How to Make a Back for a Stage

Bring your play to life with a beautifully painted backdrop.

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The backdrop is an essential component of the stage, as it allows you to create the scenery needed for the play. Professional theaters often use elaborate backdrops made with expensive materials and fabrics. Building your backdrop's supporting structure out of PVC pipe will allow you to save money, without sacrificing the quality of your production. Instead of using silk or velvet, you can cover your backdrop frame with seamless paper. This will allow you to easily change the scenery of your play, using various painted landscapes and designs.

Related Searches:Difficulty:Moderately ChallengingInstructions Things You'll Need10 8-foot pieces of PVC2 four-way PVC fittings2 five-way PVC fittings8 1-foot pieces of PVC2 PVC elbow fittings2 PVC T-jointsSeamless paper -- available at craft and party supply storesDuct tapeSuggest Edits1

Place one 8-foot piece of PVC pipe onto the floor in a horizontal position. Insert the left end of the PVC into a four-way fitting.

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Insert the right end of the PVC pipe into a five-way fitting. Lower an 8-foot piece of PVC into the four-way fitting, in a vertical position. Insert a 1-foot PVC pipe into the two remaining holes of the four-way fitting, to create legs for your backdrop.

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Place a J-shaped elbow fitting atop the vertical piece of PVC pipe. Lower an 8-foot piece of PVC into the five-way fitting, in a vertical position. Place a T-joint atop the second piece of vertical PVC.

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Connect the elbow fitting and T-joint with an 8-foot piece of PVC. Insert a 1-foot piece of PVC into the opposing ends of the five-way fitting, to create a second set of legs for your backdrop. Place an 8-foot piece of PVC onto the floor, in a horizontal position.

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Slide the left end of the PVC pipe into the remaining hole of the five-way fitting. Place a five-way fitting onto the right side of the PVC pipe. Lower an 8-foot piece of PVC into the five-way fitting, in a vertical position.

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Place a T-joint atop the piece of vertical PVC. Connect the two T-joints with a piece of 8-foot PVC. Insert a 1-foot piece of PVC into the opposing ends of the five-way fitting, to create a third pair of legs for your backdrop.

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Insert an 8-foot piece of PVC into the remaining hole of the five-way fitting, in a horizontal position. Place your last four-way fitting onto the right side of the PVC. Lower an 8-foot piece of PVC into the four-way fitting, in a vertical position.

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Place an elbow fitting atop the vertical piece of PVC. Connect the T-joint and elbow fitting with your last piece of 8-foot PVC. Insert your last two pieces of 1-foot PVC into the opposing ends of the four-way fitting, to create a fourth pair of legs for your backdrop.

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Wrap a large sheet of seamless paper around the skeletal structure of your backdrop. Secure the paper in place with numerous pieces of duct tape. Draw landscapes and designs onto the paper to complete your stage backdrop, if only one is needed for your production. If more than one backdrop is needed, paint each one on a separate sheet of seamless paper, and change them as needed during the play.

ReferencesShin Digz: Background Materials, Stage Backdrops, Background PaperBarlow and Associates: Stage TypesCharles H Stewart: Theater Glossary of Backdrops and Scenic DesignResourcesHarvard: Set Design: Student Technical Theatre HandbookArts Work: Stage DesignYale: Design: Yale School of DramaPhoto Credit Adam Taylor/Digital Vision/Getty ImagesRead Next:

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