Lighting Design
Can you create a mood?
Listen to the scene again and this time think about how the audience should feel when Mr Utterson and Mr Enfield see Mr Hyde in the window.
Use the colorlab lighting software to create a lighting state for Mr Hyde in the window. Choose colours to heighten the emotions of audience,
Click here -> colorlab
There a three lights you can use; a backlight and two side lights. Each light can change colour, saturation and brightness. Play around until you get the right mood.
Take a screen shot of your lighting state and write next to it what emotion you are aiming for. Email your work to paul.graham-bell@leedscitycollege.ac.uk
We are looking forward to seeing your ideas!
https://scenicandlighting.com/colorlab/
This is a very simple lighting tool but will allow you to play with colour.
Colour is a great tool for creating the right mood.
We use beams to create shapes and focus on the stage
We control everything from our really cool Tech Box
Designing your Lights
What is the lighting doing?
Lighting design for a production goes beyond simply making sure that the audience can see the stage (although this is very important!). Light can be used to establish the time or location of a performance, or to create and enhance mood and atmosphere.
Time and location are the ‘when’ and ‘where’ of a production. Lighting designers need to consider the period and genre of a play, as well as the venue where the performance will take place.
Mood and atmosphere is the feeling that the production creates for the audience. Lighting is very significant in creating mood and atmosphere: audiences will associate different qualities of light with different moods. Moods and atmospheres can be created through:
Intensity:
How bright each lantern is. Theatre lanterns allow the designer to change their intensity (or level) for different effects: they are not just ‘on’ or ‘off’, but set at levels usually numbered between 1 and 10 or 1 and 100, depending on the lighting desk. This allows the designer to balance the light across the stage space.
Focus:
How defined the edge of each beam of light is. Theatre lanterns allow the designer to alter the size and focus of the beam, so that edges can either be sharp or soft. Sharp edges can highlight a certain area of the stage or performer (for example in a spotlight or pinspot), whereas soft edges can blend the light from one lantern into light from another lantern.
Sweeney Todd (2018) below with his prop razor breaking lockdown guidance and getting very close to one of his customers. Expressive red lighting used to heighten the death.
Colour:
Different colours can create different effects and moods. For example, using red and orange light might give the impression of a fire. Colours also have different associations for the audience. For example blue light can feel cold and amber or yellow light can feel warm.
Shadow:
Lighting designers do not only control what the audience see, but also what they cannot see; shadows can be used to great effect in creating atmosphere on stage. They can also give the audience a specific impression of a character. For example, an actor who emerges from the shadow might be playing a character who is ‘shady’ in their dealings!
Texture:
Lighting designers can add GOBOs (small metal disks) to certain lights to give the beams texture. Have a play on the link below to see if these would help communicate something for Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde > https://scenicandlighting.com/gobos/Remember: everything’s deliberate! Good lighting design is a series of deliberate decisions. Always assume that anything on stage has been put there for a reason and contributes to the audience’s experience.
LCC Backstage lighting design tutor Paul Graham-Bell
Paul's design tip
Light looks different in different places and at different times. It is a good idea to start thinking about how light looks in real life. You can do this by searching for images of light at different times of day and comparing them: how does a sunrise look different to a sunset, for example? You can also consider the quality of light in places you see regularly, for example, your school, home or garden. How does the light there change in sunny or cloudy weather? How is it different sitting in a classroom lit with bright fluorescent strip lights to a room lit with small lamps or candles? Once you start paying attention you should see that these different qualities make you feel different. Now you are ready to design!