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Lighting Design for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

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posted on 2025-04-10, 04:17 authored by Matthew ScottMatthew Scott
“Who’s Afraid of Virginia of Woolf” is a 1962 play by Edward Albee about the complexities of an older married couples’ relationship as they entertain a younger unwitting couple across a late-night drinking session following a faculty party. This production was a critically acclaimed rendition originally created in the 80 seat Red Stitch Actors’ Theatre. The work was reimagined and redesigned to sit within the 1000 seat Comedy Theatre playing to a significantly larger audience than its original season. Tasked with designing the lighting for this project proffered some exceptional challenges. Recreating the original production’s mood and atmosphere in a proscenium arch theatre over ten times the size was one of the most significant hurdles the project presented. Working with director Sarah Goodes the brief was retain the intimacy of the original staging whilst depicting a sense of theatricality that would frame the piece as work of ritual and ceremony. The colour palette of the light shifted within a small but uneasy range that amplified the emotional context of the characters interactions across the evening. The lighting also served to focus in upon each of the characters anxieties and psychological state in a way that was meant to underline the uncanniness of the narrative’s descent into chaos.

History

Add to Elements

  • Yes

NTRO Output Type

  • Original Creative Work

NTRO Output Category

  • Original Creative Work : Design / architectural Work

Place

Melbourne, Australia

Venue

Comedy Theatre, Melbourne

NTRO Publisher

Red Stitch Actors Theatre/GWB Entertainment/Andrew Henry Presents

Start Date

2024-06-29

End Date

2024-07-21

Medium

Lighting Design

Research Statement

“Who’s Afraid of Virginia of Woolf” is a 1962 play by Edward Albee about the complexities of an older married couples’ relationship as they entertain a younger unwitting couple across a late-night drinking session following a faculty party. This production was a critically acclaimed rendition originally created in the 80 seat Red Stitch Actors’ Theatre. The work was reimagined and redesigned to sit within the 1000 seat Comedy Theatre playing to a significantly larger audience than its original season. Recreating the original production’s mood and atmosphere in a proscenium arch theatre over ten times the size was one of the most significant hurdles the project presented. The brief was to retain the intimacy of the original staging whilst depicting a sense of theatricality that would frame the piece as work of ritual and ceremony. The colour palette of the light shifted within a small but uneasy range that amplified the emotional context of the characters interactions across the evening. The excellence of this work is evidenced by: • The work was a milestone for the Red Stitch Actor’s Theatre transferring an intimate work to a larger commercial venue in collaboration with commercial producers GWB Entertainment and Andrew Henry Presents. • The work was directed by Sarah Goodes, one of Australia’s leading theatre artists. • The work was as critically acclaimed on this second outing as it was for its sold-out original season. • The work was viewed by a much larger audience than was possible in its original run at Red Stitch. • The work has been picked up as part of Sydney Theatre Company’s 2025 season

Size or Duration of Work

3 hours, 26 Performances

Affiliation

Matt Scott, University of Melbourne

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