By Nikki Loiben (2012)
In order to build the tree bed for the “Pippin” set, Sam and I spent numerous crew sessions building and painting the prop. First, we began by building a rectangular structure to attach bed posts too. With the help of Randy, we were able to make a tilted bed on wheels. Next, Sam and I stapled pieces of wood to the back of the headboard so that we would have a tree-like structure to wrap chicken coop around.
At this point, the tree looked more like a failed attempt at making a teepee. After covering the tree with chicken coop, we used paper mache to give the tree its texture. While I covered the chicken coop with a base layer, Sam rolled up newspaper and dipped into the glue mixture to create the iconic look of tree bark. Eventually, we spray painted the tree with black, brown, green and yellow spray paint.
Sadly, the tree did not look like a tree at this point. Other crew members claimed that it resembled a rabbit or an elephant. To fix this problem, we attached more chicken coop to the top of the tree and shaped it. After we spray painted the chicken coop green, I wedged fake leaves into the holes of the chicken coop.
Finally, the other crew members acknowledged that what Sam and I built actually looked like a tree. After numerous steps and even more crew sessions, the tree bed was complete!
Act Out 