Kulturhuset Skanderborg hosts a wide range of events throughout the year. The calendar includes everything from conferences and lectures to rock concerts and stage performances in the Grand Hall, which is designed as a traditional theatre auditorium with stall and dress circle seating. With funds from the New Carlsberg Foundation, the stage is now being fitted with a new front curtain designed by Eske Kath.
A beginning or an end
The collaboration between Eske Kath and Priebe Sceneteknik resulted in a special interpretation of the classic red front curtain. The curtain is made of 185 kg pure wool in notes of red, orange and yellow, sewn together to form a sunrise/sunset motif.
According to Kath, both the design and the execution presented challenges, because the project was so different from his usual practice: ‘Since I normally work as a painter, I have never previously worked with elements that are sewn together like this, and because the production was a collaborative effort, my working process has been quite different from my normal practice. It’s always a challenge to leave it to others to complete a piece, but the people Priebe are extremely competent,’ says Kath.
The choice of motif in particular was the cause of much reflection, as he explains: ‘The motif shouldn’t carry a story that’s so specific that it might clash with the performance; instead it should be able to play a neutral or supporting role, depending on the experience conveyed by the show.’
The motif can be seen as a rising or a setting sun, which symbolically opens and closes a performance. Thus, it lives up to the practical purpose of a front curtain but also engages in a dialogue with the content of the show, as Kath explains:
‘The front curtain can be read in relation to the voice and message of the performance. Do you see it as a hope, a new beginning, or as the end and the fall of darkness? My hope is that the curtain will be able to underscore the mood of the show, directly or indirectly.’
In a comment on his choice of colours, Kath says, ‘I chose to stick to a red “theatre scale”, which is related to the classic front curtain. The curtain should feel natural in the theatre setting, and the colour palette should not undermine or disturb the mood and message of the show but instead support it as a classic red curtain – with a twist.’
