Design elements

Set Design

Beata Batorowicz's set provides an 'enchanted' space; vibrant and begging to be explored. The script demanded that a world be created within the confines of the theatre, self contained yet vast in scope ranging from town to forest. Calling on her background as visual artist, Beata has facilitated a playful design that pays tribute to the many of the scripts darker themes.

The town of Apronwood and its surrounding countryside were required to have a sense of facade that is leaching into the uncontrolled and tainted wilderness that is Ivy's domain. This sense of warped reality is assisted through the use of vivid and somewhat unrealistic hues of the houses, trees, fencing and floor as well as through their exaggeratedly 'wonky' design. These elements represented as two dimensional constructions combine to create a world that is enchanting yet disenchanting, where all is not as it seems.

Costume Design

Carolyn Taylor-Smith has successfully envisioned a design that compliments the vibrant set design yet does not detract from or fight against it. Colour is an integral component of the costume highlighting the contrast between the women of the town and their daughters, clothed in matching pastel colours, to Ivy, who is dressed in earthier shades representing her connection with the forest.

Colour, pattern and style are expertly combined to create a visually exciting costume that still facilitates the physicality required. With a nod to a 'Stepford wives' influence, the design draws on gaudy patterns with a vintage twist enhanced by the fact the majority of the costumes are reconstructed from costumes/fabric already possessed yet re-imagined to create an entirely new product.

Lighting Design

First-time student lighting designer, Katie Lyons has created a design that playfully casts set, cast and their costumes under enchanting and atmospheric hues. Similarly to costume, lighting seeks to highlight the difference between Ivy and the trio of mothers and daughters, with Ivy cast under a blue light as opposed to the generic pink light. Lighting works to enhance the overall vibrancy of the production creating a world appropriate of a children's festival yet maintain the integrity of the themes demanded by the script. The lighting adds another magical layer to the creative artistry of the production.

Sound Design

Student designer, Ben Andrew's has created a soundscape that meets the scripts intense auditory demands. Sound is an integral component of the production, an arguable presence on stage regarded with as much influence as any of the characters. Sound is used to create atmosphere as well as build character, tension and storyline. The idea of sound 'trapped' within jars meant a huge undertaking from a design point of view, meaning that not only did a massive amount of sounds have to be sourced they then had to be warped and mixed in order to give them a reproduced feel. It is the 'reproduced' nature to the sounds that give them their unique quality adding to the allure of the productions world. Sound is the final layer in the design elements that make up Ivy Shambitt and the Sound Machine’s production value completing its highly individualised, vibrant and enchanting space.