I'm a new member, and I will probably be starting my own post in the near future to address the myriad challenges I'm facing… In any case, I was able to identify with quite a few of the lighting woes previously mentioned. I'm a 3rd year English Language Arts teacher at a middle school in a very small community in Western North Carolina. I have a fairly extensive background in theatre and hold a BFA (teaching was kind of a second-calling for me). I have taken it upon myself to start a Drama/Theatre Club at my school, and I have a fair number of students who are interested in working on the play I have planned for the Spring. I recently applied for a grant to do this production and was generously awarded $1600. That's the good news.
The bad news is that my school building and auditorium (which I have openly started referring to as a theatre) was built in the 1920's. We're supposed to be getting a new school in a couple years, but I have no idea if a theatre (auditorium) is in the plans. For the time being, I have to work with what we have, which isn't much. The stage is massive, and there really isn't a lighting system, aside from the overhead fluorescents. I was going to rent lighting, but I soon realized that would kill a sizable chunk of my grant money, not to mention the fact that I would have to spend more money renting them in the future (and I don't know if another grant will ever happen). Since I want this to be an ongoing thing, I turned to Ebay to see if I could find something cheap. I was able to buy an old NSI lighting board, dimmer, and 9 par cans that came out of a church for $80 (I only had to drive 6 hours to pick everything up). Since I don't have a way to use the grant money for Ebay purchases, I just decided to use my own money. I try to look at this like a hobby, so I don't feel as bad spending my own money… I have purchased two additional dimmers for about $35 each and 9 more par cans for $100. I plan to use some grant money to buy new bulbs and small things the fixtures are missing. Fortunately, I used to restore old pinball machines, and I have a fair amount of experience repairing electronics. I was able to get the dimmers working again with some new transistors and a couple of chips. They're very primitive units from the 90's that use microplex cable, but they do work.
I spoke with my school principal, and she's made arrangements for me to meet with the district electrician. I know I'll need dedicated circuits installed near the ceiling for each dimmer, so I'm hoping the electrician can do that. The breaker panel is fairly accessible in one of the wings, so I don't see it being a huge issue. I'm hoping 16 lights will be enough to at least light up the stage, since it's fairly big. As far as hanging the lights, I'm planning to purchase some 10' piping from the hardware store that will need to be dead hung from the ceiling (there is no fly system). An enormous antique strip light that doesn't work will first need to be disconnected and removed from the ceiling, since it's in the best position for my lights. I hate the idea of dead hanging the lights, but I can't foresee a safe and economical way of being able to raise and lower them…
I'm currently in the process of cleaning up 50 years worth of trash "backstage" that no one has ever thrown away. I pulled my trailer below a second floor window where the stage is located and just started throwing junk out the window, so I can easily transport it to the dumpsters :)
There is a traveler track/curtain, which I attempted to close the other day. Half of it closed, but the other half wouldn't budge. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that it wasn't moving because a huge section of curtain nearest the centerstage side was ripped down the seam from top to bottom. That's the part that would pull the rest of the curtain across, so it needs to be fixed. The only ladder I could find was too short to reach the curtain, so I brought some rolling scaffolding from home that I use to work on the outside of my house. As dangerous as it sounds, it's much safer than trying to do anything on a ladder! The athletics department has a cherry picker, but there's no way to get it up to the stage level (nothing but steps). I know there's a fair amount of liability involved with what I just described, but I don't see any other options. I live in a very poor county, and I don't think anyone has ever attempted something like this. I could probably request to have some maintenance workers from the district come help, but who knows when they would actually be available or what they would be willing to do…
I feel like an army of one, at the moment. I told my wife the other night that this will be one of those things where I have to do all the work myself, so I accept that. Whenever I mentioned cleaning the theatre, for instance, the custodians run in the opposite direction. If it's not sweeping a floor or replacing soap in the bathroom, they don't want any part of it. I have another teacher who is willing to help with the production, but she's not the type that's going to be climbing ladders and moving garbage. In a way, I suppose it's both a blessing and a curse that no one wants to be involved. I wish I had some help at times, but I also feel a certain freedom to do what I want to do and make this my own.
I have attempted to attach a photo of my busted curtain....
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Bob Diebold
Bostic NC
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Original Message:
Sent: 12-20-2018 08:26
From: Sharkey Andrews
Subject: What are your lighting challenges?
If this thread didn't feel like it was for me...
So, I've got a gorgeous auditorium to work with in my high school. Truly, it is a part of history. The school, built in 1926, was updated in 2004 after being closed in the late nineties; however, being renovated to be a STEM school, much of the arts' related areas were left mostly untouched - inclusive of the auditorium, except replacing lamps and adding a few pars near the mezzanine to help light the front of the stage. Original seating, original stage, and massive (and maybe deadly) fly rail system. "sound system" is a set of Bluetooth connected speakers hung way up on the very high ceiling and kind of awful (I produced the last show using a set of computer speakers spaced through the auditorium and this was somehow more effective). The theatre nerd in me absolutely loves it and the learner appreciates a challenge. The "now I have to use this to teach my kids how to produce a show with realistic skills to take into their internships/life" side of me is kind of like, "well... darn."
They also moved all control of the lights from our old school manual dimmer rack to an updated but primitive method of on and off using our (forgetting the name but the same metal circuit box you have in your house for the electricity). My every other light in my first rail of lighting, which lights up downstage except the lip (total darkness there), is attached to a dimmer slide like what you'd see in a yoga studio or a house. The other lights on that same rail are like the rest - I flip a switch inside the circuit box and they cut on or they cut off. All of the stage lights are dead hung except the giant ass scoops at the back of the stage that point toward the audience and have gels no newer than about 4 years on them (quite worn). I don't have a way (or permission) personally to get to the lights to redirect them and I can't create plots or areas too much except downstage/upstage and scoop/no scoop at left, right, and center. We've been given these workshop lights on bright orange poles (something taken from a construction site it seems, lol) to set up on the sides of the stage, which is helpful in dance numbers. There are many dark places on stage most of my students with darker features facial expressions are completely lost from the audience at times, depending on where they stand, regardless of whatever make-up we might have (which isn't usually a lot - we have no budget except the $600 we've been able to raise). Any changes or modifications to our electric anything have to go downtown - and not downtown to the school district but to the general government office (I work in DC - everything is intertwined and mixed up). While I've been told they'd consider my request to come and help reposition some lights, they likely won't be out until next fall.
We do have one single very cheap robotic we got from a donor - DJ style light - which helps with texturing or a spot but it is a bit shaky in use as I don't have a board to connect it to and we just use a USB-3pin to connect to a laptop and sometimes the software has issues with it. It's still beneficial to us though. I've also been able to incorporate some incandescent lighting into scenes in our last set, but for the upcoming show, we'll have a very mobile set and it's unlikely I'll be able to do the same (it also looked nice for the set but didn't add much in visibility). Most of this is because floor pockets are all inoperable and we have to use a multitude of daisy-chained extension cords to get them onto the stage in the first place.
Hit me with some ideas!
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Sharkey Andrews
Teacher, Special Education
DC Public Schools
Washington DC
Original Message:
Sent: 11-29-2018 11:19
From: Benjamin Pilat
Subject: What are your lighting challenges?
I'm curious-do you have specific challenges when it comes to teaching lighting?
Or recurring challenges with the lighting for your productions?
I'd love to hear them and brainstorm solutions!
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Benjamin Pilat
Director of Education
Stage Lighting Bootcamps
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