Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/610353
P E R S P E C T I V E | N OV E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 5 55 finishes and dramatic minimalism, offered a perfect background to this end. It is an instrument unto itself, with its fine wood stage and undulating walls, and a prominent feature used to shape the sound, called the cloud, a structure of sixty-five acrylic positionable convex panels suspended directly over the stage and producing a dramatic kaleidoscopic reflection of stage and performer. Indeed, Davies Hall had a great deal to offer as a location; it also came with its own challenges. Because the facility is working daily to host the Symphony, our production's footprint had to be minimized. First, we were required to shoot nights only. Second, we were only allowed to install set pieces and decoration, including the very delicate nest of glowing iMacs, immediately before shooting. Lastly, at the daily wrap, it all had to be removed. For these long nights, Art Director Peter Borck shepherded the team with tireless energy and zeal. Due, in part, to these limitations, the use of Davies Hall had to be limited to its stage and wing areas. Action continuing backstage beyond the wings needed a much larger space and to provide additional angles that could not be accommodated at the location. For that, an 11,000-square-foot set was built across the bay, in Alameda at the old naval base. In order to link the location with the set, the location's wings were matched, complete with its nest of glowing iMacs, and a massive labyrinth of backstage corridors was attached as well. This way, only one cut at a wing door was needed to connect the walk-and-talks leading from the stage, into the long corridors, and eventually, Steve's VIP dressing room. Doug Williams' construction team and Gene Serdena's set dressers worked feverishly to produce Top: The iMAC nest set built to match the stage left wings of the Davies Symphony Hall location in San Francisco. Center: An overview of the Davies Symphony Hall stage setting for the iMAC launch in Act 3. Above: The dressing room set to match Davies Symphony Hall. Mr. Dyas says, "I was trying to integrate the Apple aesthetic into the architecture by the third act to hint at the company's global design influence in the 1990s."