Props

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Scottish Targes were made for the Goodman Theatre's Brigadoon in 2014. I patterned the brass work and custom made the leather handles. Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures of the making process. We then lent them out to a theatre in New York, and they were sadly "lost."

I was tasked to remake the hanging geese for A Christmas Carol in 2014. The old ones were mad of rigid foam, so I replaced their necks with rope and covered the rope with a fleece "sock" I had made and glued it to the body and head. New wings were made with armature wire and loosely attached to the body, and then all six geese were completely re-feathered. The end result were geese that swayed and dangled when they were moved. Mission accomplished; people called to complain about the real dead animals onstage!

The Little Roast Pig was created for the Goodman Theatre's A Christmas Carol in 2015. It was made by carving the basic shape out of foam, then adding a layer of clay to add skin details. A hydrocal mold was made, then it was cast with latex, and filled with expanding foam. Ears were added, then it was finished with acrylic paints.

Hugo was created for the Goodman Theatre's production of Feathers and Teeth in 2015. I started with a store bought medical skeleton, but I replaced the metal spine with rope so that it became flexible. Next came the paint job, followed by adding globs of dyed urethane rubber for the flesh. The skeleton was named after the character in the play, who got eaten by little monsters.

The Hambone was created for the Goodman Theatre's production of Two Trains Running in 2015. It was made by make a mold of an actual ham, then casting it in silicone. The director wanted it to have the weight and sound for when the actor slammed it on the table, making silicone the obvious choice of material.

This mask was made for the Goodman Theatre's Stop. Reset. in 2015. It was made to look like carved wood. I'm not a wood carver, but the advantage of clay is that the director could make notes during the process. Also, should anything bad happen to the prop, another could be cast to immediately replace it.

The Christmas Goose was added for the Goodman Theatre's production of A Christmas Carol in 2016. It was for the Cratchit dinner scene, and was designed to be carved every performance with the ability to be put back together for the next show. It began as a clay sculpt, then a hydrocal mold was made. It was cast in latex and expanding foam. Once out of the mold, a layer of latex and tissue paper was added for the crispy skin effect. It was then painted with acrylics and gloss coated.

These sculptures were crested for the Goodman Theatre's production of War Paint in 2016. They were made as a part of Helena Rubenstein's fine art collection. The interior was carved foam, and Free Form Air was sculpted on for the details. The last sculpture was created specially for the Tony Awards, when they performed a scene from the show.

The lobsters were created for the Goodman Theatre's production of Ah! Wilderness in 2017. The director asked for whole lobsters that could be broken apart in the traditional manner one would while eating a lobster dinner. I made a silicone mold of a cooked lobster body and claws, then I made hollow castings out of food safe urethane resin. The lobsters were airbrushed with acrylic ink. Hot dog buns were placed inside the tail and claws, so the actors would have something to eat during the scene. The lobsters were also fabricated so that they could be put back together for the next performance.

These fun little guys were made to look like paper mache float decorations. I made the giant sea shell by first covering a plaster shell shaped planter in tin foil. Then, I covered that in paper mache. Thanks to the tin foil, the paper mache popped right off once it was dry. However, to add strength, I cover the inside with Plasti-Paste. The other sea creatures were made by carving the shape out of insulation foam, then covering it with paper mache.

These trees were made for the Goodman Theatre's Father Comes Home from the War in 2018. Since they were going to be in the smaller theatre, close to the audience, the director requested that they look as real as possible. The Props Carpenter welded the basic shape from steel, then it was my job to cover it in foam and putty. For the bottom I used Free Form Habitat, and for the top I used Free Form Air. For the tin branches I used Free Form Flex. I made my own texture stamp out of silicone using bark samples we had at the shop. After that they were sent to the paint department for the finishing touches.

Light weight rocks first carved in insulation foam, then covered in Free Form Air. For the texture I dabbed them with a sponge before the putty was set, then I used dry brushing techniques for the paint job.

A Civil War era backpack and a baldric holster made for The Goodman Theatre's Father Comes Home from the War in 2018. All the leatherwork is from scratch, so it would fit the actor perfectly.

In the Goodman Theatre's production of Having Our Say in 2018 a raw chicken was required. The actor had to wash and stuff it every performance. Rather than use a real one every night, I was tasked to make as realistic a raw chicken as possible. I molded a real one with Body Double Silicone, then cast it in Eco-Flex 0030 Silicone. I used Pyscho Paint to detail it. Considering the mold required the inside cavity of the chicken, it was a bit tricky. In the end, the movement of the chicken was great.

Raw Chicken

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The "Nuclear Football" was created for the Goodman Theatre's 2018 production of Blind Date. It's the President's briefcase that houses a device to remotely launch nuclear weapons. A lot of research went into making this look as accurate as possible, though it was on stage for just a few minutes.

This nine foot tall snowman was created for The Santaland Diaries at the Goodman in 2018. The head and torso are giant plastic globes we had in stock, but the bottom is carved foam. Then all three sections were covered in batting. The hat is one inch foam covered in black felt. The arms and nose were sculpted on Free Form Flex FR and Free Form Air epoxy putties. The coal eyes and mouth are blocks of wood.

These were also for The Santaland Diaries and sat atop Santa's throne. We bought an actual giant gummy bear and I made a mold using Mold Star 16. Then dyed yellow Crystal Clear 202 was poured in.

This was created for the 2018 A Christmas Carol. Carved foam covered in wood glue and craft paper, then I glued roped to it in a spiral pattern and added gold vinyl wrappings. The whole thing was sealed, then the paint department gold leafed it.

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This is from The Goodman Theatre's Lottery Day in 2019. It's actually a fake bong that releases water vapor, rigged by a colleague. I used Apoxie Sculpt over it to make it look like a wood carved bong, and then painted it.

These were created for the Goodman Theatre's Lottery Day in 2019. The actors were going to rub spices on them during the show, so they had to be as realistic as possible. I cast actual meat (which is always smelly) in Body Double silicone. Then, for the ribs I first put in a yellowish fat layer of Eco Flex silicone, and then the red colored silicone was poured into the mold. The end result meant I didn't have to paint it. The brisket was cast in Soma Foama, which is an expanding silicone foam. I had never used it before, and it worked out great. Then Pyscho Paint was used to finish it off.

For the Goodman Theatre's Sweat in 2019 I had to make several foam bats that were to be used in stage combat. Initially, I was told the actors were not going to make contact, and that the bats needed to be foam as a precaution. Then they decided (without telling me) to put a hard plate under one of the actor's shirts, and the other actor hit the bat against it as hard as he could to make a load 'thud.' So, I had to make several versions to see which bat stood up to the abuse the best. The final version had a fiberglass rod interior so it wouldn't bend, Flex-Foam It III as the softest foam, and a dyed brown rubber skin so the paint wouldn't chip. I made four, and they all survived the run of the show. They used a real bat earlier in the show and slammed it on the counter to make a loud cracking noise. The real bat and one of the foam bats is in the last picture

These two were made for the New Stages project at the Goodman in 2019, which is essentially a workshop production of several new plays. One of the plays required a rocket launcher and a flame thrower. Because this was a low budget affair I had to use materials we had in stock. The M 72 launcher was made out of a pvc pipe and wood greeblies. Normally, flame throwers have a back pack tank, but the director didn't want anything so cumbersome. So, I was given permission to make something up, which is rare at the Goodman. I channeled my Ellen Ripley and doctored a water sprayer and water bottle. It only took five years, but I finally got to make a sci-fi weapon at the Goodman!

This was created for Out On A Whim's Improvised Dungeons and Dragons. They asked me to incorporate their twenty sided dice logo with a dragon. I made a digital painting with Photoshop and printed it on tear resistant paper.

This was created for Paramount Theatre's Beauty and the Beast in 2019. The book they had ordered was too small, so their Props Master asked me if I could rush a three foot tall fantasy-like book with a rose painted on the cover. It also had to be light weight as it would be carried on by actors. I put several layers of fiberglass on 24" x 36" chip board for the front and back. I made a curved spine and incorporated rope into it to create the old time book spine. It was held together with canvas on the inside and faux leather on the outside. Tyvek pages were added that could be turned, then the rest of the book was filled in with a block of foam also covered in tyvek. I made a stencil on photoshop and painted it with gold paint markers. It took me three evenings to build (I was at work in the day, of course), and it was delivered the day before they needed it for tech rehearsals. I should have taken more pictures, but I was in a rush.