Chang Chen

This stage design considered the themes in Hekabe and the specific stage space in Fairfax Studio. This play describes the tragic experience of Hekabe, who was the Queen of Troy, but became a slave after the war. She endured the losses of self-dignity, family and kingdom. The play highlighted the revenge following these miserable encounters. The whole storyline is full of desolation, destruction and futility. These sorrows stimulate thinking in contemporary perspectives about how to confront darkness, injustice and uncontrollable incidence and how to deal with the unbearable emotions that these bring.

The Fairfax Studio provides an intimate space that allows the audience to get ‘up close and personal’ with the production. To maximize the use of this spatial characteristics in the stage design, I attempted to reflect the strong contrast between the environment and the figures. The stage design in Fairfax Studio emphasized the atmosphere of darkness and dilapidation to reflect these themes. This symbolic space is inspired by building demolition. The exaggerated and unrealistic set is built by painted plywoods to create a blasted and destructed living environment. A tent is placed in front of the destructed buildings. This huge visual contrast can highlight the sense of futile atmosphere. Costumes and props are mainly in neutral tones, which has more possibility to express various emotions under lights. The whole design is filled with confronting, uncontrollable and exaggerated elements, which highlights the escalating themes in this play, giving the audience an immersive experience.