I am taking part in another musical in June and I am also involved in the set design and construction; usually, this doesn’t present a problem, but this time, things have to fall over on cue.
The production is set in the first century and features an earthquake about halfway through it; the set will be fairly minimalist, but we want to have a couple of walls, Roman-style arches and pillars that will topple or crumble.
My plan was to make the stone blocks out of small cardboard boxes (which I can get in plentiful supply), roughly covered over with glue and newspaper, then painted. Polystyrene is also available, but we’d have to paint it and I’m concerned that the white underneath will show through with the slightest damage.
But either way, we have to find a way to construct architectural stuff that will stay in place for several scenes, with people moving and dancing all around it, then will fall over on cue. All suggestions welcome, but please bear in mind there is almost no budget for this.