently. 

Set Design Write-Up

Our set design for “The Wiz” focuses on creating “funkadelic” set pieces, while also incorporating Senegalese culture into some components. There are two distinct color schemes developed for the whole show; Kansas’ set would be primarily brown, black, and white, while the rest of the play’s color scheme would be lime green, bright red, golden yellow, and aquamarine blue (as shown on the left). A total of five sets would need to be built in order to realize our designs: (1) Kansas, (2) Poppy field/Munchkinland, (3) Oz, (4) The Wiz’s Throne Room, (5) The Wicked Witch of the West’s Castle. There will be two main backdrops hanging across the whole length of the stage (cyclorama) from the railings of the third floor (one of them fully black, the other spray-painted to look like a poppy field). One of our main ideas for our design was using color in order to foreshadow events to come, as well as to link different characters and settings. For example, while the Wiz's castle will be dominated by the color green, we wanted to have some green in Evillene’s castle (which will be mostly purple). Similarly, some purple in the Wiz’s castle will be used as highlights.

Wiz's Castle --Green 

Purple Evilene's Castle Dominant Color

Prologue -- Kansas

The play would begin with the Prologue, which is set in Kansas, Aunt Em’s Farm. The only colors used for this set would be black, brown, and white. There would be a black backdrop hanging in the background. Two flats would be hinged together on a platform, on which Dorothy’s house would be painted. The cellar door would be on the right of the house. Three flats, unattached, would be lined up beside the house, with black/white cornfields drawn on them. A multicolored clothesline would be attached to the flats, in order to foreshadow the magic of the world to come. All the flats are concentrated on stage right, to show the little wonder that comes with such a small-town setting.

Act one, scene one follows and takes place in Munchkinland. The three flats from the previous set would exit (by rolling off) stage right. The flats with the house on a platform would move to the right upstage corner. Through a pully system from the third floor, the black backdrop will be switched by the colorful backdrop. A sun and two clouds (painted on cardboard) would hang from the railing, and a bridge painted onto a sideways flat would be placed left upstage. The components follow the color scheme (exemplified in the introduction) and would emphasize the uniqueness/oddness of the new world. 

Act one, scene two takes place in the Oz Countryside. The black backdrop would replace the colorful one, and six flats would be rolled on stage. Two flats, hinged together, would depict colorful cornfields on stage right. Two flats, one more downstage than the other, would depict forestry in center stage. The flat that is more downstage would be of a happy tree (more alive). We were inspired by the two trees below. We decided this because we wanted to be able to bring the forest, which changes moods throughout the play, to life. Finally, there would be two hinged flats on stage left, which would be the gates to the Wiz’s castle. The actors would be expected to move across the stage according to how the story unfolds. 

Act one, scene three’s set remains the same. However, now the actors are expected to move to center stage to be in the Oz Woods/Forest. The same goes for Act one, scene four’s set (Oz Down the Road). We wanted to minimize the amount of set changes needed between such diverse settings, so we collected them into one take. There is one slight difference between the next scene (scene five) and the previous one. The previously happy tree in the forest, will rotate (on a 360 wheel set) to become a scary tree. While still following the color scheme (but in darker hues), the mood will be easily changed for the Kalidah Country.

Act one, scene six takes place in the Poppy Fields, and all of the flats from the previous scenes will be rolled off stage left’s exit. The platform with the house will not need to be rolled back on, but the sun and clouds will need to be hanged again. The backdrop will return to the colorful version, and not additional flats will be needed to complete the set. Yellow/red lights will be used in order to emphasize the poppies painted onto the backdrop.

Act one, scene seven takes place in front of the Gates of Emerald City. The black drop will replace the colorful backdrop, and only the flat with the gates painted on them will enter from stage left. An outline of the image to the left will be used as the city; as this will only be an outline, it will be easy to lower and raise from the third stage.

The final scene in the first act takes place in the Wiz’s Throne Room. The platform that previously held the house in Kansas, will now hold an image of the back of a carrapide on two hinged flats. The carrapide has the primary colors of the color scheme, and represents his version of a “den” or hiding place from the other people. One flat on center upstage will have emerald green line patterns that will center around his throne. Two more hinged flats will be on stage left, that will have his trap door. A majority of the components of this set are painted green (in varying shades). 

The first scene of Act two will be in the Wicked Witch of the West’s Castle, and the major color of this set is purple. The backdrop remains black, and instead of a sun hanging, there is now a large disco ball (with shards of glass attached). The whole set is made to look quite like a creepy disco-tech, because of the “creep” the witch is. Her throne will be the same size/shape as that of the Wiz, but will be all purple instead of green. However, there will be some green components on her set in order to connect the two major characters.

All of the flats of the last scene exit stage right, as only the forest components (two flats) of the Oz set roll in from stage left. Now in the Oz Forest (which is described as a creepy setting), there is the spooky tree center stage. The black backdrop, as well as the lack of bright colors, complete the mood of the set. The forest flats exit stage left as the components from the Wicked Witch of the West’s Castle enter from stage right for the third scene of Act two.

For the fourth scene, in front of the Gates of Emerald City, the hinged flats of the gates enter from stage left and remain left upstage. The outline is again lowered down, in the place of the disco ball from the previous set. In order to facilitate the scene change, the gates stay on stage, as the other components of the Wiz’s Throne Room come on stage from the stage right entrance for the fifth scene. Finally, for the last two scenes of Act two (in the Oz Fairgrounds), the components of the Wiz’s Throne Room exit stage right as the four flats from the Oz set roll on simultaneously. Now, the story has come to a full circle, and Dorothy’s journey is wrapping up.

Senegalese Car Rapide

The main disadvantage of this set design, is the amount of time it will take to change sets between scenes. As a group, we struggled with trying to make the set designs as grand and creative as possible, while still making transitions easy. By making the flats easier to move by rolling them on and off stage, we were hoping to facilitate the rapid set changes. Although we were quite happy that we were able to come up with only five different main sets, we feel like it may even be possible (in hindsight) to come up with less. Perhaps by making Oz and the Poppyfields mainly the same, but only different my specific props. One main question we have for the director, is how many people there are supposed to be on stage at a time (on average). Knowing the space we have left to work with will be quite useful. Overall, we put thought and effort into each component of our design, and hope it was of use.