Theatre 1331 Academic Presentation for professor Jon Egging

1. Collaborative
Representation
of Julius Ceasar
By: Director- Huy Vo, Light Designer- Robert Vidal,
Set Designer- Merilyn Vila, Costume Designer-
Dwanna Jones
Group 66

2. Julius Caesar Script
As director I wanted a traditional and authentic
representation of Julius Caesar to show how story was
told originally.

3. The Cast
Javier Bardem plays Julius Caesar
Aaron Eckhart plays Octavius Caesar
Colin Farrell plays Marcus Antonius
Robert
De Niro plays M. Aemilius Lepidus
Michael Fassbender plays Marcus
Brutus
Christoph Waltz plays Cassius)
Cate Blanchett plays Calpurnia wife
of Caesar
Angelina Jolie Plays Portla wife of
Brutus
Mark Ruffalo plays Flavius
Edward Norton plays Marullus
Ed Harris plays Casca
Kevin Spacy plays Cinna
Jeremy Renner plays Lucius
Gary Oldman play Decius Brutus
Jeff Bridges plays Trebonius
Steve Buscemi plays Artemidorus of
Cnidos (Soothsayer)
Martin Sheen plays Metellus Cimber

4. Spine
The spine of the play would be the death of Julius Caesar. I
have chosen this as the spine because all of the actions that
transpire throughout the play are a result of the
assassination of Julius Caesar and only when Brutus and
Cassius are killed is the death of Caesar is resolved.
During the play all the characters refer back to his
assassination. In the beginning of the play there is a build up
to his assassination and at the climax it occurs and the
denouement there are the repercussions.

5. Themes
A prominent theme in the
play is inflexibility vs.
compromise. Brutus and
Caesar are both very
stubborn and this quality in
their personality ends up
being their downfall. Brutus
believes so strongly in
assassinating Caesar and
Caesar believes so strongly
in his god complex that they
end up dying for their
actions. This show the need
for adapting and being able
to compromise when
needed instead of rushing
to action.

6. More Themes
In the play, one of the themes is of a tragic hero .
Brutus is a clear example of this theme because
he is trying to do good for the Republic but ends
up getting killed for his part in the assassination of
Caesar.
An additional theme in Julius Caesar is the
argument of fate vs. free will. This is prevalent in
the play because the Soothsayer played by Steve
Buscemi predicted Caesar’s death that would
take place on the 15th of March. However, Julius
choses to ignore this prediction and decided to
not to take the warning . His actions represent
notion of free will.

7. Purpose
As director I am responsible for deciding on the overall
purpose of the play. Different directors may decide to
translate old stories in a new fashion like Romeo and
Juliet as the Titanic.
However, I wish to give Shakespeare his true credit and
show his story of Julius Caesar in its true light, the original
interpretation of this great story.

8. Style and Historical Period
Style- Our production will consist of mainly ancient Roman
architecture and clothing to convey an authentic visual
representation of this time period.
Historical Period- The play Julius Caesar takes place
about mid March in 44BC and spans to about early April
after all of the fighting has concluded.

9. Directorial Concept
I wanted my interpretation of the play to be traditional and
resemble the work of Shakespeare. I also wanted our
production to be a faithful reenactment of the script.
So I wanted to include most of the scenes from the play
like the intro of the play and Caesar’s stroll into the capital
while also including his assassination and the Battle of
Philippi.
I however had to cut out some of the unnecessary
characters and extras that seem to be redundant.

10. Set Designer- Merilyn
*Throughout this process we coordinated our ideas to make sure that the set design and costumes and dialogue was not overlapping or
interfering with the other elements*

11. Preliminary Phase
For good communication
with the director and for
ideas not to overlap
Tone: Serious, Calm, Rational, and Earnest
*Building set and color scheme based on tone*

12. Time: 44 B.C.
Place: Ancient Rome, toward the end of the
Roman republic
● The set gives clues as to the specific time and place of the action

13. The Stage
With the type of
stage that I chose
it allows for the
audience to
interact with
Julius Ceasar or
whoever is the main
character of the
scene.
The drapes in the
back allow for the
audience to see
that the others are
conspiring against
them.

14. The furniture, the space
-Having furniture, draperies, pictures, lamps, and rugs for
decorative quality and appearance: minimal
-There will be a lot of negative space on the set because it also
allows for the audience to make their own judgements and
expand with their own imagination
-It allows for no major set changes throughout the play

15. Type of Stage Production:
Proscenium Theatre:

16. Proscenium Theatre:
-This allows for the frame of the stage to separate the
stage and the auditorium
- Stage will create that fourth wall so it can take the
audience and place them in this fantasy back to 44 BC.

17. Effect:
Helping distinguish realistic from non-realistic theatre:
There will be that fourth wall created that will
distinguish realistic from non- realistic

18. Color Scheme:
Alot of black and red to portray the tragedy. The dark colors
emphasize the darkness and the seriousness of the play.
Hue: primary colors will be red, yellow, and blue
Saturation: will be strongly present for the dramatic effect
Value: will be closer to zero in the dark and violent parts of
the play and closer to 50 or 60 on the less intense parts
Temperature: reds, oranges, and yellows which are all warm colors
to portray the emotional qualities of the play
(Though the play opens with a little joke, the subject matter of the play remains serious throughout)

19. Brutus
Brutus- He was character
that stood for the greater
good of Rome and put the
people ahead of himself
and Caesar. Brutus’s
idealism was both his
greatest virtue and his
most deadly flaw. Brutus
was a dignified military
leader and prominent
representative for the
people. Brutus will wear
the image on the left early
on in the play and later
wear the military apparel in
battle.

20. Cassius
Cassius was a famous
general in Roman during
this time and was the
primary engineer in
Caesar's assassination. He
leads Brutus to believe that
Caesar has become too
powerful for the good of
Roman. Being a decorated
military official he would
wear a traditional uniform
to exemplify his
achievements.

21. Antony
Being Caesar’s closest
friend he avenges his
death to restore glory back
to his name. Antony is a
power hungry politician
who takes advantage of
Caesar’s death in his
search for power. As
Antony was an average
politician we will wear
traditional robes.

22. Caesar
Caesar and his godlike
complex proved to be his
downfall. Caesar would
have the most lavish
costume because we was
the leader of Roman.

23. Calpurnia and Portia
Calpurnia was the wife of Caesar who warms her husband
not to go to the senate on the 15th of March. Because she
was royal she would wear formal Roman attire.
Portia was the wife of Brutus who sided against Caesar
and supported Brutus’s assassination against Caesar. She
was a prominent social figure because of her relationship
with Brutus, although she was not as high on the social
ladder as Calpurnia.

24. Costumes for Calpurnia and
Portia
Calpurnia would wear the more extravagant costume on the left
and Portia would wear the more simple attire on the right.

25. Servants and Civilians
The minor characters like the servant to Cassius, Caesar
and Brutus who do not play a rather large role will wear
clothing to represent their low status on the social ladder.

26. Costumes
As the costume designer the clothing that I have chosen
will meet the needs of our actors to allow them to move
freely in order to achieve the necessary tasks for the
production.

27. Lighting
Visibility
As the light designer I will provide luminosity to allow the
audience to see the faces of our actors and also to allow our
actors to be fully engaged with one another.
In different scenes alternative types of light will be used to show
a contrast in mood or feeling.
I will try to use light in the form of torches and open flames to
depict the time period and show authenticity.

28. Types of Lighting Used
Torches to show authenticity.
Ellipsoidal Reflector Spotlights- to allow
for a more focused light on our actors.
Strip Lighting- these lights allow me to
color the back wall of the stage different
colors like red or blue to show changes in
emotion.

29. Shapes and Forms
Illuminating shapes and
forms is one of the most
important jobs of a light
designer.
In our production I must
reveal objects as
interestingly as possible to
give the illusion of an
extraordinary set.

30. Mood Changes Throughout the
Julius Caesar
In the beginning of the play when the festival is going on as Caesar
returns, with the help of blue, green and yellow light I would show how
happy and festive Rome was to see Caesar come home victorious.
The mood changes near the middle of the play when there is a great
thunderstorm which I will show with the help of flashing white lights and
a dark perception of the set.
Towards Caesars death the set would change to a more dark and
mysterious mood with the help of dim lighting to show the shadows of
the assassins as well as a deep red light along the back wall to
represent blood and danger.
This feeling uneasiness and instability after Caesars death would
remain constant throughout the end of the play as his death is not
resolved until after Brutus and Cassius are dead.

31. Style with Lighting
Our director has said that he
wants to use authentic ancient
Roman architecture and
clothing to give an original
feeling to the audience.
Therefore the basic lighting
that I will use will come from
torches to simulate lighting
mechanisms of 44BC.
This will allow me to uphold
his style and also contribute to
the accurate representation
ancient Roman life.

32. Time and Place
Julius Caesar takes place in
44BC in ancient Rome.
As the lighting director I will
help the audience notice
changes in time like night
and day by using brighter or
dimmer lights.
Also I can show changes in
scenery from indoor and
outdoors by using different
colors like a green overhead
light to show the grass. Or
perhaps a generic gray light
to show them inside a
building.

33. Rhythm of Visual
Movement
As the light designer my job is to shift the audiences
attention from one thing to another by shifting the focus of
stage lights. I can do this by illuminating one thing or actor
on stage in contrast to another to show a change in
viewpoints.

34. Reinforcement of the Central
Image
Lighting, in combination with the other elements of at
production like the set, costumes and sound are vital in
making a cohesive play.
Therefore it is important that I remain consistent with
whatever is happening on stage. If there is a great storm
like in Julius Caesar I would show that through flashing
lights to represent lighting.
And with our production of Julius Caesar an attempt to be
authentic, I must remain constant to this idea by showing
old fashioned visual types of lighting like torches.

35. Citations
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The Theater Experience
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