The Great Detective

Lord and Lady Swigwell are holding a great party at Swigwell Castle... until Lady Swigwell discovers that someone has stolen her diamond necklace! Lady Swigwell and her butler Speaking begin to search the guests – every audience member is a possible suspect! Then we discover something terrible: Lord Swigwell has been decapitated!! Only one person can solve these terrible crimes: Smellsock Fomes, the greatest detective in the world!

I designed The Great Detective for White Horse Theatre this Autumn. It is aimed at German children learning English between the ages of 10 and 13 and was directed by Kenn Michaels.



 

Costume designs for Lord and Lady Swigwell

 

 

Speeking and Lord Swigwell, complete with latex mask and gloves

 

Lord Swigwell is feeling unwell.

Lady Swigwell and Speeking fail to notice the theft of the necklace...

 

There is only one man to call!

 

 

Smellsock Fomes must examine the scene of the crime!

 

 

Who can the murderer be?

 

 

Lord Swigwell is dead... and his severed head is in this bag!

 

Smellsock Fome's Resurrector Machine brings the murdered Speeking back to life. Light-up automata machine.

 Lady Swigwell is re-united with her diamond necklace!

And if you're wondering who the thief and murderer was...

 

... look underneath your chair... Is there a large black bag? It has a bottle of poison and a bloodied saw in it! The murderer is YOU!!

 

 

White Horse Theatre Production Design

Well as far as good intentions go, I am serenely cruising down the path to witty, engaging, punctual blogging success. Life does, however, seem to get in the way; so here I am (again) apologising for eons of blog-free vacuum, offering up another sporadic blog post...

 I have just returned (again!) from spending another three months in Germany where I have been dismembering Ken dolls, haggling at flea markets, assembling bizarre steampunk automata, spending many hours (and even more Euros) whimpering in Primark, and of course warming my blueing fingers over an elderly gas heater in between bouts of painting.

 So whilst I collate my production photographs from my first couple of months out there, here is a little taster of what we’ve been up to behind the scenes at White Horse Theatre...

So nice to be designing again... I get to wear nice clothes like normal human beings! Spot the following: The Golden Gallery of St Paul's (upside down), three legs of ham, two old man's hands, an old man mask, an umbrella (soon to become the London Eye), an ice cream tray, two strings of saussages and a phonograph.

 

The workings of a mad woman - Smellsock Fomes' Resurrector Machine

 Here we have the sculpted head of Lord Swigwell, soon to be cast and made into a mask for The Great Detective. On the right is a Bayeaux Tapestry-inspired squirrel puppet for Maid Marian. Both were made by the wonderful Lucy Dentith.

Here is a little puppet of Smellsock Fomes in his flying machine and the famous diamond necklace, both also from The Great Detective and made by myself and Sophie Clayton.

The beginnings of a beautiful Bayeaux deer, also made by the lovely Sophie Clayton.

The backdrop for The Great Detective, also in progress, and painted by the very talented Meg Williams.


More show photos, anecdotes and enthralling plotlines coming soon!