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UAL: SET DESIGN FOR PERFORMANCE.
- 1 day ago
- 5 min read
Just a few days after receiving my certificate for Experience Design at the University of the Arts London, I had signed up again for more professional development! This time I was back at UAL studying Set Design for Performance. A course which made sense in my line of work, blending all kinds of theatrical skills and applying them to other live entertainment formats.
It may be hard to believe, but I was never theatrically trained, nor am I much of a theatre buff. Despite a history of acting gigs, and of course designing countless sets and scenes for productions around the UK, not once had I ever actually learnt the specifics that go into working in theatre.
It would be easy to just say that I don’t need this knowledge. Clearly I’m doing fine without it, and the overlap into my work is more superficial, than critical. But that’s where I say NAY! You can never be too clued up in and around your field of work, especially in the arts.
The terminology, the theories, the extra considerations that apply specifically to theatre. This is all valuable information. Sure, I might not be designing or writing for a “Thrust” stage in a proscenium often, if at all. But knowing what makes it work or fail, the pros and cons, the applications and avoidances, these are the things that can taken to any project and overlaps will be found.
The course was led by eccentric, yet professional, outspoken, and old school pros Bettina John and Ioana Curelea. It’s worth noting that these are my favourite personality types to work with, and even better, be taught by!
These two knew exactly what they liked and didn’t, and also encouraged disagreement in healthy debate. Something that I enjoyed, being that I come from a theatre adjacent world but with no theatrical training which of course led to some great “but what if…” moments.
The first half of the course was majorities theory led, filling the gaps in my knowledge and making sure that from now on when it comes to theatricality, I not only know what I’m talking about, but also SOUND like I know what I’m talking about. The second half delved into a lost art. One that I may never revisit, but boy did I enjoy it.
Actual, physical, real model making.
I come from a world of drawings, informal diagrams, scripts and digital concepts and renders. To put knife to board, glue to card, and scissors to paper, all in a precise 1:25 scale for a real theatre black-box (yep, I know what that means now!) was a step out of my ordinary. And like many others, I’m the kind of person that loves small things like model villages, Lego sets, tiny carvings etc.
Some of the examples and techniques shown and even demonstrated and executed by us in the class were so good you’d be forgiven for thinking the course was actually just a lesson in crafting dioramas. This process had me smiling endlessly. I could see little experienced and productions coming to life. Priceless.
As I said though, unfortunately I can’t see myself returning to this medium, despite how much I enjoyed it. This might just not be the correct way of demonstrating concepts to clients in my fields. But it did make me appreciate that a concept can be communicated in both maximalist and minimalist ways. My final result made from foam board and scraps of card (go easy on me, it was my first time making a model!), alongside my own drawings and explanations was able to demonstrate my designs just as well as a fully fleshed out 3D render. Sometimes a strong idea can be demonstrated through just the important parts, shapes, lights, lines… saving time and resources for elsewhere in the project conception phase, or for other simultaneous clients.
Conceptualisation is messy. It’s rarely perfect, and it doesn’t have to be. It’s just a form of communication. And considering a huge chunk of my workflow sits in this stage of a project, it’s made me feel more at ease with the process, as well as knowing just a little more about the theatre world just next door to mine.
The icing on the cake was the other students. I always find when coming to these kinds of experiences for professional development, I become one of the loudest voices in the room. Hopefully not because of arrogance or bulshy-ness, but rather through commitment and approachability. This was again true to a degree on this occasion, however, despite a generally relaxed and quiet class room, these guys were hidden mega minds (it’s always the quiet ones!)
Honestly, on presentation day these lot blew me away with their ideas and innovation. We’re not talking about “pretty ideas” here. I mean genuine clever, abstract concepts that tell the story of the case study play in ways I might never have imagined, from an entire set that morphs and folds like a transformer (my mind was blown!), to a stark take on 80a brutalism in set comprised entirely of concrete cubes. My favourite was one in particular that had each of the characters completely isolated from eachother, highlighting their emotional separation despite having conversational lines between them, which were instead performed into a void. Genius. And that’s just a few of them. In truth, they all super impressed me. Well done all!
I have made my notes and am currently working on an amalgamation, a love-child if you like, between all of my favourite concepts blended with my own. I’ll be excited to get this finished soon, although when exactly I can’t say at this time, as I’ve suddenly been swamped with client projects and personal commitments. I can’t complain though, there’s worse problems to have!
Although my final project will be a combination of all the best work from the class, it will still carry a quintessential “Koncept” label. It’s worth noting that I was one of the few in the class that paid attention to budgetary constraints in my design, even including a finance plan based on the seating arrangement, ticket capacity, and run time of the case study show. I was also the only student that considered a pre-show, and lighting. All of this can of course be attributed to my actual work I already do, which draws huge amounts of focus to feasibility, and theatrical SFX, Something I’m very proud of, and that my clients specifically hire me for. After all, what good is a designer that pitches something that could never be achieved, or would see the attraction folding within its infancy.
With all that said, I have now recieved my certificate in Set Design for Performance at UAL. Another qualifation under my belt, better equiping me to provide the best, most well rounded and professional consultancy and designs to my clients. Thanks again to everyone in the class for opening my mind, and to the tutors for creating a supportive and creative environment to learn the ins and out of Set Design for Performance.
Will I return for another course at UAL? We’ll see what the next few weeks/months hold for me.
DESIGNING IMMERSIVE.
It's complicated, intricate and specialist. Koncept has it mastered.
An asset, ally and hidden superpower to creative teams and businesses. I am a specialist in writing and designing immersive attractions that stand out. As the mind behind some of the UKs most critically acclaimed experiences, Koncept Creative has a proven track record of transforming LBE and FEC business's ideas into fully realized, expertly written masterpieces that customers will pay to be immersed in.
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