***This feature story was written by Jacie Hinton, a participant in The Kewanee Voice Student Journalism Program, and is the second part of a series on The making of a musical. The SJP program is funded by the Harry Anderson Memorial Trust.
During a production, the actors tell 50% of the story, and the other half goes to the set design and crew working behind the scenes to bring the play to life. While transforming a set into a new world, set design allows people to express themselves and get lost in their work. That was certainly the case for Susan Blake, the veteran designer for Heather Olalde’s Kewanee High School musical productions.
Blake first came to KHS in 1977 and has been working on KHS productions ever since. Initially, she didn’t realize how big designs would get until she got to work with Olalde. The process of designing the sets is tradition for these ladies.
“We look online for different sets, Broadway sets, whatever,” said Blake. “We have our ideas and we meet over coffee.”
After that, Blake gets to work. “I go home and I draw it on graph paper…then, I make a three-dimensional set out of cardstock,” she said. Using this technique allows for Olalde, the crew, and set design to get an idea on how to approach the “big design.”
When asked what the best part of designing the SpongeBob The Musical, Blake said the best part of designing the sets for the new KHS musical is the autonomy she’s provided in their creation.
“The best part is the freedom,” she said, and when she sees the kids and all the effort they put in, she is happy to take the paper home and work her “magic,” as she likes to say. “They have to get the first layer done…and for them to finish that first layer, that makes me very happy.”
She looks for the best qualities in kids on crew and set design.
“If a student is motivated and focused, they are in everything in their life and they’re going to be a success,” said Blake.
After all the hours, the brush strokes, and various gallons of paint, Blake said the most rewarding feeling she gets out of the productions is “audience response.”
“The kids and I are so proud when the curtains open up, and the people see the stage and they all just, you know, the “ooh’s” and the “ahh’s,” and I know the kids are just as proud,” Blake said.
The set for “SpongeBob The Musical” will be on display at the KHS Peterson Auditorium Saturday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m. or Sunday, Jan. 14 at 2 p.m.
