Jump to content

Lighting Two Shows


mackenziemo1

Recommended Posts

Hi there,

 

I am a student who is doing a Lighting unit in college and I've been given the scenario of lighting two touring productions.

A big production which would be Mother Courage and Her Children which could sit 500+ people in a big venue and small touring dance company that would sit about 100 people in each venue.

 

Would anyone be able to tell me what types of lights would be used in each production and why and roughly how much each theatre lantern that would be used cost?

 

Any information would be greatly appreciated!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You probably won't find anyone willing to do your homework for you I'm afraid.

 

A bit of research will find the answers you seek, there are lots of stage plots on the internet that people have shared over the years, rig information in youtube videos that people make when on jobs, and pricing on supplier websites. even having a good dig around this forum will leads to lots of info about what is in use and what rigs venues have.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You probably won't find anyone willing to do your homework for you I'm afraid.

 

A bit of research will find the answers you seek, there are lots of stage plots on the internet that people have shared over the years, rig information in youtube videos that people make when on jobs, and pricing on supplier websites. even having a good dig around this forum will leads to lots of info about what is in use and what rigs venues have.

 

Okay thank you for the advice on using YouTube would have never thought about checking on there!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's quite a clever project!! First you would need to find out (or make your own assumptions) about how the play might be staged (empty stage or elaborate sets), what sort of dance. what sort of venues & how much (if any) infrastructure they might have. When you've done all that you can start thinking what lighting might be appropriate. Only then can you even start to consider what equipment you might want (or could afford) to use. All the information you need is out there somewhere - go look for it :).
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Another voice to the "we're not going to do your homework for you" view!!

 

You first need to be much clearer with the parameters. What are you expected to produce for each scenario - a lighting design (with LD's hat on), a touring kit list and a costing for it (with proddy LX hat on), or both? What sort of venues will the hypothetical tours be visiting, and will they have a decent stock of in-house kit? Or will you be touring your own hypothetical rig? The type of lights used depends on the staging, the design, the venues visited, all sorts of things - far more information needed. If you want useful advice, there are plenty of people around here who'd be happy to help - but you have to put a hell of a lot more effort in yourself first! Much more information needed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Your first question (if you haven't been told by your tutor) is What is the budget?

A good question, but definitely not the first. You can light a Brecht play & a dance group perfectly well with 6 lights or 60, so you don't need to worry about the budget until you have a good idea of what it is that you are lighting. If the budget turns out to only cover your basic rig, then you are sorted. If it turns out to be more generous then you work out how many of your "would be nice" looks you can afford to squeeze in.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As a Lighting Designer who may well end up lighting either of these shows in reality (and, indeed, I have lit Mother Courage before), it's impossible to say, I'm afraid.

 

I would need to see rehearsals, look at the set design, chat to the director to see what (s)he wants to achieve, find out about the venue and what they have available/what hanging positions they can offer and speak to the Producer about what sort of budget we're looking at. There is no point coming up with a design that won't work and is unaffordable.

 

Nevertheless, I can say that most venues of around 500 would have fresnels on stage and profiles FOH with the option of adding Par 64s and birdies if required. Many would also have some LED units and maybe some movers, but others would need to hire these in. In smaller venues of around 100, you would have a small selection of fresnels and the odd profile, but you'd be looking, for dance, at putting in some tank traps (or other form of side light) with maybe Parnels or Source Four Juniors on, preferably at shins, mids and tops heights. Maybe 3 of these per side?

 

Hope that helps.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We are not going to do your homework for you Mackenzie, but if you tell us clearly what scenarios you have been given to work with, we might be able to point you in the right direction (or, this being the BR, directions). There are lots of professional & amateur lighting designers on the forum, but unless you can come up with a bit more than "how long is a piece of string" we are likely to rapidly lose interest. If you haven't been given any more detail to work with you are going to have to invent your own scenarios & work out a basic lighting design for each. In real life as these are touring shows you would base your designs around what is in each venue, perhaps bringing along a few "must-have" specials, depending on budget & what transport is available.

 

Something to bear in mind is that your tutor might just be following this thread.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Cost" is another issue! what a lantern is priced at on a list will likely have little connection to the price charged for delivery of a single lantern or lorry loads of hundreds, this for either sale or rental, and a 50 week rental may not cost 50x the one week rate.

 

The topic that you quote is very very general and far too open ended and has too many remaining variables for a complete answer, the director/producer hasn't made their input, and no two touring venues have the same stage size and lighting stock.

 

There are threads on this forum an the lighting of professional dance, additionally there will be professional dance shows on youtube, find the vids and look for the shadows -they point away from where the lantern is. In drama the face is the first to emote, in dance it's the body that is first.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.