The Coronation of Poppea opens with Virtue and Fortune arguing over who has the most power, when they are interrupted by Love, who explains that they have more power over either of them and will tell a story to back this up. Therefore, the plot of the production is told by Love, and creating a story that shows their power is the driving force being it. Despite Love’s heavy involvement within the story of Poppea and Nero, and the obviously romanticised version of historical events, the Opera still deals with issues of morality within many of the characters. Greed, lust and jealousy are prevalent throughout and despite love being at its core, it is really these that are the driving force of the production.

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Through using the Art Nouveau style, popular around the time of the rediscovery and using flowing shapes that will link to the original Roman setting, I created a modern look to the 17th century opera. The romantic and flowing shapes help tell Love’s story, creating a biased look to the performance, while the use of textiles and layers will show the darker morals of the character and how these actions weigh them down.