A Spin Around Moving Lights ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iii INTRODUCTION iv CHAPTER 1 A History of Articulated Lighting 1 Light as Design 1 The Beginnings of a True Articulated Light 9 Advancements in Technology 14 CHAPTER 2 Possible Uses for Articulated Lighting 18 Dance 18 Theater and Opera 20 Television 22 Rock and Roll 23 Industrials 25 Night Clubs 27 Themed Entertainment 27 Architecture 28 CHAPTER 3 Interviews and an Overview of the Process 30 Steve Cochrane 31 Rick Baxter 52 Rod McLaughlin 74 Paul Sonnleitner 91 Paul Miller 107 Jules Fisher 119 CHAPTER 4 An Overview of the Process 128 Budgeting 128 Load-in and Tech 133 Designing With Moving Lights 136 CHAPTER 5 A Look at the Future 140 New Bells and Whistles 140 An Interview with George Izenour 144 Getting an Education in Moving lights 175 BIBLIOGRAPHY 178 GLOSSARY 180 APPENDIX Manufacturer’s Information (APPENDIX A) 184 Basic Unit Designs (APPENDIX B) 186 A Spin Around Moving Lights iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my faculty advisor William Reynolds for being there when things were good and bad even when it interrupted his lunch. I would also like to acknowledge the advice and support of my content advisor Steve Strawbridge who inspired me in this project and as a designer. Extreme gratitude is also extended to all of the professionals who took time out of their busy schedules to accommodate me for this work. In addition, I would like to thank the rest of the faculty at Yale School of Drama for three of the most interesting and thought provoking years of my professional life. And lastly to my Karen, her love and support gave me the strength to endure. A Spin Around Moving Lights iv INTRODUCTION: What is articulated lighting? In it’s simplest form, an articulated light, also known as moving lights, is any device that produces a light source that is moved by mechanical means. Generally, the key attributes that are found on most conventional lighting units can be automated. These are pan (left/right), tilt (up/down), zoom, focus, color, and templates. The designs typically are broken down into two types of units – Moving-head (yoke) and Moving-mirror. General diagrams are included in Appendix B of this book to illustrate the basics. It should be noted, however, that the units would vary in size and shape and there are some variations in how the attributes are manipulated This book is an examination of the reasons and methods professionals in the lighting industry use articulated lighting, the newest tool in their toolbox. The intent is to provide a better understanding of moving lights for the new or potential user. This is not intended to be a product manual or endorsement of moving lights. Specific information on individual units can be found through the manufacturer contact information provided in Appendix A. Furthermore, there are terms used throughout the text that the reader may be unfamiliar with. These words appear in bold and a definition is provided in the glossary as well as some cases explained in the text itself. This book begins by covering a brief history of stage lighting design and its relationship to the idea of a moving light. Next, there is a look at moving lights today and how these lights are or could be used today in a variety of venues. It would be impossible to touch upon each of the countless applications of articulated lighting within the scope of this book, therefore an overview of specific areas will be provided. A Spin Around Moving Lights v Thirdly, transcripts are provided of interviews with top lighting professionals. These interviews are included to give first hand accounts concerning the benefits and pitfalls of using and dealing with articulated lighting. Lastly, a look at the future of this technology is given. This was derived from conversations with the manufacturers, dealers, and users of moving lights based on their foresight and experience. In addition, a new concept altogether, conceived by George Izenour, is discussed as an alternative to the systems that are available today. A Spin Around Moving Lights 1 CHAPTER 1 A History of Articulated Lighting To begin looking at articulated lighting, a basic understanding of lighting design needs to be addressed. Where did the idea of having light move across the stage come from? For what purpose was it used? This chapter takes a look at some of the influences in lighting design and lighting technology that have brought moving lights to where they are today. An entire book could be written just to include all of the influences towards articulated lighting and would be out of proportion to the scope of this text. Therefore, this will be an abbreviated history of moving lights and their roots. Light as Design As a result of the trials and errors of many people who labored to apply their own unique ideas and innovative devices, stage lighting underwent a progression, from mere illumination of stage productions, to an art form. This progression has led to the development of articulated lighting. To begin, one must look at how the notion of theatrical lighting design came into being. Theater is storytelling and a means of communicating events of social significance and theater transports the audience into the world of the story. From the earliest times of theater, lighting has served the purpose of basic illumination of the stage. The theater audience wanted to see the stage and each other. The Greeks and Romans held their drama in outdoor theaters to use daylight as their source. This practice held through the Elizabethan age where, except for effects, lighting was used strictly for visibility and to light the scenery. The suggestion of other light sources was painted on the scenery itself. It wasn’t until the Renaissance, when drama moved indoors, that theater lighting began to A Spin Around Moving Lights 2 change. Theater could now express its view in a microcosmic space and better create the illusion that is still a basic premise for theater today. However, lighting the stage was not easy to do with the limited available lighting devices. This did not hinder the designer's capacity for imagination. For example, it has been said that one of the first reports of the use of lighting as design was written in 1550 about Peruzzi, an Italian designer and architect. He gave a considerable amount of thought and effort to the arrangement of the lighting to enhance the effect of the perspective scenery. But the man who is most credited with the evolution of lighting as an art is Nicola Sabbattini. Nicola Sabbattini was a theater engineer, architect, designer, and painter in the court of Urbano, Italy. He was one of the first in Baroque Theater to relate the theater technology of the time to the play itself. In his book Practica De Fabrica Scene e (Fig. 1.1) Sabbatini’s Machine ne’Teatri (1638), Sabbattini describes in detail the Dimming Mechanism [From Theater Before Electricity, Fredrick necessity of properly arranging the lighting. He gives examples of Penzel, 1978] where to place the lighting – candles at the time – and even how to dim them by lowering cylindrical metal hoods over the candles. This is significant because it indicates that designers were now starting to think about variable control of intensity. Another important figure was Inigo Jones (1576-1656). A well-traveled English artist trained in Renaissance and Baroque art, Jones recognized the contribution that lighting makes to the storytelling. He received his training in stage design and architecture in Italy. Bringing to England the knowledge he had gained in his travels he became a great master of theatrical design by exploiting the use of lighting. Jones used many innovative and creative lighting effects, such as colored glass to filter the light from A Spin Around Moving Lights 3 candles. He also introduced mobile lighting which were in the form of three concentric circles of light lowered during a scene shift to distract the audience. Philippe DeLoutherbourgh (1740-1812) was another early innovator. By the late eighteenth century a new art form using light, color and motion as its components had emerged, and DeLoutherbourgh, an artist and stage designer, took this art form one step further. DeLoutherbourgh used the technique developed by English landscape painters; a form of realism that combined two and three-dimensional objects. His designs were conceived with not just the visual qualities of the set in mind but in terms of how light affected the scenery. His work eventually developed into a series of lighting effect shows. The shows had no actors or text but consisted of light, space, color, movement, and sound. His lighting effects stirred the audience, and his work contributed to the way lighting designers would view light as art. A German physicist named Huygens invented the Lanterna Magica in 1659. It was the precursor to the modern day effects projector. The device consisted of a candle light source, an optical system of crude lenses, and a set of transparent glass slides that were moved by mechanical means. By moving the Lanterna Magica on stage during a performance and inserting the appropriate slides designers were able to quickly change the stage setting. Among the effects that could be achieved were snowstorms and ships traveling on the moving waves. Whatever could be painted on the slides could be used to achieve an effect. Until the advent of gas lighting in 1791, the Lanterna Magica was one of the only ways of controlling the light source to achieve effects.