If I were to be the tech director for a single scene from a play, I would want to do the sing “Seventeen” from the musical “Heathers”. I choose this scene because, despite its simplicity, it can be incredibly moving if done correctly. The song transitions from fed up and fiery, to gentle and down to earth, to soaring and hopeful, to cautious and fragile. Applying the different aspects of tech theater can help to heighten these emotional peaks and make the scene unforgettable.
In its original off-Broadway run, the set for “Heathers” was very simple and hardly decorated, just two levels with short stairs on either side of the raised stage. While this abstract set works fine for the show, with the time and budget to expand upon it, I think you could use the location to add to the subtext of the scene. Since this scene takes place directly after the funeral. you could have some decorations to show that Veronica and J.D. are still in the church for the song, such as candles (probably not actually lit), a cross standing or on a wall, a pulpit, etc. With just these few additions keeping the setting in the audiences’ minds as the scene unfolds, it frames the romance as something holy, which tied into one of the show’s musical motifs - “Our love is God”. However, doing this would also make the scene more grounded during the parts where it is meant to transport the audience out of the real world for a moment, to this fantasy real, where the leads’ romance can persist without destroying either of them.
To keep this effect, I would rely on the sound and lighting. The band/orchestra would have to carry those emotions described in the previous paragraph; listening to the soundtrack, you can see they use lots of strings instruments in this song to achieve that effect. The lighting can make us of the prevalent color motifs in the show as well. Veronica is always associated with blue, while J.D. is associated with black. Another color to use in this scene would be red, which is commonly associated with both love and rage. For the lights in this scene, you could transition from a darker blue/purple to a lighter blue/purple to represent the hope and innocence that the song represents.
