Seeing the Stage Through Our Eyes - Walnut Street Theatre

Adrienne Rube
The Walnut Street Theatre most certainly puts a unique spin on their production of
the musical Aspects of Love. The plot revolves around a core group of characters, each in
turn discovering themselves and each other through love. The often complicated and
constantly changing relationships between the characters span the course of twenty years,
and these intertwining storylines, full of mysterious affairs and moments of passion, are a
true testimony to one of the show’s recurring themes – “life goes on, love goes free.”
What enables these various stories to come to life and for the characters to develop
is the stage itself. Here, we must address the brilliant set, characterized by a double
turntable, which allows for the show to flow ever so seamlessly from one scene to another,
one location to another, and most impressively, from one plot to another. Thus, the moving
set not only uses the provided space effectively, but also permits the constant coming and
going of characters, further contributing to the sense of unpredictable change that the
musical instills.
The double turntable is also expertly used to create new scenic perspectives. The
outer turntable, known as a donut, comes to be used for this purpose. At one point during
the performance, the young spontaneous couple of Alex Dillingham and Rose Vibert
(Charles Hagerty and Jennifer Hope Wills) find themselves “riding” on a train carriage; at
another, the turntable is used to display different areas of a room, by spinning the tables of
a restaurant suddenly into view, or by having the furniture of a bedroom come whirling
around from upstage.
Because of these quick scene changes, the rotating stage is a perfect fit. However,
having a moving set is far more than just a technical investment – it also brings a quick and
exciting liveliness to the show as a whole, especially because of the fact that the story is set
over a long period of time. Similar to its use in shows such as Les Misérables, the rotating
stage symbolizes this passing of time, highlighting every moment as the stage spins along
with the plot itself.