Costume is one of the most important parts of a show, but
rarely gets enough credit for what it adds to the production. Costume helps the
audience distinguish between characters and make educated guesses about their
life such as what their background is or what their personality may be like.
People project a lot of themselves on to what they wear and how they look, so
it only makes sense that characters do so too.
In our production of ‘The Tempest’, the setting, and
therefore costume, is modernized. With modern business-style men and hippy-like
spirits and creatures making up the majority of character and costume. The men
from Naples, with titles and power and importance, are dressed in suits. Not
only because of their lifestyle, but they have just attended a wedding in Tunis.
In our modern setting, they are presented almost as business men, as opposed to
simply Dukes and Kings, and the clothes they wear reflects that. Not to be forgotten
is that they’ve just been in a shipwreck, and naturally the condition of their
clothes has been affected.
In contrast to this, we have the natives of the island.
Hippy-style tie-dye and do-it-yourself clothes, that look as if Prospero and
Miranda have used both their old clothing and what they’ve found on the island to
create new clothes for them. The sprits have more natural, colourful, mix and
match outfits, that Prospero and Miranda would have made for them to wear, to
contrast the dull grey of the humans and Prospero herself is made out to look
almost like Mother Nature, as she has become one with the island, and controls
it all.
What does set and props communicate to a contemporary audience?
Set helps
distinguish between locations, time period, and gives hints to the characters
past and elements of the play. Props and set also help create the characters
world, to make it seem more real.
In our
production, we have one set that remains throughout the play. We have broken/rusted
pieces of wood and metal, sand and rubbish and other rundown island things.
There is a large shelter in the shape of a wave, made to look like it was built
out of the shipwreck ruins. This represents our water theme, how Prospero
controls the water to create the Tempest and, in our production, uses it
throughout the play to represent her power, sitting on top of the wave above ever
one else, watching. We also have a rusted bath, full of water, an old trolley,
used by Trinculo and Stephano to push Caliban around, an exercise bike and a
generator, Prospero makes Caliban use it to power the island.
We don't
have many props, as the text doesn't require many. Shakespeare would have done
this intentionally, as in those days set and props were very minimal. The dukes
and lords, from the business world, have briefcases and guns. Trinculo and
Stephano, the drunkards, have bottles of alcohol. Prospero has a book of magic
spells. All these props are very significant to the character that uses them.
They help the audience judge, simply by
props, what those characters are like. Aside from these, there aren't very many
props in the play.
What does sound and music communicate to a contemporary
audience?
Sound and
music help create tension and atmosphere, and so are a very useful addition to
a play/production.
Our use
of sound and music is very minimal. The only sound and music we have is when,
throughout the play, Ariel plays music to control those on the island. We use
real instruments, triangles, tambourines and castanets, for the Ariels to play,
and we also use a drone, a long, low, continuous note as the basis for the
spells Ariel and Prospero cast. For more violent musical moments, the Ariels
play instruments that recreate the sound of thunder, such as at the beginning of
the play during the Tempest. The music is used to create the illusion of the
spells being cast, such as when the drone plays as Ariel puts the King’s men to sleep.
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