For M. Ward’s 2012 A Wasteland Companion tour, his reoccurring theme of windows – both literal and figurative – served as the concept for the scenic and projection design.
Five custom-built, dilapidated windows reveal an evolving dusk-to-dusk “time-lapse” spanning the duration of the show. Inspired by 19th-century moving panoramas, scrolling views of firey, sun-soaked clouds, foggy mountains, cityscapes, starry nights, barren trees, and flocks of crows seamlessly accompany the music, from the first song to the last.
I worked with the Brooklyn-based studio Workhorse to produce the window frames. They were backed with rear projection material to enhance the trompe-l’oeil effect made by the projections onstage. A layer of Plexiglas was inserted in the frames so that the reflection of the band would be composited into the changing landscape, creating a ghostly illusion of the band floating through space and time. M.Ward’s tour culminated at a special Celebrate Brooklyn performance with Yo La Tengo at the Prospect Park Bandshell on August 7, 2012.
“Throughout the show, what appeared behind those windows changed into different settings, ranging anywhere from a Midwestern sunset to a nighttime view from a city apartment. There are plenty of metaphors that go along with windows, and many of them prove apt for a performer such as M. Ward.” – Washington Times
“As Ward sang about insomnia at two, three, four o’clock in the morning, a series of smaller lit windows took shape in the larger video panels – it truly felt like you were in a car in the wee hours, looking into other people’s “normal” lives as you drove by on your own. It was eerie and fantastic.” – Chunky Glasses
Concept: M. Ward and Deborah Johnson
Video and Scenic Design: Deborah Johnson
Production Design: Workhorse
Fabrication: Daedelus