Fall 2012: Props for Sweeney Todd

Pretty quickly after my last post I got called in to do about 2 weeks of work at the PCS props shop, stitching for Sweeney Todd. I made a, (purposly distressed, ragged and tattered), drop from thrifted bedsheets that opened the show, I made a set of curtians for Pirelli's wagon, 2 sets for the pie shop, (only one got used), 2 pillows for Mrs. Lovett's parlor- only one got used, but it was the one that looked better and had a 'hidden' pocket for Mrs. Lovett to hide her money in, and finally a sailor duffle bag for Anthony to carry.

I enjoyed working in props- it's located in an industrial area in a big shop shared with the scene shop. I walked 2.3 miles to get there, (occasionally I was rushed and took a car share car, but I usually walked). The environment is friendly and bustling. It's also very dusty, since there's major set constructon right through the door. It took a bit of getting used to and reminding myself that I was working on furnishings, not clothing and that they wouldn't be wearing anything I made there. 

This is a show photo of the drop- it doesn't look particularly pretty and it was pretty much slammed together, which was what it was supposed to look like.  It won't be getting any glamour shots in the portfolio section.

I have photos of the pillow that made it onstage, but they're on my old phone. I'll try to remember to get them posted. That project was challenging because to create a pocket required extra fabric and we had so little and it had such a large pattern that I had to creativly adjust the repeat on the side with the pocket and use a similar fabric on the interior of the pocket to help stretch things.

The curtians were fairly uncomplicated. I did need to be a little creative because there wasn't quite enough fabric for most of them. I had to look at their setting to see if serged  or selvage edges would be noticable, how long did they really need to be- things like that. The set that was used for the pie shop was also dyed. It went from a yellowish color to a pale olive color. Items of interest: the prop shop has some 20 year old rit and a good but small water heater- they use their single washing machine to dye in and the water's hot enough, but only for one go an hour or so. 

On my last day of props work I got a call from the costume designer, ie, my old boss, saying that someone on the wardrobe crew had a family emergency and wouldn't be able to run the show, could I make it to a run through that afternoon and then start tech the next day? I said I could, and that'll be the next entry.