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Our perception of three dimensions as a human comes from the assessment of perspective through the quality of shadow and light. Whether creating a realistic external scene or one void of defined space, it helps to assert our sense of direction. When starting a design, I would still look to key-light as the first aspect to embrace. New Vic Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent Royal Exchange, Manchester Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough Manchester Royal Exchange a latte mug, treble height and a very steep-sided auditorium. New Vic Stoke is a big fat teacup, double height, rig wider shallower-sided auditorium. To use the beverage analogy, the SJT Scarborough is an espresso cup, with one height grid and steep-sided auditorium. They will take on some of the idiosyncrasies of their parent building. Not all theatres-in-the-round are the same, as they are uniquely affected by the building infrastructure.
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They will turn their head through 180 degrees, so their face light becomes side light. It can also be tricky as the actor is trying to take in and engage the entire audience during the speech. While it can be very dramatic to light an actor from their facing side and leave the rest in darkness, it can lead the audience members who are sitting behind them to disconnect from the actor. The design is about creating a world that explores all the permutations of light and shadow, color, shape, and form. It is better to think of the space as a three-dimensional sculpture one person’s window key-light is another person’s backlight. Lighting-in-the-round is not as simple as doing the same thing from four sides this very quickly becomes flat and uninteresting. The image below was from “Dangerous Corner” which featured a high-shine dance floor I absolutely did not want any lantern reflections to be seen from any seat, as that would break the illusion, so the angles for every lantern were particularly important. It is worth asking about the floor texture and finish, if it is painted, will it have a glaze? A matte or satin sheen is very different to a high gloss. This is particularly accentuated in-the round, because as the light hits the stage the resulting angle of reflection for the viewer opposite can change the perceived color, or in some cases, the shine of the reflected light can obliterate the floor in the shine-spot. The same gold color printed on vinyl floor is made of pigment ink and only one layer thick so it can appear thin and not as lush. For example, when painted with gold, it will usually have a red undercoat, so it will be much more reactive to the warmer tones in the lighting. A painted floor with a matte finish has a great depth to it, brought about by the scenic artist’s layers of paint. Generally in theatre-in-the-round, all seats are raked towards the stage, so the floor covering becomes your constant companion. In a format where large sets and scenery are practically non-existent, you tend to rely more heavily on the lighting and sound designs for the communication of narrative intent. Entrances, called “voms” (from the Latin, ‘vomitoria’), and staircases often become part of the acting space, which means that the audience members sitting nearest to these are very much in the action. For example, does the action take place in a single location, or in multiple locations? How much of the stage will the actors inhabit? In theatre-in-the-round, the lines of demarcation between the actors and the audience are less defined. Working closely with the director and designer will help answer some critical details early in the process. Our decisions are going to be based, stylistically speaking, on the ideas we want to communicate and the design language we use. She is based at the New Vic Theatre Stoke-on-Trent and has worked on over 100 productions in-the-round including, Prince and the Pauper, Much Ado About Nothing, The Wind in the Willows, The Witch and the Wardrobe, and much more.ĭesigning for theatre-in-the-round starts the same way as it would with any design: with the story.
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Lighting designer Daniella Beatie discusses the world of lighting design for theatre-in-the-round in this latest blog article.