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Building Scotland in the DCA (part 1)

Posted by DCA Theater on June 23, 2011 in

New Leaf is like other ensembles in Chicago - with a twist. Instead of a core acting ensemble, New Leaf’s company is a producing ensemble composed of artists whose talents range from performing to directing to set, lighting, and sound design, who work with a new group of performers on each show to craft a unique world for our favorite new and classic plays. 

Coming to the DCA meant scaling up our normal process to include a much bigger staff of some our favorite technical collaborators - from technical director Caleb McAndrew (who engineered the swing set used by Young Silver, Molly, and um, the director), to Master Electrician Patrick Hudson of the Goodman (who helped us tame a particularly large lighting plot specified by New Leaf Lighting Designer Jared Moore ),
to Props Designer Jesse Gaffney (who took a unique vocal character of the Parrot developed by Scott Ray Merchant and crafted the gorgeous articulating puppet bird now seen in the show.) Together, an ensemble is able to create an incredibly detailed world that you can lose yourself in, following the cast as they thread the story through the space and moments of shadow and light, music and silence - all just steps from the bustle of the loop.