In our latest production of CLUE: ON STAGE, we caught up with Adam Jehle, our talented Scenic Designer who is once again gracing the Dock Street Theatre with his skills. Explore below to delve into his creative process for crafting the sets of this uproarious whodunit.
1) CLUE: ON STAGE is set in a mansion, and the setting plays a crucial role in the story. What elements of the mansion’s design and atmosphere did you find most intriguing and challenging from a scenic design perspective?
I love the original movie, and I also love the board game. So from the beginning I wanted to incorporate both those ideas into the design of the set. What was challenging was trying to place the board game design elements, that are not very realistic, and blend them into the world of the mansion.
2) The play typically takes place in multiple rooms within the mansion. How did you plan to create distinct spaces for each of these rooms while maintaining a cohesive overall design?
With a lot of shows nowadays, they are written like movies. So there are a lot of different locations and set pieces that are needed to tell the full story. But when I try to design shows like that, I like to think how it could be broken down in its most basic form and expand from there. For CLUE: ON STAGE, the most intriguing and challenging aspect was going to all these different rooms in the mansion. So I decided that we should focus on the doors and have them move around the mansion like a maze, and to help the audience stay on track on what room we are in there would be this large wall that looked like the board game to flip around and tell us what room we are in. We also only used a few “Key” furniture pieces that would be recognizable for each room.
3) CLUE: ON STAGE often involves physical comedy, quick entrances and exits, and even some slapstick humor. How did you intend to design the set to accommodate these comedic elements and maximize their comedic impact?
Like the idea of “physical” comedy, I decided to make the set “Physical” as well. Meaning the actors move the walls and doors and furniture and have them be a part of that comedy they are doing. When they are running for their lives around the house, the house is running right behind them.
4) The play is known for its secret passages, hidden compartments, and surprise elements. How did you envision incorporating these elements into the set design to create moments of surprise and excitement for the audience?
Our Director Colin Waters had a lot more to do with that than me. He’s decided to hide bodies behind doors and furniture and make them appear from nowhere. I just made the set highly movable to help him with that vision.
5) What research and inspiration did you draw from when designing the mansion’s interior?
The board game had a lot of inspiration for me. I wanted everyone watching to feel like even if they hadn’t seen the movie there were little pieces of the board game they recognized and could point out.
6) Were there any specific technical challenges you anticipated when designing the set for CLUE: ON STAGE, such as special effects, scene changes, or moving set pieces?
Honestly one of the most challenging parts was designing this show in rep with The Lightning Thief. You have to remember everything you see on stage has to go away and a whole other set has to go there. The lights and curtains can’t move every show which means I can only put things in certain places. A lot of planning had to go into every little thing, even down to the trim and how it can come off quickly and be stored away efficiently.
7) Finally, what excites you the most about our audiences experiencing CLUE: ON STAGE and seeing your scenic designs?
I promise this will be like no other CLUE anyone has ever seen before. It’s fresh, it’s new, and it’s hilarious in old and new ways. I am excited for people to see all the hard work everyone has done to achieve that.
Get your tickets to see CLUE: ON STAGE, running October 26th – November 5th, at CharlestonStage.com.
Adam Jehle, originally from Nixa, MO, is the Resident Scenic/Projections Designer and Assistant Technical Director for Charleston Stage. His credits include Projection Design for Murder on the Orient Express and The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, Scenic Designs for The Addams Family – A New Musical, Native Gardens, Charlotte’s Web, Black Pearl Sings! and Kinky Boots for Charleston Stage, and Technical Direction for all of Charleston Stages’ 45th Season. Other credits are scenic designing shows such as Cinderella and Mamma Mia! at Crane River Theatre in Nebraska, and Titanic, Cabaret, and Groundhog Day at Stagedoor Manor in upstate New York. He received his B.F.A. in Design, Technology and Stage Management from Missouri State University in 2020. Adam is excited to be Designing other shows for Charleston Stage this season including The Prom, Clue: On Stage, A Christmas Carol, and The Trip to Bountiful.