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The set designer discusses the set with carpenters

Scenic design (also known as stage design, set design or production design) is the creation of theatrical scenery. Scenic designers have traditionally come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but nowadays, generally speaking, they are trained professionals, often with M.F.A. degrees in theatre arts.

The 'stage picture' is the 'look' or physical appearance of the stage for a play, whether in rehearsal or performance. It reflects the way that the stage is composed artistically in regard to props, actors, shapes and colours. The stage picture should express good principles of design and use of space. It should be visually appealing for the audience or should express the show's concept. The stage picture is also crucial for the creation of atmosphere for the audience.

The scenic designer is responsible for collaborating with the theatre director and other members of the production design team to create an environment for the production and then communicating the details of this environment to the technical director,(production manager) charge scenic artist and propmaster. Scenic designers are responsible for creating scale models of the scenery, renderings, paint elevations and scale construction drawings as part of their communication with other production staff.

In Europe and Australia scenic designers take a more holistic approach to theatrical design and will often be responsible not only for scenic design but costume, lighting and sound and are referred to as theatre designers or scenographers or production designers.

Like their American cousins, European theatre designers and scenographers are generally trained with Bachelor of Arts degrees in theatre design, scenography or performance design.

Notable scenic designers, past and present, include: Adolphe Appia, Boris Aronson, Howard Bay, Edward Gordon Craig, Luciano Damiani, Ezio Frigerio, Barry Kay, Seán Kenny, Ralph Koltai, Ming Cho Lee, Santo Loquasto, Jo Mielziner, Oliver Smith, Franco Colavecchia, Jean-Pierre Ponelle, Josef Svoboda, George Tsypin, Robert Wilson, Franco Zeffirelli, Natalia Goncharova, Vadim Meller, Aleksandra Ekster, Nathan Altman, David Borovsky, Daniil Lider, Inigo Jones, Alexandre Benois and Léon Bakst.

• Scenography
• Set construction

• Scenography - The Theatre Design Website Theatre Design / Scenography
• Society of British Theatre Designers Theatre Design
• What is Scenography Article illustrating the differences between US and European theatre design practices
• Stagelink Production and Set Designer Directory
• Josef Svoboda Article on www.scenography.co.uk
• Theatre Set and Costume Design Archive at the University of Bristol Theatre Collection, University of Bristol

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