Tony Award-winning scenic designer Beowulf Boritt, who won a Tony in 2014 for Best Scenic Design Of A Play for Act One, has been double-nominated this year in the play and musical scenic design categories for the current production of POTUS, directed by Susan Stroman, and Flying Over Sunset, directed by James Lapine. His many designs include Come From Away on Broadway, in London, in Australia, and the US National Tour, as well as the film version of the production. When asked why his designs for this year’s double-nominations are award-worthy, he replied: If I knew that I'd have Tony nominations every year!
About his nominated designs:
Production: Flying Over Sunset
Broadway dates: November 2021-January 2022
Design team: Toni Leslie James, costumes; Bradley King, lighting; 59 Productions, projections; and Dan Moses Schreier, sound.
What was your intent with the design, and what was our inspiration?
The set for Flying Over Sunset abstractly represents the human brain; what happens to the brain on LSD, but by extension it shows the power of our imaginations. It impossibly twists and slides and turns inside out, creating new worlds one after the other. It represents the beauty of our mental agility in the drugstore when it turns into a beautiful, pulsing, colorful wonderland. Then it represents the vast terrifying emptiness of being lost in our own minds when Clare Booth Luce stands in the empty space singing "How," and when the men are lost in the massive, endless, surging, ocean.
What was the biggest challenge?
Representing an abstract idea in physical form is always tricky. I'm enormously gratified that people have responded well to my attempt to visually represent the the power of human imagination!
Production: POTUS
Broadway dates: April 2022-August 2022
Design team: Linda Cho, costumes; Sonoyo Nisikawa, lighting; Jessica Paz, sound.
What was your intent with the design, and what was our inspiration?
The set for POTUS is a farcical representation of the White House. the story called for multiple (10 in all) locations which the characters run through with increasing speed as the story spins out of control. The tuntablee set, with a lot of hidden tricks to allow changes of loaction, spins faster and faster as the story accelerates.
What was the biggest challenge?
We found out we had a theatre on Jan 10 2022, and were loading in just over 2 months later, so I cranked out the design in 10 days and Proof Productions built it in about 5 weeks. Its nice to know how fast one can move when needed, but I hope never to break this record!