Tag Archive: London Lighting Hire

1. It’s Child’s Play for WL on Groan Ups UK Tour

   26 October 2021 07:40 Leave a Comment

   

   Created by the Olivier Award-winning Mischief Theatre, Groan Ups is a brand-new comedy that looks at just what it means to ‘grow up’. Following an unruly class of six-year-olds, the show asks how far we choose who we become, or whether our paths are already written. The show initially ran in London’s West End at the Vaudeville Theatre and has now embarked on a UK Tour. Having worked on previous Mischief shows including Magic Goes Wrong, The Comedy About a Bank Robbery and Mischief Movie Nights, White Light (WL) was approached once again to supply the lighting equipment on this production. 

   The lighting designer for Groan Ups is Christopher Nairne, who comments: “Groan Ups has all the brilliantly-written comic farce that you would expect from the company behind The Play That Goes Wrong; but it combines this with some affectionate nostalgia, and even has a moral message at its heart. In that sense, it pretty much has something for everyone!”.

   Having lit the initial West End production back in 2019, Christopher was keen for the touring version to stay faithful to his original design. He comments: “As always, we collaborated as a creative team to pull together a cohesive look for the show. Each act of the play is set in the same classroom (but in different years), so the important thing was to get a bright, reasonably naturalistic feel that was adaptable to the set walls changing configuration. For example, Act 3 uses only half the playing area of Act 1, and so has half the number of overhead units at its disposal, but we needed it not to feel like a darker room than where the show began.”

   

   The show tours through venues of various sizes, and it has to be fitted up and focused in a single day; all of which were important factors when selecting the rig with WL’s Customer Service team. Christopher explains: “The rig is based largely around MAC Viper Performances, with 13 of them positioned overhead as cover and another three being used for Front of House specials. These fixtures were able to provide the shuttering capabilities we needed for the different configurations of the set walls, without blowing the budget! I used 4 MAC Auras – also Front of House – to provide additional specials, as well as 12 ETC ColourSource Spots to provide a full near-to-stage cover from pros ladder positions.

   Christopher continues: “In terms of generics, I used 10 Source Four Profiles to provide a range of specials, along with an additional 18 house units in each venue for general cover; then there were five 1K fresnels and 15 par cans providing a range of door and window backlights. Not forgetting the 2 mirror balls (both of which are offstage), and 2 Unique Hazers which run at an imperceptibly low level throughout”.

   The Groan Ups UK Tour opened back in August at Theatre Royal Bath and is touring venues across the UK until March 2022, with more dates expected to be announced.

   Christopher concludes: “I am, as ever, very grateful to WL for their support: helping us to meet the challenges of touring without compromising what we had created in the West End. I’d also like to say thanks to my talented Programmer David Ayton. More than anything, however, I am eternally indebted to my amazing Production Electrician and Relighter Teresa Nagel, whose diligence and achievements every Monday are nothing short of heroic”.

   Photos by Pamela Raith.

    

2. White Light Supplies Kipps and Ragtime at ArtsEd

   21 April 2021 08:48 Leave a Comment

   

   ArtsEd is one of the UK’s leading drama schools and for over a century has offered a range of Acting and Musical Theatre courses at a variety of levels. As part of its training, third year students take part in their renowned Graduate Shows, with two of this year’s productions being Kipps: The Half a Sixpence Musical and Ragtime. The lighting designer for both was Nic Farman, who approached White Light (WL) to supply the lighting equipment. 

   The Graduate Shows at ArtsEd were a much-welcomed return to theatre for Nic who, like so many other designers, had most of his work either cancelled or postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. He comments: “I  really enjoy working with the team at ArtsEd so was pleased to be asked back for these shows. Their response to the Covid situation has been really transparent and encouraging and they’ve allowed us to continue making work throughout the restrictions, such as the creative team and cast forming a working bubble for production week, as well as ensuring that we are all regularly being tested. When I found out I was lighting the shows, I immediately got in touch with WL who I have worked with on many occasions now, including when I lit Disney’s Newsies at ArtsEd back in 2019, and who I knew could provide what I needed”. 

   As Nic was lighting two shows that are stylistically very different, this meant he had to use the same rig in different ways. He explains: “Kipps was bright and sculpted for all the dance  ensemble numbers, whereas Ragtime was darker and  asymmetrical, often using only one section of sidelight to give us clean shadows and an imposing scale. ArtsEd operates on a semi-fixed rig basis which covers a lot of what I would put into it (I also have the added advantage of having a hand in designing the  fixed rig so it includes some of my stalwarts!). Because the shows play one after the other as opposed to in rep, the fixed rig gives us some flexibility, with time  to change gel and minor refocuses between productions. ArtsEd also have a good stock of ETC Lustr lanterns which means I can have an overhead wash and  sidelight that is completely flexible”. 

   He continues: “When it comes to dressing the set, I try to pair lanterns up across the productions. For example, on Kipps, we had a number of flown set pieces  which were lit from the low slips. Those lanterns were then repurposed to dress the girders in the set for Ragtime. On both shows we had a  beautiful layered cyc, courtesy of the designer, Frankie Bradshaw. It had two layers: a flat white cyc upstage which we lit from the bottom to give an  infinite skyline and a second, textured gauze downstage which took light scraping across it from all angles wonderfully. So as a team we  were able to create a vast number of looks with the cloths, from more realistic skylines for Kipps to abstract painting of colour across what almost  felt like a solid rock face for Ragtime”. 

   

   Nic then approached the Customer Service team at WL and worked closely with Andy Cullen and Louise Houlihan to supplement the existing fixtures. He explains: “ArtsEd has a great stock of ETC Lustr Series 2 fixtures, with both profile lenses and the fresnel adapter, and I used these for sidelight and overhead fill. This is then supplemented by four High End Solaframe 1000 Profiles which give me flexible spot specials. We also hired units to light the layered cyc, which included the ETC Colorsource which l’m a  huge fan of due to how well they blend, along with their punchy output. We also brought in extra Lustr Series 2 fixtures with Fresnel adapters to light across the front of the  textured cloth with their barn doors giving me control of the abstract streaks of light we were after. For a project like this where you are working across two shows, having infinite colour options is vital as it allows you that much needed  flexibility”. 
   
   Following two months of online rehearsals, this year’s ArtsEd Third Year Graduate Show took place last month and played to a socially-distanced audience of staff and students. For many of the graduates, it was the first time they had performed in over a year and offered them the vital opportunity to showcase their skills before they embark on their professional careers. 

   Nic concludes: “It was great to be back in a theatre, making work in what hopefully marks a gradual return to normality. I’d like to say a massive thanks to the team at ArtsEd (Di, Phil, Chris, Molly, Alex, Roo, Joe, Caitlin and Russel) for facilitating a smooth and safe production. I’d also like to thank WL as always for their support throughout the entire process”.  

   Show Credits:

   Kipps

   Director – Joesph Pitcher
   Choreographer – Ashley Nottingham
   Musical Director – Nigel Lilley
   Set Designer – Frankie Bradshaw
   Costume Designer – Gregor Donnelly
   Lighting Designer – Nic Farman
   Sound Designer – Adam Fisher

   Ragtime

   Director – Stephen Whitson
   Choreographer – Stuart Winter
   Musical Director – James McKeon/Ben Cox
   Set Designer – Frankie Bradshaw
   Costume Designer – Natalie Pryce
   Lighting Designer – Nic Farman
   Sound Designer – Adam Fisher

3. White Light Up to Mischief Movie Nights

   16 December 2020 10:40 Leave a Comment

   

   Created by the Olivier Award-winning Mischief Theatre, Mischief Movie Nights recently made its much-anticipated return to London’s West End. Opening at the Vaudeville Theatre, this fully improvised show sees audience members suggest a film genre, location and title, which the Mischief team then use to bring the ‘live movie’ to life before their eyes. The lighting designer is David Howe who approached White Light to supply the lighting equipment. 

   Mischief Theatre is one of the most prominent theatre companies in London’s West End, having created The Play That Goes Wrong, Peter Pan Goes Wrong, Magic Goes Wrong and The Comedy About A Bank Robbery. Mischief Movie Nights is the first of their productions to open following the Covid-19 outbreak. David comments: “We had initially hoped that Magic Goes Wrong, which has been playing at the Vaudeville since last December, would be able to re-open; albeit with a few tweaks for the current times we’re living in. That said, as the situation evolved, it was proving difficult to keep adapting the show to match the ever-changing guidelines. As such, it was decided that Mischief Movie Nights would be a better option as it is an improvised show, meaning less rehearsal time, along with the fact that it was much easier to make any last-minute changes if needed”.    

   Mischief Movie Nights was first performed back in 2009, under its original title of Lights! Camera! Improvise! at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It has developed over the years and David joined the creative team when it made its West End debut at The Arts Theatre in 2017. He explains: “Movie Nights is essentially centred around a film director who asks the audience at the start of each performance what type of film they want to see. This is then performed by the cast who are ‘controlled’ by the Director’s remote control, meaning he is free to hit pause, comment on the action or rewind/fast forward to other sections. The improv possibilities are endless, and it’s even been known to jump to a ‘Director’s Cut’, behind-the-scenes documentary footage or even deleted scenes, such is the nature of the show.  

   

   As this is an improvised production which changes every single evening, this obviously impacts David’s design. He explains: “With the show having no set structure apart from the welcome to the audience, this means that the type of film they choose to watch dictates what design is required. As a company of actors, Mischief are an incredibly tight group and visual comedy is an important theme running through their work so it would have been hugely dissatisfying to present the show with a single ‘look’. Therefore, the rig I designed needed to have many options to add to their performance as well allow for bold, clear choices that clearly define space and location for everyone. Similarly, colour is important, and we have a Gauze Cyc that we can dial-up any variation of colour we need along with a range of gobo textures.  We also have a large range of specials focused around the set that the cast are aware of and often move scenes into these prepared areas, which then allows us to close the lighting down around them and focus the attention. 

   He continues: “It goes without saying that the operator is a key (not to mention busy!) member of the team as the programming has to allow for the director’s frequent pauses as well as have the ability to rewind, fast forward through action and then re-call a state that perhaps had been used a few minutes before. As such, the programming is intense and has many cross-referencing macros giving us the options and flexibility we need.  We use an ETC-Gio console with a customised Magic Sheet and a fully loaded sub-master fader wing for manual control. Production Electrician and Programmer Ed Locke has programmed the show since 2017 so it has evolved a great deal as we’ve seen more and more of the ‘films’ performed and added to our store of locations and choices”. 

   Once he discovered that Mischief Movie Nights was being revived at the Vaudeville, David approached the Hires Team at WL to achieve the exact fixtures he required. His rig includes a mixture of ETC Source Fours, ColorForce Battens, MAC Auras and MAC Encores. He explains: “The moving lights provide the intensity and impact I needed for the bold looks. There can’t be too much movement as there is no-knowing what might come next in the show and therefore nothing can be pre-set in advance. That said, I’m really pleased with the package we have and it’s great to see the operator and cast in total synchronicity, telling a story that uses the building blocks of light I’ve designed”. 

   

   As Mischief Movie Nights was taking place during a global pandemic, this obviously meant for a slightly surreal rehearsal and tech process for David and the team. He comments: “Mischief and our producer Kenny Wax with Nimax Theatres spent a lot of time and effort in making sure that the theatre felt like a place we could all be in at the same time for long periods; something which we were incredibly appreciate of. The cast and crew were also all having regular Covid tests with quick results within 15 minutes, so we all knew we were safe to work. The turnaround was fast: we loaded-in on Monday morning, focused mid-afternoon and had a few states in the desk by the end of Monday night. Tuesday morning, we were all sent for Covid tests and then back to the theatre for a lighting and tech session. Since the opening three minutes of the show are really the only fixed point, it was then a matter of giving Helen, our Operator, the console and letting her rehearse with the cast as they refined their timings and I was able to make adjustments to focuses, colour palettes and timings. Helen has worked with us before on this show, so I watched in amazement as looks came and went with great panache. She deservedly gets a Bow in the curtain call”.

   The show opened earlier this month and was originally intended to run until 31^st January 2021. However, with London having now entered Tier 3, Nimax Theatres have announced that all shows within its venues will be suspended from today until 8^th January 2021. 

   David concludes: “It was a fantastic experience to be in a theatre once again, working with some brilliant individuals and creating a truly unique and equally hilarious show. It’s a shame that we find ourselves in this situation once again; particularly as everyone was so safe and cautious and the appropriate measures were all in place. It’s a scary and unpredictable time for so many of us in our industry and I am just hopeful that in the new year, we can return to some sort of normality and get back to entertaining audiences and doing what we love”.  

   Photos courtesy of Pamela Raith.
   
   

4. White Light Supplies the Lighting for Mamma Mia – The Party

   30 October 2019 11:04 Leave a Comment

   

   White Light has recently supplied the lighting equipment for Mamma Mia – The Party; an immersive theatrical dining extravaganza based around the music of ABBA.

   

   Created by ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus, Mamma Mia – The Party transports its audience to the island of Skopelos where taverna owner Nikos and his family present their story in a glorious night of song, dance and feasting. Running for four hours, the show is packed full of ABBA’s best-known songs which are performed by actors and musicians around the audience members. The show was first performed in Sweden and has now arrived in London, where it is running at The O2, Greenwich.

   The Lighting Designer for the show is the award-winning Patrick Woodroffe. He comments: “For Mamma Mia – The Party, we wanted our audience to truly believe they were in a Greek taverna on Skopelos. Bengt Fröderberg’s set design was so authentic and, for the first act, we wanted to mirror that with very realistic dappled lighting that slowly changed colour temperature as dusk falls. As the piece progresses into Act 2, we enter into some of the fantasy scenes and the lighting starts to become more theatrical and abstracted. Finally, in Act 3, we make an unashamed rock/pop concert!”.

   

   To create the specific rig needed, Patrick approached WL to provide the lighting equipment. He states: “On a practical level, we wanted to have all LED fixtures so maintenance would be easy for the technical crew over the entire run of the show. With this in mind, we used a mixture of GLP S350s, Clay Paky Axcor Wash 300s, GLP X4Ls, GLP X4Ss and GLP KNV Dots. In addition, there were strings of festoon, fairy lighting and a complete fibre optic starcloth that played above everything else; as well as over 50 custom pixel windows”.

   Unlike a traditional show, Mamma Mia – The Party is a theatrical dining experience, meaning the performance takes place across the whole space, fully immersing its audience members. As such, Patrick had to achieve the correct balance between lighting the performers along with the room itself. He explains: “We made an important choice early in the design process to replace the followspots with a tracking system that would use fixtures from the overhead rig to follow the performers. This was a creative, as well as a budget-driven, decision. The action takes place all throughout the venue – on the main floor, on a mini stage at one end of the room and also on the stairways and balconies. There wasn’t a single place where a followspot would have been able to reach all of these positions. We identified the Zaktrack system from Vienna as the most suitable solution for this and, although it took some time to tune the system because of the complexities of the space, the result was very successful. We can follow a performer right across the room, fading out one fixture and bringing in another as the scenery dictates. Not only that but we can do this with up to five performers at a time; something that happens more than once during the show”.

   

   Mamma Mia – The Party has now opened to rave reviews and is booking into 2020.

   Patrick concludes: “This was a show that required a lot of rehearsal and programming to achieve the theatrical effects needed but the end result is a completely unique theatrical experience. I’d like to thank Rob Casey, who was my Associate on the show, Chris Hirst who programmed the grandMA and Johanna Jenson, who was our Script Supervisor”.

   Photos by Helen Maybanks

   Creative Team Credits

   Director: Roine Soderlundh, Stacey Haynes
   Musical Director: John Donovan
   Choreographer: Roine Soderlundh, Stacey Haynes
   Set: Bengt Froderberg
   Lighting: Patrick Woodroffe
   Sound: Gareth Owen
   Costume: Annsofi Nyberg
   General Manager: Amanda Murray
   Costume/Hair Supervisor: Martin Rodges
   Production Manager: Stuart Tucker

5. White Light Spends its Apollo Nights at Eventim Apollo

   8 August 2019 10:58 Leave a Comment

   

   White Light recently provided the lighting equipment for the Apollo Nights season at the Eventim Apollo – a week of exclusive live performances from a range of legendary music artists.

   The inaugural Apollo Nights season at the Eventim Apollo in Hammersmith, London, brought together a premium VIP dining experience and a roster of headline artists for a week of shows at the landmark venue. Curated by Ollie Rosenblatt at Senbla, the season delivered a unique audience experience with the front stalls seating removed to create space for elegant VIP pre-show dining with live jazz piano before opening up the full auditorium for headline shows. The first performance was by Burt Bacharach and Joss Stone and was followed by George Benson and finally Marc Almond.

   The lighting designer for the season was Ben M Rogers, who WL has previously worked with on the award-winning HAIR musical. Ben comments: “I was tasked with creating a flexible ‘festival’ rig that would frame the action on stage and enhance the auditorium for the dining experience. Taking the artists touring riders as a starting point, and working closely with WL’s Customer Services Team Leader Andy Cullen, I had to assemble a rig capable of delivering everything, from big, classy show looks to intimate moments.”

   

   Alongside this, Ben also had to consider the building’s architecture when formulating his design. He explains: “The venue has exceptional sight lines with all seats able to see the full proscenium opening. I wanted to achieve layers of light to fill the large proscenium – so cascaded the fly bars and added a generous floor package to ensure we could deliver broad brush strokes of colour and shape to performances. Similarly, with the various set lists encompassing hits from over 50 years of music, I wanted to ensure the lighting design was versatile and could quickly evolve to match this.”

   As part of his rig, Ben drew on Martin Professional MAC Aura XB and TW1 fixtures in order to provide colour washes. He drew on the Quantum Profiles for gobo texture and Viper Performances for the dining and key light duties. Additional eye candy effects were delivered with iPix BB4’s, ROBE picklePATTs and the Portman P1 units. The lighting was controlled using the MA2 console. WL also supplied all of the rigging, power and logistics for the production.

   

   Ben comments: “In this busy season the team at White Light where fantastic in their ability to resource and support the show and their London base meant that last minute changes and evolutions to the design where easily accommodated.”

   WL’s Head of Customer Service Craig Bennett comments: “Apollo Nights was a truly unique and exciting project for us to work on. It also shows how, as a company, we are able to work with a lighting designer and not only bring their vision to life but do so both on time and on budget. We really enjoyed working with Ben once again and look forward to continue doing so in the future.”

   Photos courtesy of © Ben M Rogers/Senbla 2019.

6. White Light Goes On Tour with Amélie

   7 August 2019 11:36 Leave a Comment

   

   White Light has supplied the lighting equipment for the UK premiere of the Broadway musical Amélie, which recently embarked on a UK tour.

   Originally performed on Broadway, Amélie is based on the 2001 romantic comedy film by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and tells the story of an astonishing young woman who lives quietly in the real world but loudly in her mind. This UK premiere is directed by Michael Fentiman, stars Audrey Brisson and Danny Mac and features a lighting design by Elliot Griggs. Elliot explains: “Amélie is unlike anything I’ve ever worked on before. The film itself actually broke a lot of traditional concepts, with the central character being largely passive and the story being told through short vignettes, which together create a rich tapestry of 90s Paris, but also highlight its loneliness and isolation. Trying to encompass this successfully into a stage musical is no small feat! That said, the show manages to stay very true to the film. There are no big toe tapping numbers and the score, which was re-orchestrated by the fantastic Barney Race, steers the piece back towards its Parisian, folk-like roots; away from the Broadway-esque version of the Original Cast Recording”.

   Alongside capturing the themes of the film, the creative team was also eager to catch its unique aesthetic. Elliot explains: “Anyone who knows the film will instantly recognise the image of Amélie in her red outfit surrounded by a muted green backdrop. Set designer Madeleine Girling’s beautiful dark green art-deco Métro station set holds the entire play, with changes of location achieved only by simple props or upright pianos which spring open into a market stall, tobacconist and, later, a sex shop.

   

   He adds: “It was key we kept the colour palettes neutral, echoing the tones used in the original film. There’s a lot of warmth to the lighting, with the tungsten sidelight bathing the cast in sepia-like tones and bringing out the green of the set. With so many cast members on stage, all playing instruments, a lot of specials were used to highlight tiny tableaux throughout and draw the eye around the bustling stage”.

   To create the specific feel he required, Elliot approached WL to supply his lighting equipment. He comments: “Considering Amélie is not a ‘big, loud’ musical, I purposefully avoided using a ’big, loud’ rig. Not only does the show have several minutes of complete silence, but I also needed to create high-speed train effects without a massive noisy moving light on the circle front. The units needed to be quiet, but also offer super-fast shuttering and a variable animation wheel. After some demonstrations, we discovered that the ROBE T1 Profile was the only unit that ticked all the boxes. I was really impressed by their optics and output, even over exceptionally long throw distances from some circle rails which are sometimes in excess of 15m.

   He continues: “On stage, the booms are simple 6-way par can towers which create a beautiful tungsten glow across the whole playing area. Overhead there’s a variety of LED washes including Martin MAC Quantums and some ETC Source 4 LED Lustr Series 2s. I also used GLP X4 Batten 20s to create a solid, even backlight which looks particularly stunning shining through Madeleine Girling’s set”.

   

   With Amélie being a touring production, this was something that Elliot also had to incorporate into his design. He comments: “I knew that my LX team had to be able to get the show in and up in just one day at most of the venues we visited. As a result, the booms were kept deliberately simple, and nothing overhead needed physically focusing. There are only 26 units overhead, 8 par can tower booms, 12 Lustrs in the slips, a standard house front wash for the curtain call and 3 ROBE T1 Profiles on the circle front. As I said before, this show is about its simplicity with the main focus on its characters hence I created a design which reflected that.”

   The show has recently finished its UK tour to critical acclaim. It will soon receive its London transfer and will open at The Other Palace this November.

   Photos courtesy of Pamela Raith Photography.

    

    

7. Jon Clark Wins Olivier Award for Best Lighting Design

   8 April 2019 17:35 Leave a Comment

   

   Established in 1976, the Olivier Awards celebrate the world-class status of London theatre and are recognised as Britain’s most prestigious stage honours. This year’s Award ceremony took place yesterday evening at the Royal Albert Hall. White Light was once again on hand to supply the lighting equipment for the main ceremony as well as the complete technical solutions for the post show party. The company also sponsored the prestigious Best Lighting Design Award, which was won by Jon Clark for The Inheritance at the Young Vic and Noel Coward Theatre.

   WL’s Managing Director Bryan Raven comments: “We were delighted to sponsor the Best Lighting Design Award once again; something we have done for over five years now. The standard this year, as ever, was extremely high and we had supplied three of the four shows nominated. We are absolutely over the moon for Jon who has picked up his first-ever Olivier Award. Having provided the lighting for both the Young Vic run and the West End transfer, we were lucky enough to see his amazing work on The Inheritance first-hand and were thrilled to see his efforts recognised”.

   Written by Matthew Lopez, The Inheritance is an epic two-part play which asks what it means to be a young gay man in New York after the AIDs crisis. It was directed by Stephen Daldry and received critical acclaim during its sell-out run. Alongside Best Lighting Design, The Inheritance also won Best New Play, Best Director and Best Actor.

   

   The other big winners on the evening included Company which took home Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical, Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical, Best Musical Revival and Best Set Design. WL supplied the lighting for this sell-out production and you can read the full press release here. Other winners included Kobna Holdbrook-Smith for Best Actor in a Musical in The Tina Turner Musical, Summer and Smoke at the Almeida Theatre and Duke of York’s Theatre which won Best Revival, Catherine Zuber for The King and I at the London Palladium who won Best Costume Design and A Monster Calls at the Old Vic which took home Best Entertainment and Family Show. WL supplied the lighting for all of these.

   Bryan comments: “It was fantastic to see such an eclectic range of shows we’ve supplied be recognised as the brilliant productions they are. The last twelve months have been a really exciting and innovative time for London theatre and to play a small part in bringing these ground-breaking shows to life is a privilege. We’d like to say congratulations to all of the winners on the evening”.

   Alongside sponsoring the Best Lighting Design Award, WL provided the lighting equipment for the actual ceremony itself, working closely with Lighting Designer Ben Cracknell. WL also supplied the complete technical production for the post show party that took place at the Natural History Museum.

   Bryan concludes: “The Olivier Awards are an all-encompassing event for us; whether it’s from our sponsorship, supplying the winning shows or providing the technical solutions across the evening. To be part of an event that celebrates theatre and recognises the hard efforts of those involved is a real honour and we look forward to continue supporting the event and SOLT for many years to come”.

   Photos courtesy of Julian Bird and SOLT.

8. White Light Will Leave to Remain at Lyric Hammersmith

   4 February 2019 12:05 Leave a Comment

   

   White Light has supplied the lighting equipment for Leave to Remain at the Lyric Hammersmith, which features a lighting design by Anna Watson.

   A new play featuring songs by Matt Jones and Bloc Party’s Kele Okereke, Leave to Remain explores the story of a young gay couple whose marriage begins to fracture both of their families. It is told through a blend of movement, drama and 14 original tracks. Anna Watson is the lighting designer and comments: “Leave to Remain is a unique play that has music and choreography at its heart. It’s physical, funny and emotional and is driven by a pumping soundtrack of West African high-life”.

   Anna worked closely with director Robby Graham to help create the perfect look for the show. She explains: “Robby really likes spectacle (as do I) and we both agreed that we wanted to move away from naturalism yet wanted to ensure that certain moments still felt very real. The play features a lot of different locations and moves very fast between scenes; some of which are drug-fuelled, flashbacks or involve abstract movement. The lighting needed to define the different locations and help drive the action through the use of movement, focus and tone. With the choreography being slick, the music urban and the acting raw, I wanted this to be reflected in the lighting”.

   

   To achieve this, Anna and her team approached WL to draw on the fixtures required. She explains: “I had given Shaun Parry (the Chief Electrician) the brief for the hire, specifying that I needed 14 moving profiles with shutters and punch. We went with the Martin MAC Vipers, positioning 10 overhead and 4 on high boom positions. The floor was designed as a grid pattern and we decided that we would use this as a way of dividing the space for the split-stage scenes and to isolate certain characters”.

   Anna also drew on ETC ColourSource Profiles which were used as cross light whereas 30 x RGBW LED fluorescents were installed within the set and used to provide texture and effects in the nightclub scenes, along with adding abstract to the more intimate moments.

   With the show being performed straight after the Lyric’s Christmas pantomime, this meant there was an extremely tight turnaround for the get-in and technical rehearsals. Anna comments: “This is a hugely ambitious production which had a hugely ambitious timeline! Every beat of the show is so technical and with just three days of tech, the team had to work flat out to get everything ready in time. Thankfully, I had a brilliant programmer in Cat Carter who was just terrific”.

   

   The show has now opened to rave reviews and will run until 16^th February.

   Anna concludes: “It’s always a joy working at the Lyric Hammersmith and especially on a show as exciting and original as Leave to Remain. I am really grateful to Shaun Parry and his team for facilitating all of my design ideas and working extremely hard. I’d also like to thank WL for a great service and supplying me with the equipment I needed”.

   Photos courtesy of Helen Maybanks.

9. It’s a Happy New Theatre Year for White Light

   14 January 2019 09:26 Leave a Comment

   

   White Light is welcoming in 2019 by supplying a range of theatre shows in London’s West End as well as touring productions across the country.

   Over the course of 2018, WL supplied the lighting for a variety of smash-hit shows including the critically-acclaimed Company, The Inheritance, Young Frankenstein, The Jungle, The Pinter Season, The King and I, True West and the Oscar Wilde Season. The company also continued to supply long-running hits including Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Matilda, Aladdin, Tina – The Musical, 42^nd Street and Les Misérables.

   WL’s Managing Director Bryan Raven comments: “We had a fantastic 2018 which marked one of our busiest years yet. As we progress into 2019, we have hit the ground running and are looking to repeat the success of the previous twelve months. Our expert Customer Service teams continue to work with designers, both established and emerging, to help achieve their vision”.

    

   In January alone, WL has supplied the lighting for Songs for Nobodies at the Ambassadors Theatre; with the company providing the lights for every single show at the venue last year. Over the next few weeks, WL will also supply All About Eve at the Noel Coward Theatre, The American Clock at the Old Vic and The Price at the Wyndham’s.

   Away from the West End, WL is also supplying a range of tours. Shows that have loaded out already this month include Rain Man, The Lady Vanishes, Abigail’s Party, Wise Children, Ghost, Art and Avenue Q.

   The company is also supplying shows within London’s OffWestEnd including Leave to Remain at the Lyric Hammersmith, Aisha at the Old Red Lion Theatre and The Unreturning at Stratford East Theatre Royal. WL is also sponsoring the Best Lighting Design Award at both the WhatsOnStage and OffWestEnd Awards and will also be providing the complete lighting solutions for the VAULT Festival which returns for its seventh year later this month.

   Bryan comments: “We continue to invest up to £3 million in brand-new equipment each year, meaning we are able to work on such a large range of shows, both in the West End and across the country. To see our kit being used in venues throughout the UK is a fantastic feeling and we’re delighted that designers return to us year-on-year in order to offer them a service they won’t receive anywhere else”.