She Kills Monsters
By Qui Nguyen
Directed by Chris Duval
Set by Alex Heder
Paint Charge: Katelyn Westergard
Costumes by Lydia Semler/Callie Lythgoe
Props by Sera Shearer
Lights by Maya Bower
Projections by Jess Wallace
Sound by Jared Overturf
My very first EVER realized design. This show was a dream come true. I love Dungeons and Dragons and I was elated to set the scene for such a phone show. Out of the gate the director asked me to make sure I make a set that could provide multiple scenes and locations because the whole show is about a journey between a fantasy world and the real world. Secondly, the director is a trained fight choreographer so he insisted on having levels to and fight on. So there are of course platforms but there was also a reappearing desk that they fought on or around throughout the show. Shows with too many scene changes are distracting and never really turn out well so I knew I needed to provide a good set for the lighting and projections designers who would provide the most effective immediate scene changes. I elected to use alot of flat vertical surfaces that rotated (like pariaktoi) and also slid on tracks in the rigging. I took a lot of inspiration from the miniatures sets you play DnD with, as well as color pallets from the 1980’s manual.
Projection Banners
There was quite a bit of narration in the show, the banners acted as projection screens to fill the audience in visually.
Just before the Dragon
Here you can see the turn panels joined together to form the doorway to the last battle.
The First Gaming Session
The pyramid pieces suddenly part and DM (red cloak) bursts through. Very Dramatic.
Opening Scene
These traveling pyramid platforms made alot of the elevations for the fights as well as scenes.
Transparent Flats
With the light shining on the front these two panels looked like regular walls, but when the light shines from behind, this pattern appears.
Transparent Tracing
We used a projector to cast the Patterson the flats so we could get them just right.
Real World Side
Each Flat had a dull gray side that represented the dull mundane world.
Installing the Rotating Panels
The panels were all 14 feet tall and we needed a team of people to get them installed on thier tracks.
Brick Carving
Every Flat had a brick side made out of pink insulation foam carved to look like stone brick
Brick Carving
all the flats had a dull gray side and a bright brick side.
Brick Carving
Pink Insulation foam and a bunch of saws hacking away.
Miniature set
Set when all flats and units have been moved off stage. Yes they were all designed to do that to make way for a big dragon fight scene.
Miniature Set
Foam core and I made a little figure out of clay and wire.
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