Anything Goes is a lot of fun to produce. It is a classic. It also has a very classic scenic design. In this design, we have taken the traditional set for this show and rotated. Instead of looking straight-on at the ship, we have an angle to it.
The director requested this arrangement to do something a little different with the set, and also to create a much larger deck on stage for the dance numbers. She also requested a lifeboat slung over the railing stage-left, that characters can hide in. This is a show with a lot of chasing and hiding in it. Even though the space looks very open, there are many places to run through, hide in, and enter from.
The height of this set if atypical for this space. The borders are all flown at higher than normal, and they get higher and higher as they move upstage. The effect is that we end up with a lot more sky than any other show in Hanaway Theatre – about 25′ in height.
