The Importance of Being EarnestBy Oscar Wilde

Tina Vu, Daniel Vo, Celeste Dao, Emily NguyenGroup 89

Set DirectorCeleste Dao

Objectives

0 Creating and environment for the performers and performance.0 Helping set the mood and style of the production.0 Helping distinguish realistic from non-realistic theatre.0 Establishing the locale and period in which the play takes place.0 Evolving a design concept with the director and other designers.0 Where appropriate, providing a central image or visual

metaphor for the production.0 Ensuring that the scenery is coordinated with other production

elements.0 Solving practical design problems. (This has more to do with an

actual set)

Environment

0Taking how the characters talk and act to capture what kind of environment the play takes place

0Creating a set to keep the audience’s attention

Mood and Style

0The way the stage is set up can determine the mood of the play0 ex: using shapes and color

Realistic and Non-realistic

0Realistic theatre has real life components0A kitchen or bedroom would look like a standard

kitchen or bedroom that you would see in houses0Nonrealistic theatre using imagination to show the

importance in a scene0Using symbols

Locale and Period0The stage design should show when and where the

play takes place0The time period and what room/outlay of the place

the play is taking place0 In the late 1800’s or present day0 In a bedroom or outsidein a garden

Design concept

0The design concept is an idea that is shown visually0Very important when showing a the time or setting of

the play shifting

The Central Image or Visual Metaphor

0Using a main component to capture the scene as a whole0 A main image that the stage focuses on that can be use

for a set

Coordination of the Whole0Using certain elements and a main symbol should stay

consistent with the play and the director’s perception.0For realistic theatre, the setting shouldn’t take away

from the other elements of the production of the play0The stage design should add to the production, but

not be the main focus

Lighting Director

Tina Vu

Objectives

0Provide visibility0Reveal shapes and forms0Provide focus onstage & create visual compositions0Assist in creating mood & reinforce style0Help establish time and place0Establish rhythm of visual movements0Reinforce central visual image and/or establish visual

information

Provide Visibility

0To be able to see the performers faces and actions0 Act I: takes place during afternoon tea (4-7pm) in the

summer therefore the lighting would be relatively bright on stage

0Must maintain the mood and other light designer objectives along withillumination

Reveal Shapes and Forms

0Enhances the visual objects and actors within the play to make the scene more lively and interesting0 Act I: by using light through a

window on stage, it would create dimension to the scene(actor and objects); adding lamps to the luxurious setting will add interest in it as well as illuminating the actors slight movements

Focus & Composition0Beams of light, lighting what is the main focus on the

stage0 Act I: When Algernon walks away from Gwendolen and

Jack so they can talk privately, the lighting would refocus onto Gwendolen and Jack and Algernon would have a faint light to show that he is not of supreme importance

Mood & Style0Mood of audience can be manipulated by either how

bright or dark the lighting is0 Act II: When Cecily and Miss Prism are talking about

Cecily learning German, the lighting can be bright all over and playful but when Jack and Algernon explain the origin of Ernest, Gwendolen & Cecily are furious, the lighting can be a bit darker and narrowed down to only the four

Mood & Style (Con’t)

0Style can be determined as realistic or non-realistic setting0 Realistic: light from ordinary sources (lamps, sun, etc)0 Non-realistic: highly theatrical, colored lighting

Time and Place

0Lighting can determine the time by it’s dimness and angles0 Act I: Algernon and Jack goes to dinner soon at nearly

7pm, the lighting can be dimmer and shown through the window at a lower angle

Rhythm

0Rhythms has an affect on the audience’s interaction and understanding of the play

0Fading light can lead the audience to slowly think of what is to come next0 At the end of Act II, the lighting can slowly fade to elude

the audience as to what is to come next from the findings of Ernest

Reinforcement of Central Image

0This allows the lighting designer and director to play with the stage space to create multiple scenes in one setting0 Act III: When Jack is retrieving the hand bag, the lighting

can show Jack run off to get the bag in another part of the stage (his room) and return to the main acting area; allows for a more personal connection with the audience

Costume Director

Objectives

0Help establish the style of a production0 Indicate the historical period of a play0 Indicate the nature of individual characters or groups0Show relationships among characters0Symbolically convey significance of characters0Meet the needs of individual performers0Be consistent with the production as a whole

Style0The style of the production was very comedic

and dramatic in many ways.0 Characters dressed in well-tailored suits and

dresses that reflected off of their social status.0 The play consisted of dramatic ironies from

scene to scene. The play is a complete satire.

Historical Period

0 The play was created during the Victorian Era. 0 Marriage was a very big deal back in the 1890s. People would

marry depending on social status. 0 In Act I when Lady Bracknell chats with Jack Worthing about his

background history is a perfect example. Lady Bracknell is shocked and refuses to allow Jack to marry her daughter Gwendol. She refuses because Jack didn’t have any information about his parents and is of lower class.

Nature of Individuals0 Jack Worthing is a young man who is respected by many within the country but sadly leads a double

life. Even though he has a mysterious past, he still dwells in the city normally. 0 Algernon Moncrieff is a smart scholar and is the nephew of Lady Bracknell. Algernon is deceptive

just like Jack, leading a double life outside of the country. He has a very friendly personality to people in the country, but whenever he leaves to the city, he can get a bit rowdy.

0 Gwendol is the love of Jack Worthing’s life and is Lady Bracknell’s daughter. She is apart of the upper class and dresses very nicely. Coming from the upper class, she speaks with confidence in her words. She is a model in the country.

0 Lady Bracknell is a very strict old lady and is also Algernon’s aunt. She is the perfect example of the people back in the 1890s. She judges everyone by the class they are in. The wealthier the person is the more she’ll like them. She is very close-minded and is very controlling to her daughter.

0 Cecily Cardew is the daughter of Thomas Cardew and is still a teenager. She is described to be very beautiful in the play. She is very curious about the things around her. She slowly evolves throughout the play, recognizing her surroundings. She is full of compassion and slowly falls in love with Algernon.

0 Miss Prism is Cecily’s tutor and governess. She corrupts Cecily’s brain not allowing her to express her feelings. Even though she corrupts her about Jack’s brother, she still has a fun side to her when she talks about her book she written years ago.

0 Chasuble is a great listener that obeys Jack’s orders. He is very obedient, but his sermons could be a bit repetitive.

Relationships 0 Jack Worthing is the main protagonist of the story that is madly in love

with Gwendol.0 From Act I to Act 2, Gwendol is trying to find out who Cecily is and ends

up learning the truth0 Algernon is Jack’s friend that comes in contact with Cecily and begins to

have feelings for her0 Miss Prism and Chausable chats in the garden at Jack’s home and has a

little romance0 Algernon finds out that Jack is his older brother from Miss Prism0 Lady Bracknell is related to most of the characters in the play.0 Gwendol and Cecily only wants to marry the person if their name is

Ernest.

Symbols of Characters 0 The play consists of many ironies throughout the whole play. The title of the

play is the Importance of Being Ernest, but the whole play is full of deception.0 In Act II, Jack comes home pretending that his brother Ernest had died shows

how much insincere Jack is as a character. He completely lies to Cecily and Algernon.

0 Algernon and Jack pretend to be someone who their not. Algernon pretends to be Bunbury and Jack pretends to be Ernest, hence the title of the play. Being earnest means to be sincere but these guys are very mysterious and low key.

DirectorEmily Nguyen

Casting/Actors

0There are seven characters in the play, “The Importance of Being Earnest”.

0Out of the seven characters, Jack/Ernest, Algernon, Cecily, Gwendolen, and Lady Bracknell cannot be recycled between actors.

0 For actors, one of the requirements would be that they needed to be able to play of the English accent from the Victorian era.

0 They have to be comfortable wearing Victorian style clothing as well 0 For example there is no

“casual clothing”

Spine0The spine of the play revolves around the idea of

marriage. 0 In Act I, Jack/Ernest proposes to the love of his life,

Gwendolen.0 In Act II, Algernon proposes to Cecily.

0Ernest because engaged to two different woman because Jack made him up – and the consequence is that the woman and his ward fall in love with the man named Ernest, not the name Jack.

Style0The spine of the play is that marriage is important to

the “upper middle” class – the class that does well, but isn’t part of the royalty line.

0Therefore the style of the play will be based off of naturalism. 0 The style is naturalism because

the way Wilde describes the scenery in the beginning of each act, is very detailed.

Directorial Concept0Concept and Central Image

0 This is chosen because the play is mostly metaphoric.0 In Act I, Jack has to explain to Algernon that he is both

Jack and Ernest. 0Already, the viewer notices that this character is tied up in a

web of lies – that he has been caught. 0 In Act II, because Algernon has taken on the name

Ernest, he too is entangled in the lie that Jack created and was trying to destroy.