Yichun Wang

The design of the stage for the play Hecabe is based on the environment setting described in the original script and highlight the contrast between the idea of freedom and slavery. The intimate space and unique modern elements of the chosen theatre, the Fairfax Studio, allow creating a contemporary version of the play. The unique shape of the theatre offers an opportunity to play with the wing space and level changes. The main emotional characteristic of the play would be despair and hopelessness. Therefore, the overall tone of the stage would be dark in colour. The chosen materials for the floor and stairs offered a sense of heaviness and ruthlessness.

The stage has been divided into three parts: the front stage, the main acting area and the upper-level stage. The front stage is covered by sand, and there is a rock situated in front. The sand and the “bloody” floor symbolised the contrast between freedom and slavery. The sand also symbolised the blurred boundaries between freedom and slavery; as Polyxena chooses freedom over slavery, however, the consequence of her decision is death. Instead of placing the tent in the middle of the stage, the tent now functions as the masking curtain covering the pointed corner of the stage and the entrance and exit.