Requiem for a Heavyweight
2013
Having long been a fan of Rod Sterling (The Twilight Zone), I became enchanted by the idea of presenting his full-length play Requiem for a Heavyweight, which premiered as a live television broadcast on CBS’ Playhouse 90 in 1956. Besides the powerful story, I was excited by the challenge of recreating the excitement of live television.
My vision was to make the play’s audience feel like a live studio audience witnessing a broadcast going out to millions of people around the country. We sought out as much vintage tv studio equipment as possible, and when we could not find something, we fabricated it. The set was designed to replicate a studio sound stage with multiple locations. When not performing as an actor in the story, actors rotated into positions of cameraman, technicians and floor directors. During set changes, vintage commercials were projected on screens above the stage. Just as the original broadcast was limited to 90 minutes, so was our play.
It was certainly a happening and it lived up to the axiom “Live Theatre.”