Hudson’s Portfolio

The Show The first show I worked on was Anne Frank. It was set during WWII and it was based on the diary of a young girl who, with her family, was hiding from the NAZIs due to their Jewish identity. The set was an attic that the Frank family shared with others. It was suppose to be a cramped living space, as it showed the close proximity of many people living together for a long period of time who out of fear and safety could not leave.

The Set The set was built into different levels. There was a set of stairs leading to the main living area, with elevated levels for the back living area, one bedroom, as well as the attic. There were also steps leading down to Anne’s room. There was a total of five different elevations.

My Work I helped construct the major platforms that were used for the attic. As you can see in the picture, they had to sit on top of other platforms that made up the main living area. We also had to figure out a way to keep them from blocking other parts of the set while still being visible to the audience. The attic platforms were 8 feet high from the bedroom platform, which was 4 feet off the ground already. This made the attic 12 feet high total. We also connected them into a backwards “L” shape to prevent them from blocking.

More Platforms Even though the whole set was raised, we didn’t want to put a skirt on the front platforms. We wanted the audience to see the elevation, to bring them “into” the play so they would feel what was going on. We also wanted to make the audience feel uncomfortable with the actors constantly at different levels.

Paint Crew I also helped paint the flats which made up the walls of the living area. We used a forest green as the base color, but then used a bluish-grey to color a pattern onto the wall to give it a worn look. We also created a “torn” look to make it look like the brick wall was coming through.

My Challenges Because the attic platform was so high, we had to make sure it was stable enough to hold the weight of the performers and not have it swaying side to side. The biggest challenge was making it stable enough, without making it too cumbersome for the actors to get around (i.e, too many braces). We did a trio of braces on each back post, then put a stabilizing brace across the back posts.

Bracing the Platforms

My Teamwork I couldn’t have built the platforms alone. I worked in a group with Tim, JP, and Isaac. We worked in pairs to put the posts in, which allowed us to get the job done more efficiently. Due to the high elevation of the attic, we had to use caution and safely move the platforms and then anchor them to the floor so they wouldn’t fall over. We were very aware that the height made the platform a dangerous place to be while we were still working on it.

What tools did I use? For creating the platform, we used the drill press to make the holes, then used the air compressor and ratchet set to tighten the bolts and make them snug. We also used anchor screws (2”) for the braces to drill into the stage floor. For the painting, we used rollers and paint brushes, and then Zeph used the jigsaw to create the template out of wood so that we could make the pattern on the flats.

What did I learn? First, I learned that it was important to work with my group and not argue, as arguing delayed our progress. I also learned that sometimes the bolts are stripped, or the nuts don’t go on smoothly, and you have to be creative in getting everything to fit right. The biggest lesson I learned was that if I was lazy or did shoddy work, there was a chance that the platform could fall and injure myself, one of my group members, or an actor who was performing.