The Midsummer Tree
For the 2015 Texas Shakespeare Season we producted A Midsummer Night's Dream. The scenic design involved some large modular platforming, a triangular ramp and a very large magical tree. Because of the organic nature of the unit, the schedule of the festival, and the production method, the build was conducted primarily from the model with help from the scenic designer.
I started by building a large cylinder out of OSB and 1/8 inch masonite and then cut it away based on the designer's cartoonings.
At the center of the root structure is an OSB armature. This provided a rigid structure to apply foam insulation to so that each root could be climbed by the actors.
The ribs of the armature had to be trimmed off with a flush trim to better accept the chicken wire.
It took 118 cans of expanding foam and 2 canisters of roofing insulation to cover the tree in full. We then used electric carving knives to trim away the foam. Elastameric was applied after that, and then a dutchman drop was wrapped around each part before it received its final paint treatment.
In this image the hand and footholds can be seen that were strategically placed on the unit to make it scaleable by the actors.
Midsummer Night's Dream Directed by Steve Tague - Scenic Design by Fred Duer - Lighting Design by Chelsea Touchet - Technical Director Meghan Potter - Costume Design by Jeff - Photo Credit: Fred Duer
