Little Mermaid Tactile Exhibit

SCENIC ARTItem Description: A sampling of scenic art and props is displayed, including scenic elements specifically created for our production of Jesus Christ Superstar. Elements on display include a sample of concrete made of carved foam, an illustration of how fluted columns are made, examples of the candles used onstage, and a booklet of the different kinds of fabric and painting treatments used in the show. Carved Foam Concrete Samples There are many places in the set where concrete is meant to be crumbling or broken away. To achieve this look, we mount foam to the wooden facing of the set. This foam then is carved to create cracks or jagged broken moments.The sample on the left is carved foam that has been sealed with an acrylic sealer. There is some corn cob grit used in the cracks to give more texture.The sample on the right is the same technique after it has been painted.Column Fluting ProcessThis is a small-scale sample of our process for constructing a faux column. Working from left to right, this sample shows the progression of paint treatments.1.  We used cardboard mailing tubes cut into crescents and mounted together side by side to a large cardboard backing tube 2.  The flutes then are covered in muslin fabric and glue to create a seamless surface3.  The muslin then gets a texture paste layer to develop a concrete texture4.  Then multiple layers of paint are built up to create the finished concrete lookCandle ClusterThese candles are made of PVC pipe with electric tea lights inside. The dripping wax is made up of a mix of silicone caulk, hot glue, and bubble wrap for added body.  They are then painted.Painted Scenic Fabric BookletThere is a large selection of painted fabric in this show. In this booklet, you can see how the unpainted material changes in texture and weight after its paint treatment. We used a lot of poly silk in this show. Poly silk is a polyester fabric that mimics real silk’s weight but is more durable and robust. It is a little harder to paint than silk because it doesn’t absorb dye in the same way, so we paint it using watered down acrylics. 1.  Raw muslin2.  Painted muslin (Temple banners)3.  Raw poly silk4.  Painted poly silk (large poster banners)5.  Piped and painted poly silk (stained glass grid wall)6.  Yellow poly silk 7.  Painted yellow poly silk (Jesus’s cloth)8.  Purple velour drape9.  Silver velour drape[BP1]  FUN FACTSTwenty gallons of acrylic texture paste were used on the set.There are approximately 400 hand-made candles on stage.You can access the names of The 5th's production team in your show program.

COSTUME SWATCHESItem description: Different costume swatches are gathered on a ring. Each of them represents a costume used in Jesus Christ Superstar, and all of them provide a diverse range of bright colors and fun textures. Each swatch is stapled to a corresponding card that lists the associated character or moment in the show. About the Item: The costume design for this version of Jesus Christ Superstar is set in a not-so-distant future that is influenced by the past. One could say this is a show set in the 2030s but influenced by Italian fascism of the 1930s. The fabric swatches included here depict that world.  The characters aligned with the establishment and Rome, such as Pilate, Herod, Caiaphas, Annas, and the priests, are clothed in regal and expensive-looking fabrics like velvets, silks, satins, and polished twills. The establishment’s color palette is made up of shades of royal blue, red, royal purple, and silver. The fabrics and colors exude wealth, importance, and status.  Jesus, Judas, Mary Magdalene and the rest of the apostles and disciples are part of the rebellion. Their clothing fabrics are softer in color, more earthy, and more utilitarian; their costumes have an artsy, working class feeling. The colors are saturated for the lead roles to help differentiate them from the larger group of disciples and apostles, but, overall, they feel like the opposite of the world of the establishment and Rome. For the “Superstar” musical number, we dive into a fully glam world. The dresses you see on the Soul Singers are influenced by the 1930s in terms of their style, but they are made in a sparkly stretch velvet, and the embellishments have a modern feel, such as gold chain fringe and sheer gold sequined and beaded fabrics. The fabrics you see on Judas for this number are also elevated and are modeled after the glam rock world of the 1970s. His cape is made of many different metallic sequin fabrics on a base of metallic silver; the combination is meant to look like he is radiating light beams. The fabrics picked for this scene evoke the glam rock world that is indicated in the music.You will also notice swatches on the ring that are used in the scene with the lepers. These fabrics were purchased because they appear to have a bandagelike and ragged texture; they can also be layered and painted to look more distressed.As you watch the show, pay attention to the different silhouettes of the costumes worn by the cast. At first appearance, they may seem entirely modern or may look like the 1930s. In reality, they come from a blend of time periods to create a world unique to this version of Jesus Christ Superstar. The design not only takes inspiration from various time periods, but also some art and architectural movements. For example, the angular lines of Italian Brutalism figure strongly into the designs worn by Herod, Pilate, Caiaphas, and Annas. The clothes that the actors are wearing are a mixture of pieces made specifically for the show, some vintage clothing from the 1930s, and items from modern fashion brands. Blood effect for the 39 lashesIn the framed shadow box, you will find a sample of the effect used to create the blood during the 39 lashes scene towards the end of the show. The lashing happens on stage and there is not enough time to apply a makeup blood effect and let it dry for the crucifixion moment. Instead, we decided to create a skin tone tank top that would be worn by Jesus. The tank top has the chest tattoo you see glimpses of on stage, as well as the lashing wounds. The tank top is made from a fabric called “souffle,” (pronounced soo-full) which is a sheer and stretchy nylon synthetic fabric that comes in various skin tones. Souffle is mesh-like and appears nearly invisible when color-matched to an actor’s skin tone and pul