gallery 7

Set Build: Anastasia

Anastasia closed recently at Gallery 7 Theatre. Here are a few build pics. It was a large set with lots of locations; despite being enhanced by projections there was still a large set stretching across the stage.

Set was designed by Hayley Bamford and was built by me, with help from several volunteers.

The curved stairs were designed well and fairly easy to build. The railings were a bigger challenge – curved with balusters. Here is a post with a video that shows how the foam balusters were made.

Load in Day came and went and we got everything together and painted. The 11-foot high truck with curved stairs attached worked better than expected. Re-painting the 12- and 18-foot high screens took a lot of my time (to help the projections pop better).

The following official production photos were taken by Dianna Lewis and are copyrighted. They may not be altered or used for commercial purposes. (Credits: Directed by Kate Muchmore Woo, Lighting and Projections by Gabe Kirkley, Costumes by Shannon Tauber, Set Design by Hayley Bamford, Choreography by Corinna Richmond, Props by Becki Cormier)

Video: Creating Foam Balusters for Anastasia

Here is a video I made for Gallery 7 about the process of carving custom foam balusters for Anastasia railings. Most of it focuses on the work of my dad, Chris, who did the lion’s share of the work. (Note: set design and painting was done by Hayley Bamford.)

Set Build: Miracle on 34th St.

Gallery 7‘s nearly-sold-out production of Miracle on 34th St runs for another week. Here are a few build photos.

Set Design is by Sheldon Jeans, Director is Sarah Green.

Stairs, stairs and more stairs… it took 5 days in the shop to make mirror sets of these: 14 curved steps, had to be portable, had to be able to walk under the top part…

Then there were some curvy flats with 3 elevator doors (thanks to my dad for helping with those!), some stanchions, a “Macy’s” cut-out, and (les Pièce de résistance) 3 ugly desks.

what do you think? am i up for the “desk maker of the year” award??

Alright… how did Dalton manage to get on here twice?? (not that he didn’t deserve it) (truck ad: load-up day)

The coroplast cityscape gave us a few problems. It needed extra reinforcement because it was sitting on the second story platform, which despite being quite solid, did move a little…just enough to make the cityscape “wave in the wind…” fortunately some of our volunteers were kind enough to come help fix (most of) that! Thanks Josh, Steve, and Chris!

The troublesomely ubiquitous elevator door hardware

It was a cool, abstract set–great design work by Mr. Jeans! However with the curved stairs, the large platform, the 40 foot wide x 19 foot high city-scape and the six elevator doors…it was time consuming to put together. Plus…I will not mention the half-unexpected mid-run strike! =)

Here is a time-lapse video I took of the main load-in day. It doesn’t show the final bit but you get the idea of the amount of work involved!

The following official Gallery 7 rehearsal/publicity photos are copyrighted and may not be altered or used for other purposes. They were taken by Dianna Lewis Photography. (Lighting by Arty Urdabayev, Directed by Sarah Green, Set Design by Sheldon Jeans, props by Evan Rachwalski, costumes by Kimberley Perkins, Hair and Makeup by Jessica Blanchard)

Anne (of Green Gables) Set Design and Build

Anne recently closed a successful run at Gallery 7 Theatre in Abbotsford in November. Set design started in the summer, and building happened in October. Below are some pictures of the model I made. The concept was simple: a block house, a tree, and a truck and flat that moved on/off in front of a sharktooth scrim.

New this year, I was asked to make a window for marketing photos as well as for patrons to take selfies with. I asked one of our volunteers, Steve, to make a sliding window, and then I build a small stand for it:

Then I started the “real” build…

My volunteer, Linda, helped a lot those first few weeks as we built and painted our way through Avonlea.

My dad, Chris, was kind enough to help with some special effects – we had some motorized wagon wheels and a motorized “sinking” boat. He also helped build a floor and a roof:

More building…

Chris, Rachel, and Dayton were a big help on a chilly paint day:

The train schedule was a fun little detail to add:

And then it was load-in day! Always appreciate help on this full day!

Here are a few photos from tech week – lighting was starting to build their cues:

Opening Night came! Can you spot the outline of Green Gables behind the scrim?

More official company photos:

Photos below are copyrighted; please do not alter them or use them for other works. Photos by Dianna Lewis Photography. (Set by Andrew Potts, Directed by Nelly Fargeon, Lighting by Ken Hildebrandt, Costumes by Vicki Bolan, Hair and Makeup by Avrey JantzKrahn, Props and some set dec by Dianna Lewis)

Set Build: Sound of Music

I recently finished the build for Gallery 7’s production of Sound of Music. It was two full weeks plus a bit; we had quite a few volunteers helping as well. It is mostly flies that drop down in different configurations to set the scene. Tickets available until March 24 at www.gallery7theatre.com. (Many shows have sold out so far.)

Design is by Jeff Kiers.

Here’s a few pictures from the build process and also a few from tech week.

A Tale of Two Cities – Design and Build

Gallery 7‘s production of A Tale of Two Cities is now playing at Abbotsford Arts Centre. I designed and built the set. Here are some pictures!

Design was fairly simple: Floor with trapdoor, a couple of risers, and backdrop of a city skyline, with some furniture to create different scenes.

These show some of the build in progress: windowframes, flooring, candelabras, wedding arch, walls, trapdoor stage plug, chairs.

There were also some custom barrels which I cover in detail in this blog post.

The backdrop was a large undertaking, being 30 feet wide by 15 feet high, with windows that could be lit from behind.

It was flown in, so needed to be structurally sound. It was constructed of 2×2 SPF and recycled coroplast. Windows were painted muslin. Brick work was painted with a roller with slats cut out and dipped in various colours of paint.

(Director: Gabe Kirkley; Lighting: Ken Hildebrandt; Costumes: Dani DeJong; Props: Becki Cormier; Set Design: Andrew Potts)

Secret Garden take 2

Gallery 7’s production of The Secret Garden (the musical) finally took place 3 years after it was postponed by the advent of Covid-19 in Canada. It played in March 2023 at the Abbotsford Arts Centre.

For those 3 years, I was able to store most of the set in G7’s storage container, plus a bit at their office and a bit in my workshop. It was a matter of re-assembling what we had, checking with the stage management team about any changes, and finishing the paint job.

The set is divided into two main parts: the house, and the garden. Flies, scrims, and wheeled set pieces were used.

Set Design is by Matthew Piton. Set Coordination (painting, greenery) is by Andrew Potts and Charlene Crawford. Props and Set Dec by Dianna Lewis. Director: Ken Hildebrandt. Lighting Design: Gabe Kirkley. Costumes by Dani DeJong. Stage Management: Brittany Suderman.

Here are some photos from Load-In:

Here are some publicity photos, taken by Dianna Lewis: (click on picture to see entire image)

And here is the large cast!

It was a haunting, beautiful, artistic, complicated show with lots of heart and soul. But, all good things come to an end. I have stored some of the set, but a large part of it has been repurposed, given away, or sold. Onto the next one!

Set Build – Murder on the Orient Express

The latest show for Gallery 7 is now playing. The set was a large one with a few complications. Following are some photos of the build.

Set Design including paint is by Jeff Kiers and Director is Kate Muchmore Woo.

Jeff’s creative design was shared as a model:

He also provided basic dimensions and (most importantly) fly line locations for the 3 flies.

I realized that to build this I would need to draw this out to make sense of it. There are a few moving parts.

Then I divided it up into parts: risers, steps, walls, flies, observation deck, benches.

Here are some pictures of the flies. I made them in 8×12 sections with plenty of cross-bracing to help eliminate sag. (They are 24 feet long) One fly has 3 working doors so had to be structurally sound.

There is a wall that flips down to become a floor for scene changes. It is heavy as it is made of 3 sheets of 3/4″ plywood.

Jeff painted the outside of the train, and my assistant carpenter Karen worked on walls.

Things started to come together but there was still so much to do!

I was treated to a beautiful double rainbow at the workshop one January afternoon…

Load-in day at the venue came and with several volunteers we got the basic set together so that lighting design could commence.

It’s always nice to see things start to come together under the lights!

Set Build-The Magician’s Nephew

Gallery 7 Theatre’s production of The Magician’s Nephew opens tonight, and tickets are available here.

As per usual, I was the construction manager for this show. Director is Gabriel Kirkley, and Set design is by Jeff Kiers. As this show takes us through different locales including the present day, 19th century London, and the creation of the world of Narnia, the set is not uber-realistic but more symbolic.

I try not to give too much away with my photos, but here are a few of the process. The main set item was crates – lots of them. There are 12 2×2 crates (quite large!), 6 weight-bearing cardboard boxes, and 6 small crates. Then there was a large tree with a screen, and some other bits and pieces. The thing that took the most time was making a lamppost and a tree grow up out of the stage. To do this, I made an elevator and a trap door.

One other thing I made was a pair of articulating wings for the flying horse. I will post that video here later.

Set Build – Baskerville

Another set build! They just don’t stop. I guess that’s why I’m so behind on my other work!

This one is for Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Story, playing at Abbey Arts in March. See Gallery 7 for more details.

Set Design is by Jeff Kiers.

Here are a few pictures of parts of the set in production (1.5 weeks). The stage itself is relatively simple, but there are quite a few pieces that are flown in or wheeled in. It is ready for painting!