IKEA SET DESIGN

Theater is obviously an art, but more and more it becomes a mechanical art: creating illusion and a world in which the audience can get lost in. Here, the set designer used IKEA pieces.

IKEA OPERA

“Set in the Victorian era, The Bell rides on the flexibility of Ikea’s pieces, opting mostly for the brand’s stark white shelves and kitchen cabinetry to display symbolic objects and status symbols. Much like how Helvetica was intended to carry printed messages in th

eir purest forms, Ikea’s modular compartments are to serve as blank husks that bring attention to the objects they exhibit. Accompanying white tables and chairs become clean, stylized symbols of affluence that echo the often expensive, designed minimalism in vogue today. Overall, the set looks like a page ripped from the Ikea catalog.”

From http://architizer.com/blog/ikea-opera/

Carlo Gozzi

Carlo Gozzi was a famous commedia playwright, who also incorporated a lot of fantasy into his scripts. In addition to being Julie Taymor’s muse, he’s also famous for his 36 plot points. He also influenced Charles Ludlam. I’m researching those plots now. It’s pretty interesting stuff.

The Good Person of Szechwan

I don’t know if this is fact or fiction, but either way it’s interesting. The latest production of The Good Person of Szechwan handed out their budget instead of Playbills. I’m pretty sure (if I recall correctly) Brecht used the device of metatheatre, which is theater that comments on itself. He wanted to show how things got produced rather than create an illusion of reality. It’s an interesting concept. When we see a ply, part of the great thing is the illusion of going into another world. But in today’s economy theater is simply harder to produce than a simple blog or short video.