Tag Archive: David Woodhead

1. White Light Makes the Newsies at ArtsEd

   13 February 2019 15:24 Leave a Comment

   

   White Light recently supplied the lighting equipment for Disney’s Broadway-smash musical Newsies which recently had its UK premiere at ArtsEd.

   Set in turn-of-the-century New York, Newsies tells the story of Jack Kelly, a charismatic newsboy and leader of a band of teenage ‘newsies’. When titans of publishing raise distribution prices at the newsboys’ expense, Jack rallies the newsies together against the unfair conditions to fight for what’s right! The show was a smash when it played on Broadway and the lighting designer for the UK premiere is Nic Farman. Nic comments: “I hadn’t seen the original Broadway production but the moment I read the script and listened to the score, I knew it was going to be a great show to work on. The key for the creative team was creating a production that had the high production values associated with a show of a larger scale. It was also incredibly exciting as it’s the first time the show has been done in the UK; so we knew the expectations that this carried”.

   Having become familiar with the show, Nic began to formulate his design. He comments: “I approached the show in the same way I do with my other work: developing a concept that helps frame the action that’s appropriate to the location and time that the piece is set. I was lucky to be working with Luke Sheppard (Director) and David Woodhead (Set Designer) who had created a beautiful set that was full of texture. So a lot of my initial work was finding ways to light the architecture on the stage cohesively which promoted that texture. We also had a clear idea of the colour palette we wanted to use which included lots of cold whites moving through to rusty warm tones and to dial in saturation and help lift the musical numbers”.

   

   Once Nic knew what he wanted his design to look like, he approached WL to supply him with the fixtures to achieve this. He explains: “Early in the process I sat down with WL’s Business Development Manager Jonathan Haynes to discuss trying out the VL2600 Profiles on the show. I knew having a versatile moving profile overhead was going to be important and I was really pleased with how they performed. These would go on to become the real workhorses in the production. I asked a lot of them, doing live shuttering and tracking the action, which they dealt with consistently. They’re also nice and punchy which gave me good options for impact cues.

   Nic adds: “The varied colour palette also called for some flexibility (especially as time was tight for the get in and focus) so ETC Lustr 2’s and ColorSource Spots gave me options for both set dressing and side light. Completing the rig were Martin MAC TW1s which I love using for their warm tungsten output and soft edge”.

   

   As this marked the show’s UK premiere, there was a lot of anticipation and the entire run quickly sold out. Nic comments: “This was just a really special project to work on. It’s a wonderful show with brilliant music, so it was a joy to get to put my design spin on it. As a creative team, I think we created a version of the show which sat really well in the intimacy of the Andrew Lloyd Webber Theatre. I’d like to say a big thanks to the team at ArtsEd – Di, Phil, Chris, Molly, Leah and Fran for their hard work in delivering the show”.

   Alongside Newsies, Nic is lighting the UK tour of David Walliams’ Billionaire Boy, which WL is also supplying. Nic comments: “It was great to work with WL once again on this project, especially Jono and Chris, who offered brilliant support in helping me realise my design. It was another example of the fantastic service which I have come to expect from them”.

   Photos courtesy of Robert Workman

   CREDITS

   Director – Luke Sheppard
   Choreographer – Ashley Nottingham
   Set & Costume Designer – David Woodhead
   Lighting Designer – Nic Farman
   Sound Designer – Tom Marshall
   Musical Director – Laura Bangay

2. White Light Gets the Gaslight for New Theatre Tour

   19 January 2017 10:08 Comments Off on White Light Gets the Gaslight for New Theatre Tour

   Now considered to be a theatrical classic, Patrick Hamilton’s Gaslight is currently being revived for a UK tour. The Victorian thriller opened last week at Birmingham’s New Alexandra Theatre and is now visiting venues across the UK. As one of the leading lighting suppliers to UK touring theatre, White Light was called upon to provide the lighting equipment for this production.

   This latest revival of Gaslight stars Kara Tointon (Pygmalion, Mr Selfridge, Eastenders) and the lighting designer is the award-winning Howard Hudson. Howard comments: “Somewhat fittingly for this particular show, the actual gaslight used throughout plays an important role in the overall narrative; largely as it signals the movements of the main character as he journeys to the various spaces throughout the play. The conceit is that, as he turns up the gaslight to move around, the other lighting within the space dims. Therefore, achieving that genuine feel of gaslighting was vital for the piece”.

   Howard experimented with various palettes to ensure that what he picked perfectly captured this feel. He comments: “When you actually see a gas lamp in operation, you’ll notice they emit a grey, almost dullish green glow. Therefore, we decided to use a colour palette with a slightly green tint”.

   Alongside creating this gaslighting effect, Howard had to create a rig that was suitable for touring. To do this, he drew on a range of predominantly LED equipment taken from WL’s extensive inventory. This included ETC Source 4 Series 2 Lustrs, ETC Revolutions, a host of ETC Source Fours and an ETC Ion 1K Console.

   Howard states: “The rig mostly consists of the Series 2 Lustrs, supplemented by Revolutions which allow a steeper overhead shot in restricted positions; offering vital flexibility in what can often be extremely tight spaces. The Lustrs were also able to do very subtle colour shifts throughout the play which you just wouldn’t be able to achieve with any other conventional unit. There are some strobed moments in the production which these were also hugely helpful with, being able to focus and colour the look of certain sections”.

   As with any touring production, Howard not only had to create a tourable rig but also ensure that this worked alongside a tourable set. He comments: “The set designer David Woodhead designed a space with a flown ceiling piece so one of the biggest challenges was having to cross light the space in order to sculpt the company, but also contain the light to such a degree that the cast weren’t in competition with the scenery in what is a very confined space. That said, we addressed this several times in our pre-production meetings, meaning that when the set came, it was nicely broken down and suitably smoky”.

   Gaslight has now opened and already received four and five star reviews from The Telegraph, The Times and WhatsOnStage to name but a few. The play is currently playing at the Aylesbury Waterside Theatre before visiting Woking’s New Victoria Theatre (23 – 28 Jan), York’s Grand Opera House (30 Jan – 4 Feb), Brighton’s Theatre Royal (6 – 11 Feb) and Richmond Theatre (6 – 11 March).

   Howard comments: “I am really pleased with what we’ve managed to achieve on this show and how we’ve used contemporary equipment to create a very Victorian feel. I was lucky enough to work with a fantastic Production Electrician in Stu Meech and an equally brilliant Programmer in Vic Brennan. I also want to thank WL for their support and providing such great equipment”.

   Photos courtesy of Manuel Harlan.