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An Interview with Fairview Assistant Scenic Designer and Theatre Minor Kay Broun

What is special about the setting of Fairview? 

The setting is very interesting because it is a one room show in a weird way, but it's a whole house. One of the big questions that we were working on was how to get a house on stage, and in budget. 

There have to be so many entrances and exits from such specific avenues. It was very difficult to get that set up in a way that made sense, especially in the Newhart. With Fairview, you have to enter the house through the front door. So where does the front door go on stage, and how does that inform the rest of the house? You couldn't just, like, put a door and say, “front door!” because it had to also make sense with the layout of a house.  

How does the scenic design influence the story and characters of Fairview? 

It's the place that these characters live in. Your home is your sanctum, and having that as a part of the story, as well as just the set.  

I know that there was a really heavy wish to have the kitchen on stage, it's clear that the kitchen is Beverly's reign. She's cooking this incredible dinner. I know Judi [Nwoyne], who's playing Beverly, very well. And I know that Judi is a phenomenal cook, so that's also informing my understanding of the character as well. And so having that off stage versus on-stage, we wanted to have that so that it would be clear whose space is whose in the house. 

We see, early in the script, Dayton is very comfortable in the living room, that's where he spends his free time. And it's a very social space, so you can kind of infer that Dayton is a very social character who enjoys relaxing in a space where other people can join him. 

It’s the space where this family eats, where they relax, and it's where they spend time together as a unit. And then that's invaded.  

And it's not just the space where they eat being invaded. And it's not just the space where they spend time as a family being invaded. It's that entire area. So having that whole area available for this show was a very conscious choice to make that. 

 ^{scenic design maquette by Kay Broun}

What challenges and solutions arose in the conceptualizing of this set? 

The Frasiers are a family that is well off. How do we, with our budget, make a beautiful house that communicates that? How do we get the molding for the doorways? Because molding, apparently, is really expensive!   

I spent probably two weeks on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, all these websites to try and find furniture that is in good condition, usable, cheap and easy to get here because renting furniture is really expensive! And it adds up fast. And this is my first time being in on the designer process at Loyola and, phew! It’s crazy. 

As someone who is not a major, how did you get involved in this production?  

My major is Theoretical Physics and Applied Mathematics with a Minor in Theatre. The theater program is very accessible to non-majors. I took [Associate Professor] Rachel Healey's Design I as part of my minor and loved it, and I knew I wanted to do design work from the second that I got involved with theater at Loyola.  

Part of why I was more than thrilled to do this is because I do have a math-heavy major, and a lot of scenic design is engineering. 

What can audiences look forward to in this show? 

An absolute treat. It's amazing. Treat may be the wrong word, but it is a phenomenal show. Dr. [Deron] Williams is an incredible director. There is so much passion and devotion to this show from so many people on the cast and on the design team and on the crew. It is really, really spectacular.  

I think everybody who's worked so hard on this deserves to have it seen. And I think, especially at Loyola, this is a show that absolutely needs to be seen. 

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Fairview runs February 15 - 25. Visit our ticketing website for details.