Props Master: Heartbreak House

This production involved the most extensive time period attention to detail I had yet encountered. Tea sets, books, dynamite, drafting equipment, and a telescope were all items that had to be researched and found or constructed. The vast majority of time was spend finding the harmony between the creative designer's vision and period appropriatness as well as budget. Additionally this was the first production in which I had two assistants to lead.I found the most difficult aspect of managing assistants was to resist the urge to micro-manage projects I handed down. I developed trust and leadership skills in that I now had to provide appropriate instruction in order to get the finished product I was looking for instead of simply doing it myself.

Captain Shotover's Telescope

The most unique props challenge for Heartbreak House was a period appropriate telescope for Captain Shotover's study. After extensive searching we finally found a local theatre company that had a very modern looking telescope but the tripod was just what we were looking for. After securing the rather loose tripod legs with a chain rig, I set about developing a way to make a black and silver plastic telescope look like an instrument that would have existed in early 1900's England. After padding the tube with some canvas for support, I measured and cut PVC pipe that I had painted a bronze-copper to act as a sleeve. I did some accent trimming with metallic gold tape and ended up with a telescope that complimented the set very successfully.