Meditation #2 -- Katie Marchant -- 2/4/07

Because I am more of a technical theatre minded person, when reading Prometheus Bound I focused more on how the lighting would affect the play rather than the staging of the actors themselves. If I were to produce this show in the present time I would stage it on a proscenium thrust stage with a very tall arch. I envision a backdrop of dull grey mountains and a huge set piece in front of the drop that is the boulder Prometheus is bound to and some other rock platforms on SR and SL for the chorus dancers and the other characters to use to get somewhat close to Prometheus but there would be some sort of break in the platforms that creates a division between Prometheus and the others.

To keep things simple I would only use red, blue, amber and white lights. The opening scene would be very dark to the extent where the audience can only just see the characters onstage to create a sense of fear. The scenes that are calmer like when the chorus first arrives would be blue on the mountain with amber and white on the thrust. Then the scenes that are louder and where Prometheus gets angry would build to amber and red to show the audience Prometheus’ energy and feelings. For the ending scene I would have a dark stage with a single tight spot on Prometheus’ face for the ending line then a very sudden blackout.

I feel that lighting is very key in showing the emotions and feelings of the characters and the play in general. If a show is lit wrong it can throw off the whole meaning. Because the main character is bound to a rock and the only way he can express himself is though his voice, facial expressions and small movements, having lighting that mimics the emotion can be very helpful for an audience to understand the play.