Architect/set designer David Rockwell has done a beautiful job with his scenic work for the Roundabout revival of the musical On The 20th Century, which opened on March 15. In appraising the sets, Terry Teachout, the drama critic for The Wall Street Journal, wrote, “'David Rockwell’s deco-to-the-max sets look as though they cost as much as the national debt of Grand Fenwick.'” Mr. Rockwell and the show’s producer, the Roundabout Theatre Company, declined to disclose the set’s cost. 'It was a healthy budget for a musical,' says Mr. Rockwell, who has designed sets for more than a dozen Broadway productions. He has had a busy year in the theater, also designing the sets for “Side Show” and “You Can’t Take It With You.” A three-time Tony-award nominee (Hairspray, Lucky Guy, and Kinky Boots), Mr. Rockwell is a strong contender to win his first Tony this year."
And as noted in Variety: "All the period design elements are in place on David Rockwell’s snazzy Art Deco set: the bullet-headed train engine, the shiny passenger cars, the puffs of steam from the mighty engine, the stainless steel accents, even the sleek typefaces."
Go aboard with the designer in this video interview about On The 20th Century:
Click here for the full article in The Wall Street Journal.