What is a Relighter

[Light-Junky]

I see it listed all the time as a job but what is a relighter?

What do they do?

[Big Jay]

A re-lighter is someone who takes an LD's design and re-creates it in another space so could be touring into different venue's, it is the re-lighters job to choose the appropriate positions (as the same positions may not always be available in each venue) to be able to best 're-light' to the original design.

[gareth]

To expand a bit on Jay's reply - it's about more than just choosing where to put the lanterns. The re-lighter needs to have worked with the original LD to understand how the show was lit, and what all the kit does in the context of the overall lighting design. Obviously, in an ideal world you'll be able to take the lighting design from the original venue and transplant it directly into another venue with the same kit in the same positions. It's rarely that easy, though.

 

You might, for example, have to take a show that was originally staged in a modern well-equipped venue with lots of FOH bridges, slots and booms and plenty of dimmers, and move it to an old Matcham theatre where the fixed FOH consists of a dozen dusty old Sil15s on a gallery rail half a mile from the stage and some tired old Preludes with half their shutters missing on the box booms. And that's it. That's when you need to be able to make a judgement regarding what can be cut without affecting the integrity of the design too much, which lanterns are doing a similar enough job to something else to be used in their stead, whether something's better coming from SL or SR when you just can't get that straight-in shot from the original rig, etc.

 

You may well have to be able to recreate a focus, which originally took the best part of a day, in a two-hour slot on a Monday fit-up, with the CSM nipping at your heels because he wants to get the company on stage for a walk-around despite the fact that you started your focus two hours late because the very same CSM didn't have the set finished in time.

 

You'll often have to think on your feet when you get to the venue and find that those last half-dozen profiles on their kit list, which you've drawn onto your plan doing those essential specials for the big moment at the end of act 1, aren't actually in serviceable order and the chief LX didn't think it was important enough to tell you.

 

Etc., etc., etc.

 

Lots of people are capable of making a blob of light on stage look like the photo that the LD took of the original focus of a lantern, repeat that many times, and call it a focus ... but it takes someone with a good 'lighting eye', no small amount of technical skill and a good understanding of the original lighting design of a show to make the decisions needed to compensate for different positions and angles, equipment compromises and substitutions, and so on. No decent production company would employ a production electrician to look after the production finances on the road and take care of the needs of the acting company - so why do so many insist on employing a company manager to recreate a lighting design that someone has previously taken a lot of trouble to get right? Grr! (Rant over! :** laughs out loud **:)

[Claire]

Agree Gareth- on that note though, I'm a CSM but I am NOT a relighter or any kind of lighter, I'd prefer to leave lighting to people who actually know about it rather than having to do it as 'part of my role' and knowing it's just not as good as if someone proper was doing it.

[liteman]

Gareth,

What an informative and realistic description of the task !

You forgot to mention the absolute pleasure in getting the best result you could from Venue, Kit, and Crew.

I do remember turning down a tour when the Touring CSM wanted me only to attend when investors in the Show were likely to be present.

[paulears]

I'd beg to differ, Claire. The role of the CSM is to know exactly what the people do, and what it is that they see. It doesn't mean you need to be a Lighting Designer but it's essential in my view to be able to make considered comment on what they are doing, how long they are taking and if the extra ten minutes they ask for is likely to really be an hour? You don't have to interfere, but as the most senior person responsible for all their results, surely you must be able to be able to recognise if it's good enough and acceptable?

 

I don't think CSMs need to be expert status in everything they control, but you really need to be competent in as many areas as possible.

 

The other thing is that the relighter is often very under appreciated, and part of the CSM's role is to make sure that the balance is maintained. Gareth's comment is typical of where the CSM is a luvvy, and all things with plugs on are magic, but that's par for the course. I've often found that where the CSM is/was an actor, the house crew can take liberties, and over the years I've had some amazing examples of total rubbish sprouted as technical reasons for not doing something that were simply excuses for being a bit lazy. A CSM who can't see through them is a bit lacking. Oddly, seeing a CSM get dirty when things are tough endears them to the house crews - who actually seem to respect the fact that their needs will be understood.

[Claire]

Maybe you misunderstood me.

 

I understand lighting. I understand what is and isn't reasonable for time needed taking on things, and I understand the principles of rigging, focussing, plotting, different types of lantern etc. I also have similar levels of knowledge about set building, sound, etc.

 

Does that mean I want to be the person responsible for actually carrying out the relight? No! I get what the relighter is doing, and when people are trying to take advantage; but I am not an LX person and therefore don't want to be in charge of it.

 

I'm sure most people understand the rudimentary principles of being a DSM but that doesn't mean that they could actually BE the DSM. The LX op hears the show called however many times but that doesn't mean they could just jump on the book and take over the DSM job- there's more to it than that. Similarly I have seen relights many times, but I know there are more skilled people than me to do it so I think they should be employed to do so and I shouldn't be expected to just because it's cheaper than hiring the right person for the job.

 

Incidentally- I don't have much respect for anyone in the team who isn't prepared to muck in and do what is necessary. You're never too high up in the hierarchy to push a box or put things in the bin.

[jonathanhill]

 

Incidentally- I don't have much respect for anyone in the team who isn't prepared to muck in and do what is necessary. You're never too high up in the hierarchy to push a box or put things in the bin.

 

Amen to that.

[LXbydesign]

Totally Clare.

 

After all, putting on a show is about teamwork and the various departments working alongside each other and coming togther to create the final product. I may be on a show as LD or prod LX / programmer etc, but if it was a small team and stage needed some help to hang something from the grid or move set around - I'd help them out! Wouldnt just sit there and say no its not my job because it hasnt got a plug on it or a DMX input!! :D

[Claire]

Exactly- and as a Stage Manager if all my stuff is done and LX are running behind and are the only thing stopping us getting going with the tech, as happened on my last show (not their fault!) then I will always say 'what can I do to help?'.

 

When it comes down to it, if everyone helps each other out (and nobody takes advantage) then it all runs much smoother and happier and everyone ends up in the pub earlier...

[Lumiere]

As a chief LX of a small producing theatre for many years.most of the incoming shows used to use the CSM to do the re-lights!!

However, as has already been said here, the re-lighter should have been sitting next to the LD, and more often than not would usually focus the rig to the LD!s requirements asking lots of questions along the way. It would normally fall to the production LX if the show is big enough to afford one!