Lighting cues should only occur if there is a significant music change, tempo change, or mood change. A cue might also occur to highlight a particular piece of choreography or a particular dancer or group of dancers. Cues should not occur for the sake of it, and are there to support the performance - not to overpower it.
Most cues should occur over 3 seconds. "Snaps" should be incredibly rare - and should only happen if the music or choreography demands it. A fast change (1 second) is often more suitable and far less abrupt. An out of place 'snap' can take the focus of the performance.
Consider when your cue should start fading in - this is the time to give us. Is the light intended to occur over a choreographic or music change? Or intended to pre-empt it or occur after it? A good example is if you have a spotlight appear for a dancer - should the spotlight start appearing when they are travelling into position, or should it be there when they arrive? Consider this when timing your cues.
Please provide exact track times - 00:00.000 means mm:ss.milli seconds
The blackout at the end of your piece is a cue and we need the details of what you're after. Consider how fast the blackout should occur, and if there is action after the music that we are supposed to see - be sure to note that the blackout is designed to occur after the music stops. We will otherwise generally default to the blackout fading with the track.
If you repeat a cue more than once, please specify that it is a duplicate. ie "Same as Cue 1".
If you're not sure of what look to go for, give us as much detail about what feeling you're trying to achieve, and we can assist.
The following is generally available:
Haze: This will be running constantly at the discretion of the lighting operator. You do not need to request haze/fog/smoke.
Side lighting: Generally, this is used to provide face light for upstage dancers, but can also be used for a stark, shadow like effect when nothing but side lighting is used.
Fixed spots: Beams of light that shine directly down. There are nine of these spots, three rows of three, equidistant across the stage. For example, there is a spot hitting centre stage, one spot to the right of it halfway to the wings, and one spot the left of it, halfway to the wings. This is repeated upstage and downstage. These spots are suitable for a single dancer or two and they do not move. There is no moving spotlight that can follow a dancer.
Mirror ball: Generally used in party scenes. Can also be used to simulate snow, rain, stars etc. Can be used still or rotating, if rotating you must specify speed (fast, slow).
Moving lights: These can be used to wash the stage, to put patterns on the stage or the cyc, to build spots requiring more than a single dancer or two, to create programmed moving lights (think 'search lights'), strobe etc. If you're choosing a pattern, please be specific about the kinds of shapes or feelings that you're after.
Audience blinder (back-lit lights): Flash and blind the audience. Use sparingly - we are there to entertain the audience, not annoy them.
Cyc wash: Any colour you want. Can split top half and bottom half, can also move through colours.
Stock footage: Essentially, a video playing on the cyc from a front projector. It could be a cool pattern, lightning, a creepy forest. There is so much available – search YouTube for HD Stock Footage with the theme you’re after. We need to move quickly on this, as lots of work goes into marrying your music and video. Pixel resolution is 1920 x 1200. The projection does not cover the entire cyc.
Any footage projected onto the cyc will be washed out by any lighting.
If you have any questions or would like a one on one tutorial on lighting please message admin and we can help arrange this for you.