UK Theatre Network

Stage Scenery

The production of dramatic works such as a play would require certain physical and visual arrangement.  This arrangement is known as the stage design which includes set creation and change during the actual performance.  The set or the scenery provides the physical environment for the actors and actresses performing on stage.

Closely related to scenic design is the shape of the stage.  A thrust stage or an arena may need little or no scenery at all while a typical boxlike proscenium stage would usually employ more extensive scenery, sometimes requiring specific machineries for set changing.  Scenery suggests the time and place of the story and is largely responsible for setting the proper mood and atmosphere along with lighting effects.

Theatrical scenery is of two (2) basic types: illusionistic and non-illusionistic.  Illusionistic scenery seeks to make the closest possible reproduction of the locale of the play.  Non-illusionistic scenery merely suggests the actual setting of the play.  It can also serve as a generalized physical environment where the whole play can be acted out.  Very few plays use strictly one type since most opt for a combination of both depending on which could provide the desired effect.

The resulting scenery is determined by at least three (3) factors.  Aside from the needs of the play and the artistic conceptions of a scene designer, the allocated funds for the purpose are likewise crucial.  It signals to the designer the budgetary limits within which he or she could work with.  A design is conceived after the designer reads the script and makes a series of consultations with the director, producer and costume designer.  Blueprints are made from his sketches in preparation for the construction of the scenery.  The designs and blueprints can still be changed or modified during rehearsals where their suitability to the movements of the performers can be determined.

The availability of stage facilities that will take care of the use and movement of scenery can pose some constraints on whether a particular set can be used.  Some of the standard elements would include elevators for raising or lowering stage sections, rolling platforms for scene mounting, trapdoors on stage floors and cycloramas.  Cycloramas are curved canvas or plaster backdrops that are used to simulate outdoor setting.  Another useful facility is the fly gallery located above the stage which is mainly used for manipulating scenery as well as for the suspension of lights.  While stage sceneries of earlier times were mostly painted, modern scene designers have access to a whole range of materials such as plastics, metals, paper and synthetic fabrics within which to recreate their design.

When one traces the history of theatre, the use of scenery would appear to be a comparatively recent development.  The classical Chinese theatre, the ancient Noh Drama of Japan and the ancient Greek theatre either used no scenery at all or a simple painted backdrop.  Scenery as we know it today first appeared early in the 16^th century in Italian court theatres.  This was the time when Italian scenic designers developed the elaborate system of side wings and backdrop.