REGINA -- With renovations underway inside the Globe Theatre, Damien James Webb is tasked with creating a visual time capsule of the long-time stage layout.
The Globe has been mostly quiet over the last year, but when it reopens after the pandemic and its renovations are finished, it will look noticeably different from the layout theatregoers are familiar with.
“This is a very important thing to have this snapshot, like a physical snapshot to really understand the dimensions and the weird limitations and sightlines and things that we had to deal with over the years,” Webb said.
Webb’s finished model of the main stage will be displayed when the theatre is ready to reopen alongside several older models found in storage and restored.
Damien James Webb is creating a model of the Globe Theatre, before renovations began in November 2020.
Before the pandemic, Webb was the assistant head of props for the Globe. It was his first job in theatre after around almost a decade of searching.
“When I was accepted into Globe that was really important to me, it meant a lot. It became my home. The people there became my family, and it felt right to be there,” Webb said.
Model making is another activity Webb began doing around the time his passion for theatre grew, an art form he describes as natural.
“I'm on the autistic spectrum and so one of my ‘talents’, let's call it, is to be able to completely visualize a space in my head,” Webb explained. “So then taking that and then translating it into a physical model was kind of like a thing that I felt was going to happen at some point whether or not they were going to hire me to do so.”
Agent Mulder’s office from “The X-Files”, recreated by Damien James Webb. (Cole Davenport / CTV News Regina)
Some of Webb’s past work includes cover art for musicians, tiny appliances, and miniature versions of fictional locations like “Bob’s Burgers” and Agent Fox Mulder’s office from “The X-Files”.
“Bob’s Burgers” recreated by Damien James Webb. (Cole Davenport / CTV News Regina)
According to Webb, the Globe project is all the more meaningful, given how it combines both loves, and presents an opportunity to preserve the iconic look of the theatre.
“When COVID happened and everything shut down, I was at a loss. My home was gone. So to be able to still hold onto it in a way and give it its last little bit of life, I have no words,” Webb said.
Webb started working on the project in December and is now in the process of building each individual seat by hand. He estimates he has more than 400 left to build in order to complete the model.
The paint is mixed to replicate those seen in the theatre. Like previous projects, Webb works off pictures, the theatre layout and his own visual of the space.
“This is the kind of work that I enjoy doing,” Webb said, as he put together another theatre seat. “It kind of allows me to drift off into my own brain a little bit, and then do a couple things at the same time and do a couple things while I'm also building.”
The $30 million renovation started in November and work is expected to continue over the next several years.
