gafferted Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 These are old dimmers (Ally Pally Theatre) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_s Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 These are old dimmers (Ally Pally Theatre) wasn't it interesting? did you go under the stage and see the LX battens? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gafferted Posted June 25, 2015 Author Share Posted June 25, 2015 These are old dimmers (Ally Pally Theatre) wasn't it interesting? did you go under the stage and see the LX battens? Yes, and all the machinery too. Not sure whats it's called but all the timber machinery for popping up flats etc through the floor - and the trapdoor.Quite amazing. I hope the plan to restore and re open it works out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinntec Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 These are old dimmers (Ally Pally Theatre)What about the "board" (lighting control)? Or is that the remains of a Grand Master which would have had the actual dimmers behind (hard to tell in the photo)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tow Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 What about the "board" (lighting control)? Looks like it used a crank handle for show control. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_s Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 These are old dimmers (Ally Pally Theatre)What about the "board" (lighting control)? Or is that the remains of a Grand Master which would have had the actual dimmers behind (hard to tell in the photo)? No, that is the "board" I think it probably predates a Grand Master which I think controlled resister dimmers (might have got that wrong). In Ally Pally, they are liquid dimers, the brightness of the light being determined by how far the negative pole floats are lowered into the electrolyte in the big white pots below. Traditionally, as the liquid evaporated over the course of the show, it was replenished by weeing in the pot. This is why theatre crew used to have to spend all the time they weren't actually doing a scene change or whatever in the pub round the back of the stage door, sadly at their own expense. Now that we have solid state dimmers, there is no need to spend all that time and money in the pub, and beer is no longer tax-deductible. :( It wasn't clear whether there was a clutch system as in a Grand Master so that each dimmer could be individually controlled, but as they had this facility with the previous gas lighting system, I would imagine they would have wanted to maintain that facility. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrV Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 The pulleys you can see above the pots appeared to be the ones which controlled the electrode depth. Some of the stuff which looks like conduit was in fact copper tube and, we were told, was a remnant of the gaslighting (limelight) system. A really fascinating look at where some of what we do actually started Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinntec Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 The pulleys you can see above the pots appeared to be the ones which controlled the electrode depth. Some of the stuff which looks like conduit was in fact copper tube and, we were told, was a remnant of the gaslighting (limelight) system. A really fascinating look at where some of what we do actually started DaveSo basically the board above probably had levers on it for the operator (with flat cap and obligatory fag) which dimmed lighting via cables controlling movement into the pots via the pulleys. No chance of repatching that! Anyone for a restoration project? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrV Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 So basically the board above probably had levers on it for the operator (with flat cap and obligatory fag) which dimmed lighting via cables controlling movement into the pots via the pulleys. No chance of repatching that! Anyone for a restoration project?But wouldn't it be wonderful to see... One of the other visitors in our group said that there is a theatre in South Africa which is STILL using a salt pot for the house lights. And I visited yesterday, not on April 1st :-)Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alistermorton Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 How often is it open? I found no mention on the ally pally website ... or is it by arrangement only? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrV Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 How often is it open? I found no mention on the ally pally website ... or is it by arrangement only?This was at ABTT - they had advertised 3 tours a day but I think they took more. Nigel Wilmott, who took us round, is chairman of the Friends of Alexandra Palace Theatre (fapt.org.uk) so that would be good first point of contact. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alistermorton Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Ah - I was intending to go to the ABTT show but in the end I couldn't spare the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_s Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 My tour was led by Roger Fox who did / is doing all the research into the theatre, and has produced a book (along with his partner in crime Joe Aveline with help from Steve Roberts, who is with Charcoalblue these days, who are consulting on the refurbishment. )describing the building and their investigations so far, and illustrated with some interesting photos - I bought it because the camera on my phone couldn't cope with the lighting conditions.... I'm just reading the caption that goes with the photo of the lighting position... "wooden platform on steel beams where the operator would have stood" (with aforementioned fag). above this, shaft with wheels (at about knee height - "these wheels moved the chords which controlled the dimmers which are housed below" So I suppose this bit is the 1906 equivalent of DMX.... "above again are the actual switchboards. the pale one on the left ... has a freehand pencil drawing of how a liquid dimmer is wired.... The switches enable selection of those parts of the lighting installation which are required at any time" So I suppose this is the equivalent of the command line on your Eos or Ion.... "The switches are on the surface and would be 'live'. Operators would have had to be very precise in their movements." (stuff in quote marks is lifted from the book. I hope Roger won't mind) The refurbishment project aims to bring the space back into use, but I think won't touch the stage area, just the space in front of the pros line, so the historic equipment can be preserved. Roger and Joe's recommendation is that the rear of the pros wall on promptside is kept as a unit, as it has the remains of the gaslight system (saddle the "control board" for this was liberated - probably for the value of the brass stopcocks. (I'm not involved in the refurbishment or research or anything - just a fascinated tour participant) In addition to the pointer towards the FAPT group from Dave, it might be worth approaching ABTT, specifically the Historical Research Committee, to see if there might be the possibility of further tours later in the year.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbuckley Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 they are liquid dimers ... Traditionally, as the liquid evaporated over the course of the show, it was replenished by weeing in the pot.Hence this type of dimmer being coloquially known as a "piss pot". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrV Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 My tour was led by Roger Fox who did / is doing all the research into the theatre, and has produced a book (along with his partner in crime Joe Aveline...Andy, please could you tell me the isbn no. of the book. My tour was the last one on Wed so by the time we finished the show had closed. Ta Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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