Tag Archive: Jack Weir

1. White Light Goes Riverside with Persona

   30 January 2020 15:03 Leave a Comment

   

   White Light has supplied the lighting for Persona, which has reopened the newly-renovated Riverside Studios.

   Based on Ingmar Bergman’s 1966 iconic Swedish psychological movie, Persona tells the story of a renowned stage actress who relapses into total silence and is sent to a remote summer house where a nurse must break her silent spell. This production is the first to be performed in the venue’s Studio 3 and features a lighting design by Jack Weir. Jack comments: “This is an extremely visual piece of theatre. Footage from the ground-breaking film has been re-created and re-shot on location on an island off the coast of Sweden which has then been integrated with the BAFTA Award-winning Fotini Dimu’s incredible grey set and projection by PJ McEvoy. It’s an extraordinary backdrop for the actors to perform on and for me to work with”.

   

   Jack’s main brief for his lighting design was to help create atmosphere throughout the piece; particularly for the sunrise and sunset moments. He explains: “As we were working with the theatre’s brand-new LED and moving light rig, I realised that I actually needed tungsten light sources to achieve the feel required. As such, it was a case of drawing on some classic generic fixtures to supplement the modern ones in order to generate that immutable tungsten warmth”.

   Jack approached WL and selected the ETC Source Four Profile, ETC Source Four PAR and Par Can 64. He explains: “Whilst it’s fantastic for companies like WL to continue investing in the latest equipment, it’s actually important for them to have a selection of classic fixtures which designers may need to draw on; as I did in this situation”.

   

   Alongside the visually demanding set, Jack also had to tailor his design to work with William Close’s Earth Harp. Jack explains: “Musician William Close is part of the production as is his iconic Earth Harp. Due to the size of the instrument, it actually runs through up into the rig. As such, the rig had to work in tandem with this, both in terms of the fixture placement overhead as well as the focusing of front of house fixtures. Also, with projection playing such a huge role, it was important to ensure that the show is lit from angles that prevent any shadows on the back wall”.

   As this was the first production at the newly-refurbished Riverside Studios, this meant that Jack was the first lighting designer to light in the space: “It’s so exciting being part of the first show in a new space as you become part of that building’s footprint. On a very obvious level, playing with the new control systems, equipment and infrastructure makes the job a lot of fun!”.

   The show, along with the building, has now opened and will run until 22^nd February 2020.

   Jack concludes: “It’s been an absolute pleasure working on Persona. I’d like to say a big thanks to General Managers Clive Chennery and Joanne Benjamin, Pamela Raith Photography, Technical Manager Ian Dickson Wilkinson and my Production Manager James Anderton”.

   Photos courtesy of Pamela Raith Photography.
   
   

2. White Light Goes Above The Stag with Lighting Installation

   31 July 2018 10:39 Leave a Comment

   

   Based in Vauxhall, Above The Stag Theatre is an award-winning theatre which focuses specifically on producing LGBT+ themed work, including new writing, musicals and revivals. The only full-time professional LGBT+ theatre in the UK, Above The Stag recently moved to a brand-new space in Vauxhall. Having supplied many of Above The Stag’s productions over the years, along with its reputation for providing state-of-the-art theatre installations, White Light was called upon to oversee the lighting installation within this new space.

   The new Above The Stag Theatre is located beneath the arches at Vauxhall Station. WL was initially approached by Lighting Designer Jack Weir, acting as lighting consultant on the project, who met with WL’s Business Development Manager Jonathan Haynes. Jonathan comments: “Above The Stag was moving from an intimate venue to a brand-new, much-larger space. It was exciting to hear Jack’s ambitious plans and to work alongside him to turn these into a reality. The arches under Vauxhall are a really unique space to work in, with a huge amount of potential. What I walked into at my first site meeting was essentially an empty shell which would eventually house a theatre and studio. The finished install needed to really tap into this, providing the latest technology to push boundaries and keep up with the creative demands of their productions.”

   

   Jack comments: “I’ve been part of Above The Stag Theatre for a few years now as one of the venue’s regular lighting designers. When the opportunity arose to get involved with the specification of the new theatre lighting installation, I was really keen to do so and ensure the venue’s new lighting resources would allow the production values of the shows to get even better”.

   Following this initial discussion along with various site meetings, WL was then assigned with providing the complete lighting installation. The included a custom floor standing Milos truss structure, ETC ThruPower racks for the theatre and studio as well as power and data distribution with a Wieland cord patch and fully networkable lighting system.

   Jonathan explains: “The first priority was to get a truss structure designed and installed. We then worked through some design ideas for the main bulk of the install. The key priority was maximum flexibility. On site power is limited and so we explored various options to work through the various challenges we were  coming up against. For this, I brought on board WL’s Systems Design Engineer Ian Davies who was able to take Jack’s brief and turn this into a fully workable system. During this initial period, Ian worked on site with the WL team to complete the installation”.

   Not only did WL oversee the entire lighting installation within both spaces, but also did so within a very limited time frame. Jonathan explains: “The opening season of the new venue had been announced so we had essentially a 6 week time frame from being awarded the contract to getting everything in place before the first show. That said, by working closely with our suppliers and manufacturers to manage lead times on kit, along with close collaboration between Jack and our team of expert site technicians, we were able to achieve this tight deadline”.

   Alongside the installation, WL also supplied a range of fixtures. These include ETC Color Source Spots, ETC Color Source Pars, Martin Rush Par 2 RGBW Zooms, Martin MAC Aura XBs, Chauvet Rogue R3 Spots and a cluster of conventional lanterns – all controlled from an ETC Ion XE20.

   Jack explains: “At the forefront of the vision for the new rig was flexibility. Having state-of-the-art LED lighting fixtures from ETC as part of the in-house stock means that we longer rely on the expense of hiring externally. Additionally, we’ve also been quite careful about how power and data is distributed throughout the theatre, ensuring there are few limitations when it comes to designing shows there. We also have Martin MAC Auras and the brand-new Chauvet Rogue R3 Spot as part of the in-house stock. Think of it as an Aladdin’s Cave of lighting!”.

   Jonathan adds: “Above The Stag wanted their lighting inventory to include the latest technology, as well as be industry standard; capable of holding up against the demands of even the most critical lighting designers. There needed to be a broad mix of tools which could support a wide variety of shows”.

   Above The Stag Theatre has now opened in its new home, with the inaugural production being Beautiful Thing which was lit by Jack.

   Jack comments: “I think it’s fair to say that opportunities like this don’t happen often i.e. where a venue you frequently design for allows you to lead on its new state-of-the-art theatre lighting. It’s also my first time providing consultancy on a project of this scale. That said, I’ve been in very safe hands with WL and I’m really pleased with the final outcome. It was a project that took months of planning, meetings and talks; not to mention the hours of hard labour. Thankfully, the end result is very special. I’ve just designed Grindr: The Opera which is running there throughout the summer. This show in particular takes a greater advantage of the new LED and tungsten fixtures, moving lights and flexible infrastructure that rivals anything else in the London OffWestEnd scene and I’m really pleased with what was achieved with the new rig.

   He adds: “It is a really exciting venue to design for because what we can achieve creatively with our in-house tools is so much greater than before. There’s been a significant leap from the old venue to the new premises on all levels, and I’m really excited to see the wealth of shows that are yet to come. It’s a fiercely impressive new venue for London theatre and I’m so pleased to be part of it”.

   Jonathan concludes: “The Above The Stag project was a great example of how we are able to use our years of experience working within theatres, alongside our expert teams, to provide a solution bespoke to their exact needs. It has been great working with Jack in a slightly different capacity than usual and help him realise his design ideas. I very much look forward to seeing how future productions and designs work and develop in Above The Stag’s new home”.

   Photos courtesy of Above The Stag Theatre.

3. White Light Offers Big Support for Little Women

   3 May 2018 10:14 Leave a Comment

   Following a successful 2017 season, the Musical Theatre Performance Company at the University of Chichester recently presented Little Women. The production took place on April 19-21 at The Alexandra Theatre in Bognor Regis. The Lighting Designer was WhatsOnStage Award-nominated Jack Weir and he approached White Light to supply the lighting equipment.

   Based on Louisa May Alcott’s life, Little Women follows the adventures of sisters, Jo, Meg, Beth and Amy March. When it was first performed on Broadway it achieved critical acclaim and is often revived across the globe. Jack explains: “I’d never seen the show before but had heard great things. I also knew a lot of the numbers such as Astonishing so I was familiar with it somewhat”.

   Whilst the production was for the University of Chichester’s Musical Theatre Performance Company, a large part of Jack’s brief was ensuring that the show felt like a professional production. He comments: “For a lot of these students, this may be the last performance they have before entering the real world and becoming professional actors. Therefore the standards need to be just as high as they would on any professional production; something that was at the forefront of my design and the equipment I drew on”.

   Jack approached WL to supply him with the equipment he needed. This included the Martin Professional MAC Viper, the MAC TW1, the MAC 700 Wash and the SGM P5 LED Wash Light.

   Jack explains: “The SGMs are fantastically bright and a unit I’ve drawn on before. Due to their brightness, we only needed eight units to light the cyc top and bottom; which resulted in a lovely effect. The main purpose for drawing on the MAC Viper was to shoot through a hanging window. The window was the main focal point of Amy Watts’ brilliant set and, as a result, was a point in which very bright yet controllable lighting was required”.

   This marks another student production that WL has supplied, having provided the equipment on other university shows across the country. It’s also another show of Jack’s that WL has supported,  having also supplied the UK tour of Out of Order along with Rothschild & Sons which ran at the Park Theatre earlier this year.

   Jack comments: “I am extremely grateful to WL once again for their support on Little Women. They worked within my budgets, the constraints I was faced and ultimately delivered a package from which I was able to achieve my design. The final result was a fantastic show which offered the perfect platform for the students to experience the taste of a professional production”.

   Photos courtesy of Andrew Worsfold.

   For more photos, please click here: https://weirdlighting.pixieset.com/littlewomen/

4. White Light Supplies Rothschild and Sons Musical

   7 February 2018 09:59 Comments Off on White Light Supplies Rothschild and Sons Musical

   Based on the Tony Award-winning musical The Rothschilds (1970), Rothschild and Sons tells the remarkable story of the Rothschild family and how their influence would eventually change the world. It recently opened at London’s Park Theatre and marks the musical’s UK premiere. The lighting designer is Jack Weir and the equipment was supplied by White Light.

   Jack comments: “For my design, I worked closely with the director, Jeff B.Moss, who was very keen for characters to appear out of nowhere, with a key sense of darkness constantly surrounding them. Traditionally, a lot of musicals are more suited to the look of vivid and saturated pictures with light beams cutting through haze in the air for sensory excitement. However, this differed slightly with this show due to a back wall”.

   The back wall, which was covered entirely in gauze, not only had to disappear when it wasn’t required during the show but also used as a projection surface throughout the show; meaning Jack had to avoid any form of light spill on it, whilst still achieving a sense of backlight to provide depth in each scene. He explains: “By trying to draw attention away from the back wall, alongside a predominately dark costume design, the show ultimately required a muted pallet of pastel colours, playing mostly with the use of black and white. Another practical aspect of my design was, owing to the Park Theatre’s thrust configuration space, there were only three main lighting positions, meaning everything was either on the circle front or overhead”.

   To bring his design to life, Jack approached WL, along with SGM, to supply him with the exact equipment he required. He explains: “I drew on a range of SGM units as they were small enough to position on the circle front, meaning that I had a moving light position, with zoom and full colour control in front of stage. This proved vital for cross lighting the cast in scenes which used full floor and wall projection. They also deliver a brilliant white, which nicely matched the look and feel of the video design by Louise Rhodes-Brown”.

   Jack also drew on the ETC Source 4 Lustr 2s and the Philips VL1100s. He adds: “The VL1100s are in constant use throughout the show, either as specials to define areas on the stage with the framing and diffusion features or as gobo washes. The Lustrs provided  a huge amount of pastel colour in a position which is as close to crosslight as I could get; particularly the minty green hue used in the number ‘Everything’. I also drew on an old favourite, the MAC TW1, which are still my favourite fixture and provided an invaluable injection of warm tungsten light in a defined and controlled way”.

   The show has now opened and will run until 17^th February.

   Jack comments: “This is a really great show and I’m proud of the look we’ve managed to achieve. I’d like to thank SGM for their generous support of this production. I’d also like to thank WL’s Jonathan Haynes and Jim Dewhurst for their continued support, not only when delivering the kit but throughout the entire production period”.

   Follow Jack on Twitter – @weirdLX

   Photos courtesy of Pamela Raith.

5. White Light is Out of Order for UK Theatre Tour

   21 March 2017 09:44 Comments Off on White Light is Out of Order for UK Theatre Tour

   Winner of the 1991 Olivier Award for Comedy of the Year, Ray Cooney’s Out of Order is making a triumphant return to the stage. Starring television favourites such as Shaun Williamson and Sue Holderness, this classic farce will now embark on a nationwide tour. With its strong reputation as a leading supplier to UK touring theatre, White Light is providing the lighting equipment on this production.

   Out of Order tells the story of Richard Willey, a Government Junior Minister, whose plan to spend the evening with one of the oppositions typists goes disastrously wrong…The revival is being produced by Tom O’Connell and the lighting designer is Jack Weir. Jack comments: “Out of Order is a purposefully over-the-top, hilarious farce and typical of Ray Cooney’s work. The show takes place in real time, in the one location of a hotel room overlooking the London skyline. My role was to light the action and highlight the farcical elements which pervade throughout.

   He adds: “The set features several doors (with characters frequently coming on and off stage) and this really drives the action of the piece. Therefore, on a practical level, I had to ensure the play had enough coverage and that we believed the environment which designer, Rebecca Brower, had created”.

   To achieve this, Jack drew on WL’s extensive equipment range to achieve his design. He comments: “I specifically chose the Martin MAC TW1. These offer a great deal of flexibility; something which is vital when touring a show like this. When we visit venues, we have essentially less than a day for the fit up so time is definitely of the essence. Similarly, we are visiting venues that range vastly in size from the Palace Theatre in Southend to the Manchester Opera House. Therefore, we need to have equipment that is able to adapt to this and maintain the look of the show”.

   Other equipment includes ETC Sensor Tour Dimmers, ETC Source Four Profiles and an ETC Ion Console.

   Jack also had to take into consideration the front cloth which features at the top of each act. He comments: “I used a front wash which features four Martin MAC Aura LEDs on the front bar along with two MAC Quantum Profiles. These are excellent units for touring, owing to their small size, LED technology and weight”.

   Whereas the play first premiered more than 25 years ago, this revival has been updated for a contemporary audience. Jack comments: “The action is very much set in the modern day. What this means is that I’ve not had to create a vintage feel out of necessity but rather have been able to utilise more modern LED technology in addition to tungsten for my design”.

   Out of Order has now opened and is currently running at the Theatre Royal in Brighton. Next week, it will visit the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury before travelling to various venues until July this year.  Jack adds: “This is a really ‘laugh out loud’ show and will no doubt have audiences up and down the UK in stitches. It’s been a great experience to design and I’m grateful to WL for all of their help throughout”.

   Photos courtesy of Darren Bell.