
Set Design Sandy Yaklin
The Honeycomb (2015)
The Honeycomb Trilogy is three plays about an alien invasion set in a suburban home in Coral Gables, FL. In 2015, we remounted the plays in repetory. The challenge here was to radically alter the set between plays quickly and on a limited budget. The set needed to change in 20 minutes for marathon performances. This video by Rebecca Comtois shows that process.

This dress rehearsal pic shows the main control area and the periscope in a raised position. Photo by Michael Markham.

This dress rehearsal pic shows the navigation tables and exit to bow of ship. Photo by Michael Markham.


This dress rehearsal pic shows the main control area and the periscope in a raised position. Photo by Michael Markham.
The Temple, or Lebensraum
The Temple is set on a WWII Nazi u-boat that has sunk to the bottom of the ocean and possibly hell. I used walls in front of audience banks at differing heights to shape the sub control room & create an "immersive" experience along with ceiling pipes for clausterphobia. We transformed the space on a very limited budget (80%+ reused materials) with a moving periscope, valve wheels, lights and other details. Four cans of general malais & misc damage complete the effect. Nominated-2015 IT Award for set design.



Photo by Michael Dekker

The Importance of Being Earnest
This production of Earnest was in a curved space with audience on two sides. I worked with the curve, using columns to create an abstract exit and entrance space framing both the Victorian apartment in Act 1 and the garden of an English country manor house in Act 2. The window units moved and rotated to suggest a change from indoor to outdoor and the stone floor complemented both Acts. We added trees, vines and flowers to create a lush feel for the garden.

Office with 2 individual offices, group area, pantry and printer.

A retreat in upstage NY featuring flexible pieces for scene changes. Photo by Aimee Todoroff.

Rendering

Office with 2 individual offices, group area, pantry and printer.
Office Politics
For this drama, the challenge was to create a relatively realistic set that served all locations with limited space offstage. Act 1 is in the office of a women's health magazine with scenes in two individual offices & main, pantry and printer areas. Act 2 is at a retreat in upstate NY with scenes outdoors & in two hotel rooms and spa. At the end, the inn transforms back into the office. The inn split into two office wagons, the stone wall became 2 desks & the wooden fence/spa wall the pantry.

Detail showing medical machines and operating table. Photo by Deborah Alexander.

View from DS audience bank

View from the SL audience bank in Act 2 with added operating room chaos.

Detail showing medical machines and operating table. Photo by Deborah Alexander.
Frankenstein Upstairs
FU is set in a couple's Dumbo loft used as a live/work space. For Act 2, Victoria Frankenstein brings in her medical equipment & conducts an operation onstage. The challenge was to design a set visually interesting to all 3 audience banks in the thrust, store Act 2 pieces with no backstage and create fairly believable medical devices and furniture with a limited budget.

Showing "bandstand" with light effect highlighting posters. Photo by Emily Lambert.

Showing "bandstand" with light effect highlighting spray paint. Photo by Emily Lambert.

Close-up of Richard. Photo by A. Foote III.

Showing "bandstand" with light effect highlighting posters. Photo by Emily Lambert.
Richard 3
For this version of Richard III, we converted the theatre into a late 70's London punk club. The challege was to do so using available materials and sources (80%+ reused materials). I drafted large posters to signify play locations and mimicked period flyers/zines, using them and spray paint to cover the audience banks and back wall. We dressed a bar area, the lobby and theater entrance and borrowed/built a neon sign for the lobby.

An abstract set featuring an oval platform and drop ceiling with exposed joists. Photo by Hunter Canning.


Featuring floating floor and rustic benches. Photo by Hunter Canning.

An abstract set featuring an oval platform and drop ceiling with exposed joists. Photo by Hunter Canning.
The Family Play (co-design/TD)
For this project, I worked with the co-writer/set designer & director to create an abstract home space. We revamped the theater by extending the stage & adding an audience bank upstage (tennis configuration). As TD, I built the oval floating stage & ceiling with exposed joists and rustic benches. The floor was treated with layers of paint and water for an abstract outer space or marbled effect.

Composite of set changes between the 3 plays. Image by Pete Boisvert; photos by Deborah Alexander.

Rendering for Part 1. The place is Coral Gables, Florida in a suburban home.

Photo by Deborah Alexander.

Composite of set changes between the 3 plays. Image by Pete Boisvert; photos by Deborah Alexander.
The Honeycomb (2012)
The Honeycomb Trilogy is 3 alien invasion plays set in a suburban home in Coral Gables, FL. The first play is in a normal living room. By the 2nd play, aliens have terra-formed & destroyed most human tech. The house has flooded & serves as lodging for pregnant women. By the 3rd play, humans are resurrecting technology & the home is a town hall. Realism was integral to this SciFi epic; we created a detailed world of disrepair & alien flora & fauna.

Suburban kitchen set after cupboards moved and lit up. Wall SR also pivoted & island rolled with hidden TV. Photo by Deborah Alexander.


Rendering of kitchen room after set up for the party.

Suburban kitchen set after cupboards moved and lit up. Wall SR also pivoted & island rolled with hidden TV. Photo by Deborah Alexander.
YWMAD
This interactive experience, You Will Make a Difference, moved the audience through 5 areas of a church. I designed and built/dressed these areas, which included a full suburban kitchen that "fell apart." At the culmination, the audience banks in front of the kitchen and surrounding walls converted into an open space with paths leading to performance areas and tables for a celebration.
Other Productions

Design for a rolling dragon boat/cart that converts to a flying machine.

Conversion of cart to a flying machine by adding parts. Actors stepped through and lifted the machine to fly it.

Design of a flat representing Paris. The style of the set was that of a paper theater during the Regency period.

Design of a flat representing Copenhagen. The style of the set was that of a paper theater during the Regency period.

5 rolling walls and swinging flat for multiple plays. Photo by Isaiah Tannenbaum.

5 rolling walls and swinging flat for multiple plays. Photo by Isaiah Tannenbaum.

5 rolling walls and swinging flat for multiple plays. Photo by Isaiah Tannenbaum.

Design for vine pattern that flows in multiple configurations.

Large moving set with 3 major set changes. Interrogation Room. Interrogation room featured 2 walls that extended and pivoted plus a large rolling unit. All movement was low tech using hidden minions.

Large moving set with 3 major set changes. Dungeon. Dungeon included reversal of a rolling unit with minions hidden inside.

Large moving set with 3 major set changes. Tavern. Tavern scene featured rolling and expanding bar.

A quick change set with folding screens for the NY International Fringe Festival.