THE TURN OF THE SCREW (2024)
Theoretical design for UofM Theatre Senior Thesis
Renders
Sketches and Process
The Governess (Look 1-3)
The Governess (Look 4/5)
Ms. Grose (Look 1-3)
Miles (Look 1-3)
Flora (Look 1-3)
Ms. Jessel
Research
Paperwork
Quick Change Plot
Costume Cost-Out
Benjamin Britten’s 1954 opera The Turn of the Screw is a masterwork of music and gothic horror, combining the two elements to create a dissonant, uncomfortable, and terrifying experience. The story focuses on a young governess taking care of two polite children, who she begins to believe are under the possession of ghosts; ghosts that previously worked at the manor, wanting their lives back. Through her attempts to shield the children from the corruption of the spirits, she destroys her own innocence.
The music in the opera becomes increasingly dissonant as the story continues; by the end of Act I, the thread of reality becomes less and less clear. The ambiguity of what is real is strained by the perspective of the Governess; her mental state is deteriorating, and the world is with it. I decided to have the costumes “deteriorate” throughout the opera. This would be achieved through increased distressing and disheveling of costume pieces, as well as an increasingly deeper color palette.
Death is also ever present with the invention of the ghosts. They died on a cold night, which is represented by both of their characters appearing “chilled”. It was important to me that the two ghosts have a unifying aspect to their designs, creating a standard in the world for “ghosts”. Both of the ghosts, locked in an illicit relationship with each other, are latched onto the children attempting to pull them over to death. The connection between these two sets of characters is heavy. Due to this, I represented some aspects of the ghosts in each of the children, representing their dual natures. As the opera continues and the costumes become more ruined, the children seem more similar to their ghost counterparts.
UM Theatre and Film
May 2024