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MY SPACE<br />
Paul Brown<br />
Head of Props and Scenic Workshop, Glyndebourne<br />
I’ve been Head of Props<br />
for 15 years. It’s a position<br />
you keep hold of – there have<br />
only been six of us since the<br />
Glyndebourne Festival started<br />
in 1934. But until this year,<br />
there was a big problem we<br />
had to deal with: there wasn’t<br />
enough space to do all the<br />
things we needed to do.<br />
That’s not an issue anymore,<br />
because the company has just<br />
had a state-of-the-art production<br />
hub built on site, and the<br />
whole of the bottom floor is<br />
dedicated to our department.<br />
We now have more than three<br />
times the space we used to<br />
have and the whole process has<br />
become much more efficient.<br />
We make stuff. Or rather we<br />
make, source, adapt and buy in<br />
all the stage props and scenery<br />
needed for the shows. And<br />
with all the Tour shows as well<br />
as the six Festival operas every<br />
season, that’s up to nine a year.<br />
And it’s not just the current<br />
season we’re thinking of.<br />
As well as working on repairs<br />
and maintenance for current<br />
shows, we’re planning two<br />
years in advance for future<br />
events. Each one has a different<br />
director and different<br />
designers, and we have to<br />
adapt to their different ways of<br />
working. It’s a good challenge<br />
to have.<br />
There’s no end to the<br />
variety of props we deal<br />
with, from huge things like<br />
giant chandeliers, period cars<br />
or three-metre-high peacocks,<br />
to tiny details like sugar-tongs<br />
and plastic ice cubes. The main<br />
eye-catcher in the assembly<br />
room as we speak is a 1940s<br />
Photo by Alex Leith<br />
102
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