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PROJECTS - SET DESIGN

Set DESIGN

A Streetcar named desire by Tennessee Williams

Particularly, I have a strong attachment to this play due to its simultaneous realism and poetic characteristics. In this play, I questioned myself: how much do we tolerant certain behaviors? Who are we to judge other people? Where is compassion to help the ones we love in real need? It is a cruel world created by cruel people! Really liked how the play was written because it provides some information about the characters. Simultaneous triggers curiosity and creates lot of doubts. On one side, some elements are pretty clear, for example, when Stanley’s cruelty reaches its climax when hits his own wife (Stella) while she is pregnant or when he rapes Blanche. In the final of the scene, I see the characters’s relationships disintegration. The viewer sees a group of people whom are aware of the Blanche’s weakness and simply decide to abandon her by sending her away to a mental hospital. It is human nature to find the weakest and eliminate he/she from the group. In this particular story, instead of confronting and searching for the true, Stella decides to betray her own sister by denying Blanches rape. The play is also considered autobiographic due to its similarities to the author’s life.

The Design: this play takes place in New Orleans, a city in U.S.A. This city contains several main typical characteristics such as: French architecture influence that can be seen by the organic iron shape used in the balconies. Art Deco, a nature symbioses, used as a decorative style. The natural and female world is the inspiration source for the new architects and designers. Also, the born music style «Blues» which refers to the suffering of the people enhances the ambiance of the play. «A Streetcar named Desire» is a play of a contrast between love & hate. There is a hero, Blanche, who suffers and lives the tragedy of being abandon, betrayed by her own sister and hate victim by Stanley, Stella’s husband. This Catharsis, as Aristotle explains, makes the viewer to experience Blanches’ suffering; the viewer gains emotional attachment due to common suffering (Blanche & viewer). It is about Blanche’s story, where she battles to live in a world without pain, so she creates a fantasy world, an imaginary reality that can be interpreted as a world of lie. This world becomes an escape to Blanche, a world of poetic aesthetic, which it is important to recreate in the design. Some keywords lead to the design: Claustrophobia; Oppression/control; Human degradation: betrayal; judgmental; Escape: Autism/Fantasy; Suffering; Uncomfortable.

The space enhances a contrast between realism & poetic as well as light & dark, visible to the viewer; in this play, there is no way out. There is no love only desire. The stairs lead to a dead end; is another space where it’s possible to escape just for a while, it’s a deceiving exit. The black surroundings represents the dark reality which Blanche tries to avoid and escape. She lives within a fantasy world that denies suffering. Contrasts between dark/light and combination of realism & poetic are variations between vertical or horizontal lines, shapes on diverse materials and its composition to resembles a prison. The diverse levels within the stage compose deepness, leading to a dark mirror, a dead end. The dark mirror reflects the audience, emphases their constant closeness presence as a zoom in. It reflects the decor as well the actors creating a uncomfortable confrontation. The realistic materials, such as green tiles and wood pieces are in decomposition showing fragmentation, human degradation visible during the play. The green tiles, poison’s color are a constant presence in Stanley’s space. The metal stairs is an element out of the context in more realistic area which evokes the uncomfortable feeling. This feeling persists again in the poetic area where the stage is not straight. It is a slippery, unstable and dangerous area. The black hole, Blanche’s space, is her tub as well her dream world. It’s black sandy area and there is no way out. The ceiling is massive and disposed to show Stanley’s oppression over the other characters. The white back wall, made of wood, contains openings and resembles a prison. Through these openings light can be visible playing with the notion of space.

Set DESIGN

Kikid project - Pep & Punch

PEP & PUNCH is a theater performance for a young audience (12-16) presented in schools to open a dialogue about alcohol and (soft) drugs. This creative form of discussing taboos with teenagers provides insights and information about the use of substances. My task was to design and create a set which could be easily transported within school’s tours. The set demanded to be fresh, young and clear. The performance was previously designed it was requested a construction of two spaces: a disco, where there is gathering and confrontation between the characters and a toilet to provide a more intimidate space where they confront themselves individually. The set was created mainly with recycled cardboard. Besides being a sustainable form of creation it also gives a raw aesthetics to the set. It presents a more natural/realistic look, is light and easy to transport. The set is made mainly by cardboard, leaving a few realistic elements transformed to be integrated in the play. The disco consists in four cardboard folding walls, linoleum’s silver dance floor, two bar seats and a disco ball. There is a silver silhouette of a bar on one of the walls, some extra seats (black cubes with red pillows) and extra props, such as, silver tray, glasses and bottles. Light projectors were used to enhance the theatrical atmosphere. The toilet being inspired in the Art piece of the POP Art movement created by the artist: Claes Oldenburg is completely made by cardboard. A few props complement it, such as the blue toilet paper, the toilet brush, the mirror and the flushing chain.

Set DESIGN

AYA - Theatre & dance performance Ziel

I designed set and light for the dance performance «Ziel»(Soul) from the Aya dance group. The performance was targeting mainly an adolescent audience. The initial part is composed by each dancer’s solo piece. These solos took place in diverse theater venue’s spaces, inviting the audience to move along until they reached the main stage. Here, at the main stage, the dancers come together. Into the black ballet floor, there was a projection creating an image of metro circuit. This kind of a map shows the dancer’s diverse cultural backgrounds and at the same time shows their connections and the gathering idea as a group visible on the main stage. This is an introduction image for the main stage when they act as a group. The white TL lamps have an increasing and alternative lighting. These TL lamps are encrusted on the backstage wall. A clear and raw light is visible. Along on stage, there is a cardboard tube curtain (recycled material), hanged in front of backstage wall; it is a movable curtain which provided diverse changes for the set design. The dancers can interact with this set element by touch, swinging, dancing through it, etc and they can even create sounds with it. The set’s multi possibilities is very important as well as the free and open space for the dancer’s movement.

SET DESIGN

Woyzeck by Georg Büchner

This set design is based on a constant motion of a black circle, crossing horizontally the hole stage, evoking the solar eclipse idea. Thought out the play’development, the circle slowly covers the round light in the back, reaching a total eclipse exactly when Woyzeck kills his wife, the climax of the play. The floor wooden platform presents lines combined with dirt, a natural material that can be involuntary moved by the actors movements, creating diverse landscapes. The middle platform, crossing the stage, is used as an upper level where some characters may create contrasts between inferiority and superiority feelings. The vertical element, a tower on the right side, slowly rotates while is drooping thick black liquid evoking the dark world of Woyzeck.

SET DESIGN

Savage Love by Sam Shepard

This set design presents a variety range of lighting which evokes the ambiance required for the diverse scenes. Colors game combined with a dark/light is in a constant switch generating different aesthetics and emotions. As props, there are two sofas; the sofas are composed by three different pieces that can be attached and/or detached into pieces to show a deconstruction. The wooded floor can be deconstructed and constructed depending on the scenes, most like it is to be used on the climax of the play.

PROJECTS - COSTUME DESIGN

COSTUME DESIGN

A Streetcar named desire by Tennessee Williams

The play presents two sisters: Stella & Blanche. They come from the same background, a rich family. When Blanche arrives, instigated by Stanley, she’s seen as an obstacle between the couple’s relationship. She is not welcome, but it’s seen a constant protection from both sisters towards the oppressor Stanley. Stella moved away and married Stanley, who controls and manipulates her. There is a mutual emotional codependency. In my point of view, the sister’s relationship is an important element in the development of the play. I have selected it to enhance this play’s relationship. It can be consider an analogy to the writer’s real life when he may have felt guilty for not protecting his sister of the brain surgery, lobotomy. Blanche uses transparent and soft materials. She has a sexy style combined with her lady look. She has an elegant style elaborated with details. Stella is the youngest sister, not as sexy as Blanche, though she wears sexy and relaxed clothes. She is more discreet and simple. It is important to show both sisters have the same background though followed different directions in life. The realism and poetic characteristics are recognizable in the shape of clothes. In Blanche’s costumes the design presents three variations showing the evolution of the character in the play. Transparent fabrics were selected to evoke her fragility, elegance and the mystery of her fantasy world. The accessories around the wrists resemble the handcuffs, the oppression and no escape. The flower pattern is a feminine element used for both characters. For Stella’s, there are also three variations, the main component is the use of pastel colors. Her spirit has faded in Stanley’s codependency. The green and boring skirt is Stella’s conformism with her lifestyle situation. She wears a top with a ripped off edge; Stanley could have done it, due to his animal’s behavior, as aggression or desire. The final scene costume, Stella uses cold colors to represented her lack of strength to protect her sister. The net as a layer in the costume’s upper part links her to Stanley, to the house : Her sloppy «look» shows human degradation and weakness. The gold aesthetics is an irony showing the character as a great person, also to remind of her rich family background; instead she was not able to believe neither to defend her sister, Blanche. Stella betrayals Blanche by abandon her, visible in the last scene.

COSTUME DESIGN

Attempts on Her life by Martin Crimp. This costume design is based on a unique clothe’s item: the skirt. The skirt is interactive, made by only zippers which can adjusted to the play’s scene.

COSTUME DESIGN

Around One is a collage, a dynamic orchestration of movement, image and sound, accompanied & manipulated by live interventions.

Scenic space’s design & production and costume design for Performance "Around One", in ACARTE's Auditorium at Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. Fórum Dança, «Danças na Cidade» contemporaneous dance festival 2002.

Costume Design

LULU Opera by Frank Wedekind’s: Jack the Ripper’s, Lulu’s costumes throughout the Opera & Schigolch

COSTUME DESIGN

The Bacchae by Euripides: This costume a result of the ancient story “The Bacchae”.

PROJECTS - INSTALLATIONS

Installations

Portable home

INSTALLATIONS

Spilled object

PROJECTS - OTHERS

Hat workshop

Hat design and creation. During this creative process, I’ve learned new techniques: how felt works as material; using a steam machine, wooden molds and how the material can shaped into the desired form. The workshop took place at the Hoofdzaak Hoeden Atelier, supervised by the designer Marga van der Bos, in Amsterdam.

Ceramic

Ceramic pieces