Trees And Why They're Interesting by Megan Bland

Hello! 

I'm back as a technician for Cinderella and I couldn't be happier to be working with all the awesome people in scenic again! 

My dad and I were tasked with working on the trees, which have a few different elements that need to be considered. For instance: 

- How do you make a bark-like texture? 

- How should the trees affect the mood of the scene? 

- How big should they be? (Also, how much space is available?) 

- How should the season affect the appearance of the trees?  

And so on.  

Currently, we've been focusing on texture, and there's a ton of different ways to get different textures, like by using paper mache, texture sponges, or heat guns! For the trees, we need a texture for the bark and the leaves, so we also have to figure out which textures would look good together. 

Going on Google and looking up videos and images of trees for theatre productions is fun, too, because not only do you have more options to consider, but you also have the opportunity to see how certain options would look during a performance. As I'm writing this, my dad and I haven't gotten very far into the trees yet, but we've taken some ideas for the bark and leaf textures and made little prototypes to see how they would look (some went way better than others) and decided on some good options. We've also figured out how we're going to get organic shapes for the trees and their leaves. 

It's really interesting to see how many ways you can make even one thing, and to see how one small decision could change the whole feel of a scene! On top of that, being able to make those set pieces is super fun. By now, you may be wondering what these fabled trees are actually going to look like, and although the image of this blog might give you a bit of a hint, you'll only really know once you see our awesome show!