A KIND OF ALASKA

WAAPA 2nd Year Project​

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Written by Harold Pinter, A Kind of Alaska tells the story of Deborah, a 45 year old woman waking from a comatose state after succumbing to encephalitis lethargica 29 years prior. When woken by her doctor, Deborah struggles to piece together her reality - working herself up into a manic state before drifting back into a coma at the play's conclusion.

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My intention was to create a design response that reflects the world as seen through Deborah's state of being - one that is fragmented, incomplete and momentary. As Deborah wakes, Hornby assures her that “[Her] mind has not been damaged. It was merely suspended…in a kind of Alaska”.  I visualised this as a physical suspension, where Deborah is only tethered to reality via Hornby and Pauline. As if she could float away at any moment. I thought this visual also lent itself to the momentary and tenuous nature of Deborah's consciousness.

The set design is made up of a raised platform, connected to the floor via a series of ties that are pulled taut as if to suggest a rising pressure. The platform itself sits on a slight angle, teetering itself towards the audience, and is accessed via a precarious set of stairs that resemble broken off shards. The underside of the platform and its structure are painted black to create the illusion that it is floating.

The floor finish on the platform is a clinical looking, glossy grey tile, with a gradient of pink bleeding out from its epicentre. A single bed with an ornate wrought iron frame and pink linens sits at its centre. Pink is a colour typically associated with girlhood, so I thought it would only make sense to ground Deborah's reality in familiar childhood colours, as mentally - she is still 16. As for the lives of Hornby and Pauline, their reality has slowly been drained of its colour, living in a monotonous existence, looking after Deborah day in and day out.