Private Eyes
Lighting Design
Private Eyes is a play based on broken trust and deception. Husband and wife Matthew and Lisa are rehearsing a two person play where the British director Adrian uses his power to seduce the beautiful Lisa. Matthew for a month denies the fact that his wife has been having an affair with their director. Through flashbacks in discussions with his psychiatrist Frank, Matthew starts from the beginning of the affair up to the very end when Adrian's wife Cory tracks him down to confront him on all of his "indiscretions." In fantasies of revenge that deviate from the truth along with the multiple layers that leave the audience doubting what is true, this play has a need for many different settings. The set design for this particular production is like a busy box, each wall folds out to reveal a new place. It starts with the rehearsal studio, then becomes Frank's office, then the final unfold it transforms into the hotel with a murphy bed that folds out. The box is the only set structure, to help delineate the action, the lighting becomes a strong point for the production. In terms of the lighting there are four main looks for the play. The rehearsal studio, the shrinks office, the hotel, and the restaurant. In those places there are sub looks for example in the restaurant there is a wait station where Cory and Matthew have a few exchanges. With the action of the play there are many times that there needs to be different types of isolation which either involves strong angles or a difference in color.
Production photos courtesy of Enrico Spada and Elizabeth Aspenlieder
