The World Transformed: Scenic Designs by Carey Wong - A Single Shard

Scenic design for A Single Shard by Robert Schenkkan based on the novel by Linda Sue Park.

Set in 12th-century Korea, A Single Shard tells the story of Tree-Ear, an orphan living under a bridge with the disabled Crane-Man, who has cared for him since he was a baby. Tree-Ear becomes fascinated by the work of Min, a potter from the village whose technique and celadon glazes are unrivaled. The boy becomes an apprentice to Min and learns his master's techniques, later earning Min a royal commission by merely showing a broken melon vase's single shard to a court emissary.

"I felt because the single shard of pottery was such an important image in the story, it could become the set for the play. That raked square shard was the set's central playing area, and it was joined by another angled ramp and steps to an even higher platform at the back of the stage where the Rock of Falling Flowers story could be re-enacted."

A Single Shard played at the Seattle Children's Theatre from February to March 2012. It was directed by Linda Hartzell, with costumes by Nannette Acosta, lighting by Michelle Habeck, and sound design by Christopher R. Walker.