A Tale of Two Cities

THEATRE

A top design team embraces the dualities of Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities

By: David Barbour Photography: Carol Rosegg

roadway, which has been the pop opera is far from over. It’s a locales—Georgian London, in all its awash of late with giggly, message that left reviewers bemused, bustle and prosperity, and the tinder- self-reflexive spoofs and minutely making invidious comparisons to Les box of pre-revolutionary Paris—on detailed analyses of adolescent Misèrables; however, audiences are one stage. (An earlier musical version, angst, got a fresh infusion of blood standing nightly—proof, perhaps, of a 1969’s Two Cities, lasted all of 44 and thunder in September with the yearning for romance and adventure performances in London’s West End.) opening of A Tale of Two Cities at the not being met by other current Surprisingly, Santoriello has Al Hirschfeld Theatre. As the first Broadway attractions. managed to faithfully represent large-scale new musical of the season, Indeed, Santoriello must have Dickens’ story on stage, employing a it naturally attracted a great deal of done something right, because there minimum of compression and deletion. attention: Chief among its many talking are few novels that would seem to (Gone is a number built around the points was its author, Jill Santoriello resist theatrical adaptation as stead- grave-robbing activities of Jerry (book, music, and lyrics), a cable fastly as A Tale of Two Cities. The Cruncher, a supporting character who, television executive who devoted no narrative takes place over a span of as a sideline, supplies medical schools less than a quarter of a century to 17 years and features no fewer than with fresh corpses.) But that very realizing her dream of musicalizing 13 characters—and, near the end, we faithfulness posed many challenges to Charles Dickens’ historical thriller. learn that most of them are linked by the members of the show’s design Even more notable, however, is a dark incident that occurred many team, who had to find a way to render how the show represents a bold years in the past. In the novel, the sprawling narrative on stage. Tony attempt at reviving the kind of musical Dickens observes three of the main Walton, the scenic designer, came melodrama that kept Broadway box characters—the dissolute lawyer up with an ingenious solution that offices busy during the 1980s. With Sydney Carton and the vengeful hus- nevertheless had implications for the its romantically tormented leading band-and-wife team the Defarges— work of his colleagues. man, its central love triangle, and an from the outside, providing very little It’s a design that often works by elaborate, intrigue-filled plot paced by guidance to any dramatist who embracing the novel’s many dualities; a series of reach-for-the-rafters wishes to flesh out their inner lives. borrowing from the colors of the ballads, A Tale of Two Cities puts Above all, there is the challenge of French and British flags, as well as our Broadway on notice that the era of representing two very different own modern political lexicon, one can

November58 • November 2008 2008 • Lighting • Lighting&Sound&SoundAmericaAmerica www.lightingandsoundamerica.com • November 2008 • 59 say it pits the “blue” world of London, narrative, and noting that the story is pieces, which could be moved about a place of freedom and moderation, set halfway between the eras of the stage and formed into multiple against Paris, a city that is about to Shakespeare and Dickens, Walton configurations to represent different run red with the blood of those says he went looking for “a square locales. (In its original concept, when deemed insufficiently dedicated to the root between those two forces of it was thought the production would overthrow of the French monarchy. energy.” In his research, he came play the super-sized Hilton Theatre, across a computer drawing of the the structure had three levels.) Two of The jelly mold effect recreation of London’s Globe Theatre, the six pieces can be assembled to “The challenge was that [A Tale of and made a surprising discovery. “The make Sydney Carton’s chambers or Two Cities] has approximately four strange thing was, it was virtually the the home where the young French times as many locations as any con- same shape as the Bastille,” he says. expatriate, Charles Darnay, lives with ventional musical, only four of which Next, Walton took a plastic jelly his wife, Lucie, and her father, Dr. repeat at all,” says Walton. “There mold, and, he says, “by taping and Manette. Placed at another angle, a was an enormous number of places wiring and forcing it into a fully oval couple of set pieces becomes a to be delivered—a complication shape”—a slight distortion of the tavern where Carton raises hell. compounded by the fact that some shape of both the Bastille and the Assembled in toto, they become the are in London and some in Paris. I Globe—“I began to see what it might Bastille. In different combinations, the knew I couldn’t do conventional look like and how it could be broken pieces become the English court scene-by-scene design; there into several elements. We made a where Darnay is put on trial, a prison wouldn’t be any place to put it all.” model, approximating the form of the waiting room, and the wine shop For the first production of A Tale of jelly mold in paper and cardboard, where the Defarges plot the over- Two Cities, at the Asolo Theatre in adjusting it as we went.” throw of the Bourbon monarchy. Sarasota, Florida, the designer set What emerged from this specula- Indeed, it’s a very flexible plan. out to turn these challenges to his tive work was a two-level structure, “The only drawback was, it frightened advantage. Reasoning that there’s oval in shape and skeletal in its the hell out of everybody—our something Shakespearean about the outlines, made up of six individual set original director, the producers, and

The number “Everything Stays the Same” ends with an unsettling light-and-sound cue involving the guillotine blade.

November 2008 • Lighting&Sound America from simple. If you turn off the front light on the Paris drop and illuminate the translucency in back of it from behind, London appears and Paris disappears. The third layer is an additional translucency, depicting a sky with the dwellings of the Paris poor represented at the bottom of it: “It allows us to make the Paris scrim seem a lot more vibrant and even redder, and permits us to throw shadows from behind it,” says Walton. These shadows include a depiction of the Bastille’s silhouette with dagger-shaped glowing windows, and also an image of rearing horses, which appears as the Marquis St. Evermonde, Charles’ wicked uncle, runs over a peasant boy with his carriage. The carriage is also a significant piece of stage engineering. It was built in Florida at the Asolo and comes complete with “horses” built

The show’s abundant atmospheric effects were designed by Gregory Meeh. by Costume Armour. “My assistant, Joanie Schlafer, made the most the author,” says Walton, laughing. of the show to investors. After Walsh beautiful model, showing the horses’ “They thought it was scary, cold, and passed away, and the original director mechanism,” says Walton. “The non-representational.” However, departed, Warren Carlyle, who signed wheel between the back legs of the working with his assistant, Kelly on as choreographer, and later, horses is on a cam,” which, as it Hanson, and making use of director, “also embraced it even more turns, makes the horses move up and Photoshop, the designer says, “we wholeheartedly,” Walton notes. down, as if they are galloping across added lighting effects and furnishings The transition between the two the stage. “The movement is to each model photograph of every cities appears to happen in the blink dependent on four of the Marquis’ individual setting. On the model units of an eye. It’s a solution that was hard attendants,” says Walton. “The two themselves we added rooftop won: “We were desperate to find a guys guiding the horses are cast silhouettes, chimneys for the first-act high-speed way of going from city to members; the two leading the London scenes, and a large sign that city,” says Walton. “The idea of carriage are members of the crew.” indicates when we’re in Tellson’s projection reared its ugly head, but we (There is essentially no wing space in Bank,” which provides a sanctuary for wanted the approach to be low-tech the Hirschfeld Theatre, so the car- the English characters in Paris. The and visceral.” Behind the set pieces is riage is located in an upstage corner; individual units are not automated; a series of drops, the first a painted many of the show’s set pieces and they’re moved around with the help of scrim depicting Paris in a murky furnishings are hung in the air until crew members whenever the units blood-red. Behind that is a printed needed. When they descend to deck approach, or leave, the wings. vinyl translucency, depicting London level, Walton says, it makes for The production’s original choreog- in a blue palette; this drop is printed something of “a maze for the cast.”) rapher, Thommie Walsh, who died back-to-front, and faces upstage with The bulk of the show’s soft goods before the production got underway its white back resting immediately were supplied by Rose Brand; this in Florida, embraced the design behind the Paris scrim so that front includes a stunning new house scheme, which emboldened the light won’t bleed through the scrim curtain. “The actual theatre curtain author and producers so that Walton’s and reveal the blue of London. hadn’t been seen for quite a while,” Photoshop images, and also the Indeed, the solution may be low- says Walton. “It was in storage back- model, became part of the marketing tech by today’s standards, but it is far stage, in a giant baggie. It would have

www.lightingandsoundamerica.comwww.lightingandsoundamerica.com • November • November 2008 2008 • 61 been quite costly to get it back in shape, and, in any event, it didn’t blend too well with our production. So we took the fabric used for the drapes in the Marquis’ chateau, and that became the basis for our new house curtain.” It is 32' 10" high and 47' wide, and is constructed of 300 yards of FR Venetian scroll fabric, with trim consisting of Gold Serpentine Robe, Gold Raised Circle, Gold Filigree, Gold Turkish, and Gold Design weight 18" Bullion Fringe. It definitely makes a grand gesture, inviting the audience into this distinctly 19th-century world of intrigue and adventure. Walton’s biggest coup comes at the climax of the story, after Carton has made the famous decision to switch places in prison with Darnay. Carton’s final scene is played out at the foot of the guillotine, here represented by a towering staircase. As Carton climbs the stairs, the upstage Paris scrim is wiped out by a black diagonal drop that cuts across Above: The set configured as Carton’s offices (top) and a London court (bottom). it, like a steel blade. According to Jennifer Tankleff, at I. Weiss, the drops, completed by its final chop. piece of luck,” the designer notes, company that built the drop, it’s “a As mentioned before, most of the adding that the Asolo shop “is large full-stage serge drop, cut on a scenery was built by the Asolo extraordinary; Vic Meyrich is one of very drastic angle, and dropped in to Theatre scene shop; personnel there the treasures of the theatre.” look like an actual guillotine blade. included Victor Meyrich (production We worked on a couple of models in manager), David Ferguson (technical The glitter of the guillotine our shop with [production supervisor] director), Bert Taylor (metal fabricator), Arguably, Walton’s most crucial Christopher Smith and Tony Walton, JoAnn Waters-Atkins (scenic artist), collaborator on the production was to come up with just the right edge Cathryn Dashiell and Jeffrey W. Dean the lighting designer, Richard Pilbrow; finishing, which was silicone tubing.” (prop masters), and Rick Alley (prop their two careers have been inter- The latter gives the drop the neces- builder). In addition to the linked for decades, going back at sary weight and flatness. The effect is contributions of Costume Armour, least to the 1959 West End revue completed with an accompanying Rose Brand, and I. Weiss, Triumph Pieces of Eight. Here, Pilbrow’s blackout drop, which is a fiber-optic Productions provided the translucent design is notable for the way it star drop—also from I. Weiss—which drops and Michael Hagen, Inc. pro- embraces and capitalizes on Walton’s provides a segue into the final scene. vided the tree seen in the backyard of scenic concept, for its sweepingly Walton notes that, at the same time, Dr. Manette and Lucie’s house, as dramatic effects, and for the back- the lighting executes a complex well as the rearing horse shadow channel system that he developed, crossfade: it dims on the Paris drop, silhouette. Walton notes that when, using some of the latest lighting while briefly illuminating the due to a sudden illness, another design products, to achieve his ideas translucent sky drop behind it, then scenic painter was needed, Arnold swiftly and efficiently. rapidly fades out as the giant ‘blade’ Abramson, formerly of Nolan Scenery The first challenge presented by appears to extinguish it. The effect is Studios, and now living in Florida, Walton’s set design, says Pilbrow, accompanied by the exaggeratedly stepped in and finished the job with had to do with the fact that the actors terrifying sound of the blade as it his local associates. “It was a real “are playing much of the show in

November 2008 • Lighting&Sound America Sydney Carton faces the guillotine with a friend. In a second, the drop behind them will be erased in a coup de théâtre. front of or inside the moving steel Also, given the nature of the setting gear list is a dozen DHA Pitching structures.” He adds, laughing, and the preponderance of big chorus Digital Light Curtains, which he uses “They’re like bird cages, and moving scenes, a bold lighting approach was to rake the stage with light, especially bird cages at that. My first preoccu- needed to add dimension and drama in the scenes of revolution and pation was, how in the hell are we to each stage picture. Again, there turmoil. At the end of the second going to light them?” His solution was were challenges; given the set act opener, “Everything Stays the to place a number of MR16 units in design’s dimensions, he notes, “we Same,” a chorus member raises a each set piece, which he uses to have very little side lighting below 22'. guillotine blade above her head. As make sure the faces of the actors are There’s only one boom upstage and she does, a set of light curtains correctly illuminated at all times. one downstage that actually come executes a sweep; the blade catches These units are controlled by City down to the ground. We had to the light, making an audience blinder Theatrical WDS wireless systems, double up on gear, because the side effect; this is accompanied by the embedded in the deck of each of the lighting in one scene will be blocked stunning sound effect of a falling six set components. With so many in the next,” thanks to the set’s many blade. Taken together, it makes for units to be controlled with wireless configurations. “As a result, we have a grisly five seconds that tells you technology, the designer was quite a lot of side light at a higher level all you need to know about the justifiably worried. “I must say I than one would normally like.” savagery of the Jacobins. anticipated having a lot of trouble with However, the designer made gear Throughout, however, Pilbrow it, and we had none whatsoever,” he choices that allow him to capitalize creates any number of striking looks, says. “The radio-controlled stuff was on these facts. Throughout the composed out of strongly defined absolutely fabulous.” (Michael show, he makes extensive use of arrangements of highly directional Gottlieb, the associate lighting Vari*Lite VL3500Q Spot units, many beams. For the big scenes, he works designer, notes that the wireless of them placed in the high side a color palette strongly influenced by dimming in the show employs more positions mentioned above. “They the red, white, and blue of the British than 50 car batteries, which are built are the most extraordinary lights,” and French flags; for more intimate into the scenic wagons and are he says, adding that they offer “such scenes, the colors are subtly tinted. changed after every performance.) delicate colors and almost infinite In this way, he balances the show’s For the bulk of the stage action, positions.” He adds that these, plus combination of epic scenes and especially the large-scale musical VL1000TS units, VL2500 Spots, and small moments. numbers, Pilbrow needed a comple- VL5Bs do the majority of the work, The extremely diverse gear list ment of automated units that could coloring each scene, setting its tone includes 21 Vari*Lite VL3500Q Spots, make big effects while tracking the and atmosphere. nine VL1000TS units, two VL2500 action as it sweeps across the stage. Another key item on the designer’s Spots, four VL5Bs, six DHA Digital

www.lightingandsoundamerica.comwww.lightingandsoundamerica.com • November • November 2008 2008 • 63 The Bastille prison. David Zinn’s costumes run the gamut from peasant rags to aristocratic fashions.

Light Curtains, 12 DHA Pitching effects, which are used to underline mare. The solution, however, was Digital Light Curtains, about 400 ETC the starkly dramatic qualities of found using the latest technology. Source Fours in various models and Pilbrow’s lighting, are provided by Working with his programmer, degree sizes, six Arri Junior 5Ks, 156 three LeMaitre Low Smoke Robert Bell, Pilbrow made use of birdies for the mobile set pieces, 16 Generators, four LeMaitre Silent the Light Palette’s real-world GAM Stik-Ups, two PAR 64 MFLs, Storm snow machines, two MDG programming language to quickly six mini-tens, five T3 ministrips, 40 Atmosphere hazers, four Look create cues. The console’s Universal additional mini-strips, 41 Philips Solutions Viper II smoke machines, Attribute Control function, developed Solid-State Lighting ColorBlast 12s, one Look Solutions Tiny Fogger, one by Bell, allows one to make creative two Philips ColorBlaze 48s, six Look Solutions Power Tiny Fogger, choices in everyday language (“15° ColorBlaze 72s, two Lycian 1290XLT three Cryojets, four Jem fans, and left, color light blue, shutters close in, and two Lycian 1271s Starklite II three Bowen fans. The production’s and rotate 12°”), rather than naming followspots, and 26 Wybron Coloram abundant special effects—including everything with abstruse collections II color scrollers. fog, haze, and simulated pyro—were of numbers. At the same time, the Also included in the gear list are designed by Gregory Meeh. production team took advantage of four Martin Atomic 3000 strobes, four The lighting and effects are the console’s network connectivity to Diversitronics PAR 64 strobes, three controlled by a Strand Light Palette, work with other systems to provide Bowens 1000 strobes, three Wildfire and thereby hangs yet another tale. advanced video displays and mes- LT-404F UV units, seven TPR F1-150 With over 1,300 channels in the show, saging. Thus, Pilbrow was hooked up fiber-optic illuminators, four Pilbrow was eager to set up a system to WYSIWYG, his preferred previsual- Rosco/DHA Double Gobo Rotators, that would allow him to design—and ization tool (he pioneered its use on two GAM SX4 Film/FX units, 74 modify—the lighting quickly and easily. Broadway in the 1997 musical The LEDtronics Red LED arrays, 36 He’s not the first lighting designer to Life), and to Virtual Magic Sheet, the LEDtronics UV LED arrays, and 36 express the concern that today’s software program that provides a City Theatrical Flicker Candles. rigs have become so complex and sophisticated, yet easily readable, Lighting gear was provided by PRG. instrument-heavy that merely keeping overview of lighting control informa- The show’s abundant atmospheric track of them can be a small night- tion. With it, every lighting channel,

November 2008 • Lighting&Sound America its color, direction, and intensity, is on display. The VMS display can be connected to the Light Palette via Wi-Fi, allowing the designer to monitor his lighting from anywhere in the theatre. (Pilbrow notes that Eric Cornwell, who developed VMS, was a regular presence at the production table; he provided more than three dozen upgrades to the software during production.) This approach allowed the designer to observe the stage, and, using VMS, seek out the right units to add or modify a cue, then preview the results in WYSIWYG, before communicating the change to Bell. Thanks to this system, says Pilbrow, the entire show, 350-plus cues in all, was essentially programmed in a matter of hours.

The sound of the falling blade Carl Casella, who co-designed the show’s sound with Domonic Sack, notes that the show’s structure, as well as Walton’s design, provided definite challenges from the get-go. “One major issue is that the music rarely stops,” Casella notes. “Even Most of the cast have Sennheiser 5212 wireless systems with DPA 4061 capsules; in the dialogue scenes, there’s Natalie Toro (Madame Defarge, above and top) uses a Sennheiser MKE2. underscoring. We have a fairly large orchestra, and were concerned about are used “to give impact to the sound the way across the front, so that they it sounding like the actors were effects.” Providing underbalcony will appear to be a built-in molding on speaking through mics at every coverage is a set of d&b audiotechnik the fascia as opposed to an erratic moment. Also, the set isn’t masked at E3s and E0 boxes. series of speakers with variable gaps all. That’s part of the design, and it Still, there was that problem of between them?’ We couldn’t because looks great, but, from our point of providing sound to the first few rows they’re too expensive, so he had the view, it’s a challenge. The center of the orchestra—those who, it must props department make fake units, to cluster is very high—and when you be noted, have paid the most for their fill out the line of speakers across the place it that high, the sound goes right seats. As Casella points out, when forestage. Eight or ten of them on over the heads of the people sitting in the cluster is placed so high, “you’re each side are fake.” the first six rows of the orchestra.” seeing the stage in front of you and There’s also a surround system, The main loudspeaker system the sound is going over your head. consisting of EAW JF80s on both the consists of Meyer Sound M’elodie It’s fatiguing to put that back balcony and orchestra levels. line array elements—four on either together.” The solution was a series “They’re used for the thunder and side of the proscenium with a Meyer of ribbon tweeters from LjudDesign storm effects especially,” says UPA box placed below. The center Scandinavia, or LDS: “They’re Casella. [Also those shocking cluster features 11 M’elodies. (Casella screwed flat onto the fascia of the guillotine effects.] “They’re used in notes that the compact size of the stage,” he says. “They bring the the Act II scene when Carton is M’elodies was a real plus factor here.) sound image down a lot. We have 16 deciding to give up his life and he Four Meyer 650 HP subs—two on the tweeters; once they were in, Tony hears little Lucie [the daughter of ground and two flown off the truss Walton asked, ‘Can you put them all Lucie and Charles Darnay] saying her

www.lightingandsoundamerica.comwww.lightingandsoundamerica.com • November • November 2008 2008 • 65 prayers. At that moment, he’s in the every day, but the company’s first too canned. You can lose some of front of house, and she’s in the digital console has a real fan in your timbre changes. In this show, surround system.” It’s an approach Casella. “It’s breathtaking,” he says. the underscoring needed to be the that effectively recreates the idea of “Whatever we wanted to do, the board underscoring. Also, we have 17 a sound of the girl’s voice in let us do. When the cast members are people playing in an open pit; it’s not Carton’s mind. wearing hats, we can switch easily that soft.” He adds that he is pleased The set’s multiple levels made for from one mic to the other. Madame with the overall mix, which, it must be a more-complex-than-usual monitor DeFarge’s big solo, ‘Out of Sight, Out said, sounds quite natural. “That’s system as well. “We have four of Mind,’ is almost a rock number, and because everything was carefully monitors [Meyer UPAs] on the lighting the whole timbre of the sound has to timed and focused,” he adds. “There trusses upstage and downstage,” change for it. The board allowed us to are about 18 different zones in the says Casella, “plus two EAW JF80s program it differently—and, the next theatre, all timed to put the sounds of above the rigging, facing straight day, there it was again. He adds, the voices back onstage.” down. Also, there are d&b E3s in the “When you sweep through the EQ on deck, plus four Meyer M1Ds on the a digital board, it’ll step, which can The best of times proscenium, all of which were picked drive you crazy. On an analog desk, Many others were involved in the for their size. All the monitors are it’s linear. Here, the EQ sounds exactly production as well. They include addressed independently, because like it does on an analog desk. I don’t Christopher C. Smith (production we don’t want to have them on when know how Midas did it.” supervisor), Heather Wolensky we don’t need them.” Interestingly, he Wallace Flores, the show’s asso- (associate set designer); Jeremy notes, one unusual feature of the ciate sound designer, also notes that Chernick (associate special effects); orchestrations is the absence of a the board’s “POP[ulation] and VCA David Towlun (props coordinator); piano, which normally would be used groups are useful, because they bring Olgo Rogova (prop development); to key the singers. “There are times the complete channel to me like no Rebecca Lustig (general assistant to when they get their cue from a flute other digital desk. The show has a Walton); Kathleen Dobbins, Graham or a viola, which are not loud 17-piece orchestra and 35 wireless Kindred, and Jay Scott (assistant instruments onstage. That’s another mics, and, starting with the lighting designers); Michael J. Ward reason why we tailored the monitors compression on the input channels, (head electrician); Erik Hansen (head to the needs of each scene.” we have four different algorithims that carpenter); Bob Hale (light board The majority of the cast members we can fly through and audition for operator) Russ Dobson (assistant are outfitted with Sennheiser 5212 particular voices or instruments in any carpenter, deck automation); James wireless systems, coupled with the given on-stage situation. Once W. Sturek (fly automation); Paul Ker DPA 4061 mics. James Barbour, who assigned, the groups and individual (production spotlight); Tom Burke, plays Carton; Natalie Toro, who plays inputs therein are accessible at the Robert Miller, and John Blixt Madame Defarge; and Brandi touch of a color-coded POP group (spotlight operators); Ty Lackie Burkhardt, who plays Lucie, are all button, rather than buried under layers (sound operator); Dawn Makay double-miked. Toro and one or two or pages. The VCAs allow us precise (production/head properties); and others have the Sennheiser MKE2. In control and contain the levels coming Chris Makay (assistant properties). the pit, the strings are miked with from each voice or instrument in each As we go to press, the show’s Schoeps units, except for the cello, group. Also, a system tech or designer future is uncertain, but all involved which has a pair of Neumann TLM can use the area ‘B’ section to access express a great deal of satisfaction 49s on a stereo bridge, about 8" any and all of the channels—even at realizing Dickens’ sprawling story apart. Neumann is used for the per- those being used by the mix engi- on stage. Overall, the problem was cussion and French horn as well. The neer—to rebalance or alter dynamics one of streamlining; the show’s trumpets and timpani have Sennheiser or gates on an instrument without designers have put their technology MD 421s; reeds are on AKG C 391s. getting in the way of the mixer.” to the task of telling a complex story The keyboards are direct. The musi- Casella adds that he and Sack as simply and economically as cians use the Aviom personal monitor worked closely with Kevin Stites, the possible. It’s a design that is less mixing system. (All the gear was musical director about managing the about creating spectacle than supplied by Sound Associates.) sound: “We had serious discussions serving a text. One imagines that Making its Broadway debut is the about the show’s dynamics. You don’t realizing it has been an adventure Midas XL8 mixing console. Midas is want all the dynamics to go through equal to anything experienced by not a brand you see on Broadway the console; it makes the show sound Sydney Carton and company.

November 2008 • Lighting&Sound America