Visiting the Royal Shakespeare Company was a real treat for me. We walked in through the stage door, signed ourselves in, and then climbed the several flights of stairs up into Tom Piper's office.

His office was small and was filled with scraps of material from sets and costumes, scale models on tables, photos and drawings pinned to the walls, an artist's workshop indeed. There was a small watercolor picture of an eye tacked above the counter space and it struck my attention immediately. What a change from the archives and other places that had everything so neatly placed for visitors to see. This was definitely not a place to just look at, but a place to create, imagine, and build.

Speaking with Tom was very easy. We all had so many questions to ask him. It was exciting to get a chance to talk to an artist who has made a career in the theatre. Tom has worked on almost every Shakespeare play, which is very impressive considering how young he is. His work extends far beyond the role of the traditional set designer, as he is involved in all aspects of design for the Royal Shakespeare Company.

What I found most fascinating was the collaborative process and learning how to work as a team with the costume designer, the actors, the director, the producer, and even the audiences. It takes many creative, dedicated people to make a piece of theatre happen.

We enjoyed our time with Tom, albeit brief. The Royal Shakespeare Company was beginning a performance of Romeo and Juliet in just a few hours. Not a quiet moment backstage I suspect.

"Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow" (from Romeo and Juliet, very appropriate for RSC's opening tonight!)

Go to the next day >

Copyright © 2006 ProjectExplorer, LTD. All Rights Reserved.