BABE
Props Supervisor
The New Group
The Griffin Theatre at Signature Center
November – December 2024
Written by
Jessica Goldberg
Directed by
Scott Elliott
Scenic Design by
Derek McLane
Jessica Goldberg’s BABE explores power dynamics across gender and generations within a major entertainment institution. A three-hander operating within a set that functions as both a flashy office and a cozy, opulent living room with only a couple moving parts, the furniture-heavy props package demanded pieces that looked elegant and functioned as reliable, comfortable seats for the tight-knit cast.
As with most ambitious stage plays, navigating space was an early challenge on BABE. For example, the U-shaped sectional sofa that serves as the centerpiece of our set had to remain within a very precise footprint, accommodate a large central ottoman, and (of course) not break the budget; similarly, the large Desk that dominates Stage Right was based on a beautiful reference photo of a piece I later found was $40,000 (my budget for this piece was $1,500). Ultimately, the package came together beautifully, and their were many bidders among the production team as to who would take home the hero sofa after we closed.
It was a pleasure to team up again with Scott Elliott and Derek McLane, whom I’d worked with previously on The Seven Year Disappear. Special shoutouts to Rick Nagle and Ashanti Ziths, who handled the desk and ottoman (respectively) pictured above.
Fun props projects included: sourcing and chopping up over 20 full boxes of LPs for the flying record shelves; making parody covers of some of my favorite albums for the SL gold record wall; spending too much time at Mood finding the perfect upholstery fabric for our ottoman.
