Set Design and Construction: Beauty and the beast

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Beauty and the beast

Printed From: Community Theater Green Room
Category: Producing Theater
Forum Name: Set Design and Construction
Forum Discription: Post your questions or suggestions about designing or building a set here.
URL: http://www.communitytheater.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2443
Printed Date: 11/24/24 at 12:06am
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 8.05 - http://www.webwizforums.com

Topic: Beauty and the beast

Posted By: Steenberg
Subject: Beauty and the beast
Date Posted: 6/06/07 at 9:47am

How do make the transformation, hydralic ?

Replies:

Posted By: whitebat
Date Posted: 8/06/07 at 11:26pm

Our HS production used a lot of fog, and actors who were double cast. The beast stood on top of a wall, they fog it really heavy, and the prince stepped out. It was effective, although I'm not sure how it would compare with the Broadway effect I haven't seen. It would've been more effective if the two actors (show was double cast anyway) matched a little more in stature.

Posted By: theaterhelper
Date Posted: 8/09/07 at 1:41pm

I knew people who worked on the hydro-machine used by the Walnut St. theater in Philadelphia when they did this show. They were seasoned professionals who spent TONS of money on it, TONS of time on it, it was a huge headache to everyone on the crew and the effect wasn't nearly worth the cost.

I've seen it done on a turntable with lots of fog and a strobe... and that was very effective. The actor was able to transform himself while spinning and "stumbling" around.

I've also seen a bit where the "fairy godmother" type from the beginning of the show comes through, waving her cape in front of the Beast like a flag and that masks him long enough for a "double" to switch out. That was also effective. In that version I think they had a stunt double for the fight scene anyway.

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Shed some light on the dark side of theatre at theaterhelper.com.

Posted By: TonyDi
Date Posted: 8/10/07 at 8:26am

Having done the beast makeup for this show back in February, I was party to seeing how this process was done from the backstage tour I was given by the director on how it was accomplished. This was a high school with a rather healthy budget. I don't know exactly what they paid for it but it wasn't too big an expense. First of all, they hired the company to supply the harness and cabling so they could "FLY" the beast for the transformation. Actually there is a rather form fitting harness applied with some superb cable connections at the hips. The beast is stabbed by Gaston, falls to the floor on an upper platform. Then as Belle comes over to faun over him as he's dying, SHE hooks the attachments to the harness as he's dying and as she's singing that last bit of the song. Then it's a matter of strobe lighting, special lighting, fog, etc., as he's hoisted up about 10' off the floor of the platform, and he physically spins and twists, etc. as he's getting out of the beast makeup, gloves, wig, etc....depending upon how you have created that. Full view but with special enough lighting that the transformation is masked. All the stuff is dropped to the floor beneath him under cover of his cape. PLUS the lighting is focused to not light the pile where his cape is dropped - just enough to light he and Belle after the transformation has occurred.

It's been done many ways. Simplest of course is NOT flying the beast (but dang it looks soooo cool if you can), is to do a switch under mask of lighting, cape, curtain, action, etc. Many ways to accomplish that can be really effective, two actors perhaps?? Maybe everything can be loose fitting enough he can throw it all off in seconds. But if YOU CAN afford it, get a company that flies actors and do the physical lift into the air as he then spins and transforms. VERY effective and very cool.

Good luck with whatever you decide and always remember to do what's safest for your actor.

TonyDi

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"Almost famous"

Posted By: Goosed
Date Posted: 9/09/07 at 11:29pm

Our Community theatre did this recently with a double casted beast for the fight/transformation scene. We swapped beasts just prior to the fight, and kept the mike on the original, after the beast was stabbed we dropped him as he lay on the ground through a trap, had the prince (less makeup) get on and jacked him back up with fog and a strobe. The trap was an extremely large and time consuming effort to engineer. A hydrolic jack would be probably be best, but expensive. Depending on where he is, a short wall to hide movement and have the beast crawl off and the prince on would have been much easier, but not nearly as dramatic.