Salomé

Look at this amazing location I have stumbled on to!! Having now read Salomé this is excatly the sort of place I am looking for. I love the color of the brick, and the pillars, and the large windows! My favourite bit is the strange-shaped pool in the middle, there is something really sinister about it.
Alas, alack, these are the baths of a disused Sanatorium in Beelitz, Germany, and I won't even START to list the reasons why therefore this would be a poor place to choose. But I will certainly draw inspiration from its visual qualities.
I also looked into the last big production of Salomé, which I believe was indeed the Headlong production that I remember touring in 2010. However, it was certainly not how I thought it was. I remember very clearly the image used on the publicity, because I loved it, and it intriguied me:

So therefore, I was shocked when I saw the photos from the production, seeing that the marketing material really did have NOTHING to do with the content of the show, which had been updated to some sort of militant empire with a hip-hop aesthetic..... certainly didn't seem a natural choice when I read the play....

I enjoyed reading Salomé, although it was far shorter than I had expected (although not as short as Phaedra's Love), didn't realise it was a one-act one. However, I loved the imagery it painted in my head- golds and bronzes, strong linear deco lines, heavy contrasts to dark and light, and the wonderful emphasis on the moon.
One difficulty that struck me was that there are only really 4 main characters that seem to convey a bit more personality and backstory- 6 if you include the Young Syrian and Herodias' Page. The rest of the characters only have very brief and sporadic lines... not a lot that conveys character. But maybe this is a good challenge for me? I don't know. But having read it, I've sort of got my heart set on it. So I think it's all go for Salomé- although I haven't entirely ruled out the idea of doing the Strauss opera.....

Here are 3 initial stimuli that I feel epitomize my feelings after my FIRST reading of the play:
THE PLACE: Beelitz Sanatorium
THE PAINTING: Gustav Klimt: Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I
THE SONG: Venus in Furs by the Velvet Underground (based on the book of same name)