Tyranny Begins to Jet Upon the . . . Throne

Richard III (Ron Pyle) and Queen Anne (Katharine Golightly)
with six company members standing guard

The throne for Richard III: The Terrible Reign wanted a gothic, 15th-century feel to it, so we refurbished an old stage throne that had been used in previous productions and brought it into the world of the play—glossy, black, metal. My idea was that Richard would tolerate only one throne in his court and that Lady Anne would be seated at Richard's feet clearly in subjection to him. I decided that the throne also needed steps leading up to it and that Anne would perch awkwardly on one of them. The props folks added gothic motifs such as the quatrafoil, which gave us some rounded elements against the very linear floor and doorways. We use the same throne without the steps when Edward is on it at the beginning of the play and add the steps to show Richard's meteoric rise as well as his great ego.

The boys in the background, whom I have taken to calling "the goons" (Joseph Case, Nathan Duff, John Cox, Matt Jones, Lucas Walker, and James Krech), are adding elements of coldness, calculation, and efficiency to the play. Their costumes are a touch of Victorian but otherwise modern, and the cut of their vests gives them all broad shoulders. Their makeup (note the red under the eyes) is creepy and modern. They act as set-movers, extras in the crowd, guards, soldiers, etc. They are also responsible for lots of door opening and closing. These guys are super important for the crisp execution (no pun intended) of scene changes. When they are in sync, the effect of those doors opening (or closing) at exactly the right moment is awesome.