Weirdest Piece You've Ever Built

[garyvp]

For a production of Frankenstein - our theater is a non-proscenium stage with 5 feet of back stage and no height. I had to go from 25' of bare walls and minimum furniture to a full-functioning knock-out lab in 30 seconds. The lab was encrusted with turn of the century power plant parts (Con Ed donated a power plant), including a 3' knife switch, several climbing arcs, working high voltage Tesla coils, 15 lbs of dry ice components, antique lab glass, bubbling colored water, and smoke machines.

A second major problem was that all of the high voltage electric devices had to be operated by the actors via a series of vintage knife switches, and there were three scenes (including 'the' scene), where all the devices had to spring to life with no one on stage except the clamped down monster.

First of all, God bless EBAY.

As all the devices were high voltage, and I mean real high voltage, I built a bank of low voltage/low current relays which I wired to the knife switches and variacs and which could also be operated by the techie in the booth via duplicate switches. The set components consumed 40 amps of power and produced 2' sparks. The whole back of the set had to be sheathed in chicken wire and grounded to sewer lines to protect the dimmer and AV equipment.

The lab was contained in an 8 x 8 x 4' box, part of the bare walls, which rolled forward, unfolded to a 16 ft laboratory that came to life in 30 seconds.

It was great fun and the best set I have ever designed and built. The set was the show.

[Van]

Originally Posted by garyvp

........
The lab was contained in an 8 x 8 x 4' box, part of the bare walls, which rolled forward, unfolded to a 16 ft laboratory that came to life in 30 seconds.

It was great fun and the best set I have ever designed and built. The set was the show.

This sounds eerily like a production of The Doom of Frankenstien which we did at Portland Repertory theatre several years ago. we had no fewer than 6 "Jacobs ladders" as well as flash pots, bubbling things, smoking things, whirring things. The set was one of the largest, outside of Operas, that I have ever built and clam shelled open, but each half of the clam shell was about 18' long and twelve' tall. These walls led to the back wall which was 24ft at it's highest.
I was going to list some stuff from that show as the weirdest ever... like the "Brain Box", that held a real pigs brain, and the gut bucket that we buit to store the 50 pounds of entrails, Liver and kidneys that the good doctor pulled from a cadaver....

[garyvp]

Wow! I have no experience in any theater larger than our modest space. Love the guts and gore!

[Sayen]

Originally Posted by Van

t one of my favorites was a Prosthetic penis made so the actors could pee all over some garden plants on cue evernight. Since we are 3/4 round the director wanted som "realism". < weren't nuthin' real about that thing!>

I have several stories of weird builds that I was about to post, but I think this takes the cake. I'm trying to picture the design team meetings where that came up, or trying to pitch it to my crew here.

[BrianWolfe]

A picture is worth.....

[gafftaper]

Wow Brian. As one of the more active new members you continue to put up some premium content that never fails to impress me.

[NickJones]

Wow, and what exactly was this for....

[BrianWolfe]

That was made for one of the Cats national tours in the late 80s. My wife made all the 3x lifesize clothing.

[NickJones]

Wow, fatty.
I must say, costume can be cool.