All My Sons — Stephens College

Design Notes

For All My Sons, I created a scenic design that visually embodies the idealized postwar “American Dream.” At the heart of the set is a charming home with a wide porch and an expansive, neatly kept backyard — a physical manifestation of Joe Keller’s hard-earned success and the stability he’s built for his family. This environment is warm, welcoming, and deeply familiar — the kind of place that feels safe, comfortable, and complete.

But Arthur Miller’s play thrives on contrast, and the set becomes a stage for unraveling that illusion. The pristine domestic space serves not only as a symbol of prosperity, but also as a container for suppressed truths. As the story unfolds, the house begins to feel increasingly haunted by the weight of what’s been hidden — a tension that’s heightened by the space’s openness and order.

Subtle visual cues in the layout and dressing suggest a world that is too carefully composed, echoing the emotional control and denial within the Keller family. The backyard, which initially invites relaxation and connection, slowly shifts in tone, becoming a place of confrontation and collapse.

The scenic design supports these thematic turns without becoming overt or symbolic. It allows the actors room to move between public performance and private revelation, reinforcing the emotional stakes of each scene. The familiar setting helps ground the audience in realism, while the contrasts within the space allow deeper truths to surface.

By embracing the traditional aesthetics of postwar suburbia and allowing them to fracture under pressure, the design highlights the moral dissonance at the center of Keller’s world — and the cost of building a future on denial.