‘A Single Man’ is now a ballet – we go behind the design

In Christopher Isherwood’s 1964 novel, A Single Man, protagonist George is a struggling English professor, sinking into depression as he goes through life following his partner’s death. The challenges of bringing George’s rich interior world to life were successfully navigated in the eponymous 2009 film, starring Colin Firth and directed by Tom Ford. Now, they are considered again as Isherwood’s masterpiece comes to the stage.

Set designer Chiara Stephenson, known for her work with musical artists SZA, Lorde, Florence + the Machine, and Björk, created the aesthetic of the show presented by The Royal Ballet and Factory International (at London’s Linbury Theatre, 8-20 September). The challenge lay in creating a discreet juxtaposition between George’s inner and outer worlds; here, she tells us how she brought Isherwood’s book to life, and why it was time for A Single Man to embrace a new life as a ballet.

Wallpaper*: Christopher Isherwood conjured up such a rich and specific world in the novel. Where did you begin when translating this to the stage?

Chiara Stephenson: I think you’ve said it there in the question. Isherwood conjures such a specific and detailed descriptive world of 1960s LA that you can't possibly ask the dancers to try to tangibly hold that or physically interact with the sheer amount of locations and contextual detail. We essentially decided to address Isherwood's style of writing and his lens on life in the aesthetic of the show. Specificity and ultra attention to detail were important, but as a mesh and matrix [providing a] background for our protagonist. The concept was to create a literal apparatus of life’s mundane details to hold him up each day, from the steering wheel of his dead lover's car to poached eggs on toast… it’s all there to reflect on as the story and emotion unfold in the physicality of the dancers.

W*: What was important to you when creating the external context of George’s rich inner life?

CS: Isherwood’s writing has this fantastic over-analytical lens on life. It’s the contrast and extremities of human existence that [director and choreographer] Jonathan Watkins and I were keen to magnify.

The finish of the staging and set details is coated in a layer of grey dust, using a process we developed with the Royal Opera House called flocking. It gives everything an almost velvet-like, powdery quality. This demonstrates the blurring of the reality of the details of George's day-to-day life, an intentional response to the themes of the book regarding grief and mental health: it acts as the foggy filter that depression and grief might place over the eyes of George. This means that George is on a different plane, detached from the day-to-day existence happening around him. What we quite literally pop out of that framework is both the body and mind of George, [represented respectively] by Ed Watson [the former Royal Ballet Principal] on stage, and the sensational John Grant [the singer-songwriter behind the show's music with composer Jasmin Kent Rodgman] framed in a diagrammatic cross-section of a man's head.

We also wanted to create a sense of the macro and the micro of George's point of view. We wanted people to feel a shift of perspective across a very broad landscape, which John captures with the music, as do the dancers. They traverse both the arc of George's day, and the physical representations of human urges or emotion, which override and overwhelm his senses. [He’s] a very observational yet grief-stricken soul trying to find new meaning in life.

W*: What can we expect from your design? What have you enjoyed most about bringing this book to a new medium?

CS: When both the book and the film are such iconic contributions to literature and broader culture, what do you do with the dance adaptation? We didn't want to ignore these cult classics, but we decided early on to take inspiration both from Isherwood's life and from the first ever printed edition of the book, which Don Bachardy [Isherwood's lifetime partner] designed back in 1964. The graphics of the book cover include a simple outline of a man, which also references Isherwood's portrayal of what it means to be human, often coming from an almost medical, biological perspective. We read [about] Isherwood's early ambitions to be a doctor, and so liked that we could somehow try to visually represent George's mind and body in this anatomical way. We took inspiration from the artist and graphic designer Fritz Khan, Isherwood's contemporary, who was creating incredible visual communication at the same time.

What I have enjoyed most is being a part of this incredible hybrid of a show. It's theatre, ballet, contemporary dance and a great gig all packed into one; the fusion of artforms is where I get most excited. Jonathan Watkins' clarity of vision has been a joy to bounce off and respond to. Just the right amount of direction mixed with a free rein to explore form and feeling and meaning.

The staging is one of the most detailed but also static designs I’ve created, and with purpose: to make you appreciate the very essence of what it means to be alive. This is brought to life through movement, through Ed Watson and the dancers, alongside John Grant and Jasmin Kent Rodgman's deeply moving music. You can't move on that stage for the sheer volume of artistic heavyweights in play. To cradle that has been a joy.

‘A Single Man’ is on from 8-20 September at Linbury Theatre; tickets at rbo.org.uk