Building a 'Green Set'

Working to meet a budget can help the environment when designing an innovative set for an edgy comedy about faith and religion.

Dohn Grube faced the challenge when he sat down to design the set for Incorruptible, the Actor's Theatre of Santa Cruz's new play. His first thought: "I needed to find a source of cheap texture."

It turns out that environmentally-friendly and inexpensive are very compatible. "We decided to use recycled materials, and it was a great decision," says Dohn, an experienced set designer. "We saved a ton of money, and no trees were harmed in the creation of this set."

Dohn bought his fabric at the Goodwill Bargain Barn for $1 per pound. He found all of the lumber at the city dump for free. All of the aluminum is recycled, and he even used recycled paper bags to cover the books on the set's bookshelves. And, he is re-using props from previous productions: "I want to thanks Marcel Tjioe, the Technical Director at Cabrillo College Theatre Arts' Department." said Dohn.

"We have a very high-quality set, and the only purchases were for dump stock paint, fasteners, glue and some plexy glass." says Dohn.

There is more labor involved, since the materials need to be cleaned and milled before re-use. Dohn sees this as a positive, too. "This is a chance to hire the under-employed to help them create something. It's a way to create jobs in the community and restore a person's ability to work."

Dohn is excited about what he's done, but he puts it into perspective. "Above all, the Set Designer's job is to create the physical space for the story."