Greg Weber: Building the Set for Mary Magdalene

Greg Weber is the director of productions for San Francisco Opera, which means that he’s the chief technical officer of the entire staff of the opera (props, costumes, sets, lighting, etc.) He’s who General Manager David Gockley entrusts with bringing the physical production side of an opera together on budget and on time; dovetailing the wishes of the designers with the practical aspects of running a show. Given the trust the general director has to have in his technical manager, it’s not surprising that in 2010 Weber was hired from Houston Grand Opera, where he also had worked for Gockley. Here, he runs through the features of the Mary Magdalene set (seen in its model), and the process of turning model into full-sized set.

Because it’s a “unit set,” Mary Magdalene’s set has to provide both visual interest and many differentiated playing areas that can encompass the entirety of the opera’s action. In this video Greg Weber shows how Set Designer David Korins accomplished this, as well as how opera staff builds the set from the model.