Staging choices

Who's this? Michael Boyd is the director.

Context: Tom Piper, the designer for this production of Hamlet, has worked with Michael Boyd for 12 years. A director and designer often strike up a long-term partnership when their ways of thinking and working help to stimulate creativity.

Most designers create a model box for the production which allows them to share their ideas with other members of the creative team.

There are many considerations when designing for the stage. First there is the basic nature of the playing space - for this production a circular central playing area and a curved back wall. Then the many details of the set: in this case, the texture of the floor, the height of the wall at the back, the nature of any openings in this wall and whether there should be any paths or corridors. All these decisions must be made in ways that accommodate the action and also communicate the required atmosphere, here the contrast between the early formality and confidence of the court and the growing air of suspicion and corruption.