The Utah Shakespeare Festival will offer two guided tours of their Prop Shop in celebration of the Southern Utah University 125th Anniversary. They will be held on Feb. 2 and Feb. 16 at 7 p.m.
The Prop Shop, located at 1635 N. Bulldog Road, includes space for building and housing all props used by USF.
Ben Hohman, the props director, Marielle Boneau, the assistant props director, and Richard Girtain, the production manager and interim scenery director, will guide visitors on an hour-long tour of what happens behind the scenes at USF.
“We will be touring the scenic construction studio, the prop construction studio and the warehouses where we store scenery, costumes, shoes and props,” Hohman said. “These areas of the Shakespeare Festival are not often open to the public, so it is a rare chance to see where some of the magic happens to get the shows ready each season.”
While there are many essential aspects to the world of theatre, props play a critical role in the development of a scene.
“Scenery builds the house, and props make it a home,” Hohman said. “The detailed work that production brings to each show helps the audience to be in the place and time of the show and really get into and understand the story.”
Hohman and his staff put hours of effort into making sure the props help bring the onstage action to life, and Hohman is excited to show visitors what it takes.
SUU will continue to provide guided experiences to the public through the end of the semester as part of the 125th anniversary. Information on the tours in upcoming months can be found here.
Story by: Kale Nelson
news@suunews.net
Photo by: Luke McKenzie
