You will find that most out-of-door effects are produced by soft natural lighting which gives a sense of distance and perspective to the scene. For this effect use yellow, amber, and white lights with an occasional blue or red. Only lights coming from several directions will produce the subtle tones of nature. This means using footlights with discretion, stronger lights overhead, and placing strips wherever you need them in order to destroy the shadows which other lights may throw. Sometimes it takes several hours of experimenting to find the right lighting for a single scene. It means changing the position of the strips, using more lighting or less lighting, and always asking yourself whether your lighting is just that which your scene demands to bring out its mood. The shadows produced by footlights may sometimes be used to give charm or mystery to a scene. For instance, in the second scene in the Petrouchka Ballet, only footlights were used. The pattern of the shadows of the dancers falling on a neutral background was very effective.
If your scene is laid indoors, your lighting will be somewhat determined by the period of the play. For instance, in the third act of Men of Iron, the great hall of Devlin Castle was softly lighted to suggest candle and torch light. This effect was produced by using amber and blue lights overhead; red, blue, white, and amber in the footlights. A strip of blue and red lights placed upright against the proscenium frame threw rich color against the king and those of his courtiers who stood near the throne. This color was most pleasing when it fell upon the armor of Myles as he knelt before the king.
Again your lighting may be determined by the kind of action. A gay scene naturally requires bright lighting. As an illustration of this: The royal kitchen in the Knave of Hearts was made warm and gay by the use of white and amber lights overhead, and amber, blue, and red footlights to throw rich colors on the costumes. The fireplace gave a warm light, and through the window could be seen the bright summer landscape.
As an illustration of a serious and somber scene, we might take the first act of the hero tale, Sigurd, the Volsung. Here many blue lights were used with a very few red and amber. The result was that the great hall became a mysterious place in which Odin himself could appear, and a somber enough setting for the traitorous Siggeir.
If your picture is an imaginative one, such as the garden of jewels in Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp, you are free to use your lights as you wish, to produce a scene of enchantment.
When you have finished your experimenting, and have found the right lighting for a scene, take a sheet of paper and make a chart. This illustration suggests a form for you to follow.
| Chart | ||
| Name of Play | ||
| Scene I. | ||
| Overhead lights. | ||
| Left (as seen from the audience) | Right | |
| blue, white, white, white, blue | ||
| Footlights | ||
| Left | Right | |
| blue, red, amber, white, red, blue | ||
| Left strip | ||
| blue, red, blue, blue | ||
| Right strip | ||
| blue, amber, blue, blue | ||
| Left extension | ||
| white | ||
The stage electrician will need a chart for each scene of your play. The changing of the lights for each scene will be his responsibility.
You will probably have little need for baby-spots unless your equipment is very elaborate, and to use them requires almost professional experience. Every boy who is interested in electricity knows that a rheostat or dimmer is used for turning lights off and on gradually. They may be purchased for a small sum or they may be made.
Every new play and every new scene presents a new problem for you to solve. You will know that you have solved your problem when, as a group, you can sit before each scene and feel that it is harmonious, that it surrounds the figures with suitable atmosphere, and that your lighting interprets the idea and mood of your play.