Evaluation- Specific Scenes

Bollywood: The opening number, I changed on the morning of the plotting session the colour gels for the gold because I felt another would be more suitable and look better. I was happy with my decision. In the picture above 2 blocks either side of the stage are lit by PC fresnels.

Africa: When this picture was taken, the parcan containing the green gel had been knocked when the curtains had been moved, it was supposed to be focused upstage not hitting the audience. But I liked the use of the colours to represent Africa. It fit well with the theme in my opinion. 

Stars: This worked well I thought because it was a suitable colour scheme to fit with the music and the performance. They used a warm wash with purple backlight, 1K Fresnels and all LEDs were set to purple.  

Garage scene: Purple backlight with a cold wash. It looked good however could have done with more blue. 

Bouncers: Just representing the array of colours I included. Here shown is the red and orange parcans and a warm wash. The parcans were on a chase, flashing alternately every second. I think it worked well because the orange was a 'street light' orange which helped set the scene, which was especially important as there were no props. 

 

The video above just shows the use of my spot light that was re focused after the plotting session because the dancers could not all fit. We refocused and ensured it was more of a rounded circle in which all dancers could stand. As the choreographer asked, I added a steel blue gel into her spot light (source 4 Jr Zoom) Another centre spot was a profile CCT  which was left open white. 

The image above is showing the use of the side lights which were identical to the ones opposite. The order was: Head = O/w Mid = LED Ankles = Steel Blue. I used selecon acclaims for side light and barn doors to focus them correctly. 

Another image from the Bollywood act, representing the use of different colours in their piece. They used mostly Red and Pink LEDs along with the warm general wash. They also had a chase, with a variety of different colours, programmed with the use of all parcans and LEDs. 

Duet - Hammer to Fall: It was a simple lighting scene. As the performers used the space and moved around a great deal during the piece, it was inappropriate to add a spot light. Therefore they used a warm wash and it worked well because they were both clearly scene and the audience's attention was focused on the performers. 

Salsa: I felt that this piece worked very well because the colours chosen fitted the piece well and helped bring out the energy and style of dance. They had the red parcans with pink LEDs on the booms and as backlight. A spotlight was added for the final position, which was a lift. It allowed the performer who was lifted to stand out and made a more interesting finish. 

Evaluation

Overall I was happy with my lighting design because I had managed to include all of the requirements for the choreographers and aesthetically, it looked good on the nights of the performance. It was successful because there were no major complications and everything ran well in time for opening night.
I watched a few of the rehearsals for numerous pieces, such as the Salsa, Bollywood, Africa, and a couple of contemporary dances. This was beneficial because it allowed me to get a feel for the performance and provided me with some inspiration about what I think would suit the performance (a spot light to finish or to highlight something in particular) It definitely gave me some ideas, therefore I am glad I decided to watch.
With the help of Julie and Nancy, I came to the decision that the colours I should try and include as much as possible were: Red, Pink, Blue, Purple and Orange.

I was happy with the rigging session because I had been organised prior to it, for example I had my 2D Design with me, I had focus notes and a colour call. Therefore I was able to delegate jobs to my crew members and knew what had to be done. I was confident about where the lights were being positioned and which sockets they had to be plugged into. Obviously a few needed to be changed, along with extension cables (2 of which did not work so we changed them, then when one of the two still did not work as it should have done, we changed the bulb - after that it worked perfectly.) Any time anything changed, I ensured a note was made on my plan to avoid confusion. Also, for the purple backlight we did not have enough of the same colour for all 6 1K Fresnels, therefore I found an alternative and it worked well.

The focusing session was the following week and it did not run as smoothly as the week before. This is because it was difficult to determine how the space clearly looked with a large group working on set at the same time, in the space. I was responsible for giving my crew instructions on where the light should be focused. This is where my focus notes came in handy. I also had Julie's assistance when I did not understand something. She explained to me which direction a few of the lights should face / what would look best. I had to ensure the entire space was lit (general washes were my main concern). We avoided hitting the side curtains and the rig by using the barn doors on the minuette fresnels. As we were pushed for time, we had to work fast. I had to make quick decisions in order to complete the tasks.
I also noticed in this session that some of the gels in the parcans were incorrect and did not match. Such as the red for Bollywood, Salsa etc. We had this changed and fortunately there was enough of the gels we required left.

Unfortunately it became apparent the following day (Wednesday - Assessment Day) that a few of the general cover lights had not been focused and had been missed off my checklist. I took responsibility for this as I mistakenly overlooked the specific area of the rig. We re-focused the general cover and ensured the stage was lit without it being patchy. We did this by getting a member of the crew to walk across the stage and my making sure he was lit at all times. I also ensured the lights were in line at the front (and backlight at the back) This was important because if it did not look even or equal, then it would look messy and unfinished.

The LEDs were rigged last as they did not plug into the rig as they were battery powered. I wanted 6 on the rig and 4 for the booms (one on each.) I was fortunate enough to have help with setting up the dimmers and focusing on the morning of the plotting session to edit some of the focusing. We also rigged and focused audience lighting using 1K fresnels with the gel code 117 (Steel Blue) to ensure the stage was in blackout yet the audience could see where they were going / what they were doing.

I wrote down the socket numbers for each group of lights that the operators plotted. For example group 1 was backlight, group 2 was for the cold general wash, group 3 for the warm wash, group 4 for parcans, group 5 for spot lights, group 6 for side lights etc.

I was present for the plotting, technical and dress rehearsals of the Winter Showcase to help the operators programme. I provided information such as where specific lights were plugged into and what each light / group would be useful for. I also made any notes about lights that needed changing, whether I did not like something, or if for example a choreographer was not happy with a certain colour - I wrote it down to change it later in the day. Luckily staff and performers were happy with the colour schemes.

If I were to do another lighting design, I would be more organised on the night of the focusing session to ensure all changes had been made. This is because I lost track of where I was up to on a few occasions and it took time to work out where a certain light was plugged in. I would also plan more in advance for the rigging and focusing sessions because I felt I left it to the last minute and I had so much to do in so little time, therefore I would be more prepared and have my final design ideas checked and edited more to improve if I could.
 If I were to do the same show again, I would add more blue gels. This is because the blue was very pale and white, if I could go back I would add a deeper blue to add more colour to the stage. However I was happy with the green that I chose as it was a nice balance of both blue and green which was ideal for some scenes in particular (Africa and Bollywood.)

Photographic Evidence of me leading a rigging session

 

Above are photos of me leading a rigging session. I was responsible for telling the team of riggers what to do, which lights to cut gels for, how many needed to be made, where they were being rigged and the direction they were to face. There were 6 on the team. To save time, I had the LX Free plans printed on A3 paper for each team member and a colour call and focus notes also.

I also gave each team member a job role when we started because I thought it would be beneficial and would ensure the evening ran smoothly. I gave 2-3 people the job of cutting gels to the correct size, and using the colour call they could work out how many were needed. Another person was on the tallescope ladder rigging under my supervision / instructions. I would then tick off on the LX Free sheet when a light had been rigged / changed. I ensured everyone had a turn rigging and switched roles so it did not get tedious.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2D Lighting Designs

Below are my 2D Designs for the Winter Showcase. I used these plans when I was leading the rigging session. It was a crucial piece of documentation because without it I would not have been able to feel confident about what I wanted to happen and where I wanted the lights going. We were pushed for time and therefore I could not waste it by being unorganised. I was careful to write on my plan anything that changed, such as a light being rigged in a different place. I also ticked off the light when it had been rigged correctly.
The second plan was an up to date plan after the rigging session, I updated it because I felt that it would be easier for the team to follow and understand a clear plan at the focusing session.

Colour Call

 

This is my colour call for the Winter Showcase. It contains information such as the codes for the gel, the real name of the gels themselves, the light they were going to be put into and what I wanted to achieve by using that specific colour. I also gave the exact number that I would need. I gave a copy to each member of the crew on the night of the rigging and I delegated the job roles so everyone had a turn at cutting and making the gels to fit the correct lights. I made the call as simple as I could so that it was clear for the team to read, understand and use. I think it worked well and hardly any changes had to be made.  

 

 

 

 

I changed the Gold because I felt it was aesthetically more fitting. We also ran out of the 109 Light Salmon after we rigged the general cover, therefore I decided to just use open white on the booms for side light instead of the light salmon because the other pink coloured gels gave more of a purple effect which is not what I wanted.

Focus notes

Below are my focus notes that I amended through the rigging, focusing and plotting sessions. They were very important because they explain in detail the channels for each individual lights and the sockets in which they were plugged into. This was very important for efficiency when the operators were programming the lights during the plotting session. I was able to say straight away which lights needed to be brought up.
Also on the focus notes was a section to write the details such as where the light was positioned. this helped me in the focusing session because I knew how I wanted them to look, such as whether it was a hard or soft edge, wide or defined beam of light.