Chicago Scenic Builds Major Scenic Elements for Joffrey's I/DNA
Chicago Scenic was hired to provide the scenic elements for the Joffrey Ballet’s world premiere of the theatrical dance piece entitled I/DNA, at the Auditorium Theatre. The show, written by Joffrey founder and artistic director Gerald Arpino and directed by Wen Hui, touched on the controversial issues of the death penalty and the killing of the innocent. Project Manager Gary Heitz worked with Keith Prisco and Todd Mielcarz of Joffrey on the project.

One of the scenic elements Chicago Scenic provided was a large electric chair. The nearly nine-foot-tall chair was made of wood and steel and had adjustable electrodes, arm straps, and power cords. Job Lead Ken Glucksberg built the chair in the carpentry department and Paint Department Head Kevin Taylor added the final touches with spattered blood-red paint.

A painted 30-foot-tall by 60-foot-wide backdrop was the other major scenic element CSSI created. Set Designer Ming Cho-Lee provided Taylor with a digital photograph of dark clouds over a glowing sunset as the design. Taylor used super saturated scenic paint on translucent muslin cloth to get a transparent dye effect that allowed for backlighting and other lighting effects created by Lighting Designer Howell Binkley. Portions of the backdrop were covered during the opening of the show and slowly revealed as the show progressed.


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