A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart
Directed by J.W. Morrissette
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart
Directed by J.W. Morrissette
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Illinois Theatre Krannert Center for the Performing Arts - Colwell Playhouse October 18th, 2018 - October 28th, 2018 Scenic Design: Regina Garcia & Villale Song Costume Design: Melissa Hall Lighting Designer: Stuart Wilson Sound Design: Brandon Reed |
Photos taken courtesy of Darrell Hoemann Photography
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About The Play
Inspired by the farces of ancient Rome, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum is a musical that tells the story of a bawdy slave named Pseudolus and his attempts to win his freedom by helping his young master Hero win the beautiful courtesan Philia, who is betrothed to the egotistical solider Miles Gloriosus.
One of the final designs of my graduate school career, this production challenged me more than your typical proscenium based musical. Our scenic design involved a passerelle that extending far into the house of the theatre. This created a wider depth than what we were typically use to in our space. This involved a very creative, carefully crafted and calculated system design to make sure that not only all the different audience zones were covered, but also the actors and musicians got proper fold back (check the paperwork section for the speaker plot). For the first time in my career I used headphone amplifiers and personal monitoring mixes for the orchestra. This allowed the musicians to control their own mixes and took less of a burden off my hands. Actor fold back involved speakers hidden offstage and in the batons to provide onstage monitoring. Once they were out in the passerelle the band itself was sufficient. Having the orchestra right in the middle of the house also proved to be more challenging for a reinforcement perspective than I imagined. I carefully crafted a mix that was more focused on light reinforcement for instruments that needed the support to be over others (such as brass or reeds). In the end the mix ended up being one of the most natural sounding musicals I've ever crafted.
One of the final designs of my graduate school career, this production challenged me more than your typical proscenium based musical. Our scenic design involved a passerelle that extending far into the house of the theatre. This created a wider depth than what we were typically use to in our space. This involved a very creative, carefully crafted and calculated system design to make sure that not only all the different audience zones were covered, but also the actors and musicians got proper fold back (check the paperwork section for the speaker plot). For the first time in my career I used headphone amplifiers and personal monitoring mixes for the orchestra. This allowed the musicians to control their own mixes and took less of a burden off my hands. Actor fold back involved speakers hidden offstage and in the batons to provide onstage monitoring. Once they were out in the passerelle the band itself was sufficient. Having the orchestra right in the middle of the house also proved to be more challenging for a reinforcement perspective than I imagined. I carefully crafted a mix that was more focused on light reinforcement for instruments that needed the support to be over others (such as brass or reeds). In the end the mix ended up being one of the most natural sounding musicals I've ever crafted.
Audio clips of the live mix are not included due to Actor's Equity restrictions, and live recordings do not accurately represent the theatre space. Please check with producing organizations if interested in quality of the mix, which I proudly stand behind.