Share Cassy Schillo will beg — not steal, of course — or borrow to get what she must have. She’s also not above a little innocent deception if her haggling falls short because she unintentionally irked the seller. “If that is the perfect piece — and I need that piece — then I will have my fiancé or assistant reach out as a completely separate [person] and offer the asking price,” says Schillo.
“They’re getting their money and I’m not trying to offend anyone.” The “perfect piece” could be anything from a 1950s Polaroid camera to a box of fake cigarette lighters to a full-size replica Egyptian sarcophagus. Such is the unique and exacting work of a theater props designer.
Schillo, who works for Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook Terrace, describes herself as part detective, mechanic, artist and, yes, artful haggler. A perfectionist, too. “If something is inaccurate, I couldn’t even imagine being more embarrassed,” she said.
Cassy Schillo is on a mission to recreate rooms within Buckingham Palace and Balmoral Castle for the upcoming production of “The Audience” at the Drury Lane Theatre. Pat Nabong, Sun-Times Like many props artists, Schillo often begins her hunt in a warehouse. Little about Drury Lane’s drab brick building in Villa Park hints at what’s inside — except perhaps the faux Venus de Milo statue or the pair of female mannequins spray-painted gold that can be seen through dusty windows.
On a muggy day in early July, Schillo was on.