Drama

• Barndoors


  A rotatable attachment consisting of two or four metal flaps (hinged) which is fixed to the front of a Fresnel or PC type lantern to cut off the beam in a particular direction(s)
• Profile lanterns use SHUTTERS to achieve a greater degree of control and accuracy
• Barndoors are also available for parcans and birdies
• BLACKWRAP can be used to reduce additional light spill where barndoors aren't doing the job
• Beam angle


  The angle of the cone of light produced by a lantern. Defined as the angle within which the lowest intensity in a beam of light from a lantern is not less than one-tenth of the maximum
• Birdie


  A compact low voltage display luminaire containing a Par 16 or MR16 lamp. So called because it is similar to, but much smaller than, the Parcan, and is hence "one under Par"
• Low voltage birdies require a 12 Volt external transformer. Mains voltage birdies are also available
• Due to its compactness, the birdie is ideal for concealing in pieces of set or as downstage uplights
• The beam angle of a birdie can be narrow-a range of different lamps are available with differing beam widths
• Blackout


  1. Complete absence of stage lighting. Blue working lights backstage should remain on and are not usually under the control of the board, except during a Dead Blackout (DBO), when there is no onstage light. Exit signs and other emergency lighting must remain on at all times.
  2. The act of turning off (or fading out) stage lighting (e.g. "This is where we go to blackout")
• Bleed through


  Transformation from a scene downstage of a gauze to another scene upstage, by slowly crossfading lighting from downstage to upstage. If a gauce is lit steeply, or from the sides, it will appear solid. If this light is turned off and light added to the set upstage of it, it will disappear
• Breakup


  A commonly used abstract GOBO which gives a textured effect to the light, without throwing a specific pattern onto the stage. Used to add interest to light beams. A leafy breakup is used for outdoor scenes/forests/spooky wood etc. to break up the light on the actors faces
• Colour changer


  1. Scroller, where a long string of up to 16 colours is passed horizontally in front of a lantern. Remotely controlled by the lighting desk. Some scrollers have cooling fans to prolong the life of the gel string. Stronger colours will burn out faster without cooling, or if the focus of the beam is concentrated on the gel. If colours aren't lasting very long in scrollers, try changing the focus of the lantern. HEAT SHIELD clear gel should be used between the lens and the
• Cue


  1. The command given to technical departments to carry out a particular operation. Eg Lighting Cue, Fly Cue or Sound Cue. Normally given by stage management, but may be taken directly from the action (e. a Visual Cue).
  2. Any signal (spoken line, action or count) that indicates another action should follow (ie the actors' cue to enter is when the Maid says "I hear someone coming! Quick - Hide!")
• Downlight


  A light from directly above the acting area. A downlight could be a spot or a wash of light
• Fade down


  A slow dimming of the lights to a lower level, but not all the way to blackout
• Fade out


  A slow dimming of the lights, ending in blackout
• Fade times


  On computerised memory lighting control desks, a lighting fade can have two times - an up fade and a down fade. The Up fade time refers to the time it takes dimmer levels to rise to their new positions. The Down fade time refers to the time for dimmer levels falling to their new positions
• Flood


  1. A lensless lantern that produces a broad non-variable spread of light. Floods are used in battens, or singly to light cycloramas or large areas of the stage
• Followspot


  Usually, a powerful profile lantern usually fitted with its own dimmer, iris, colour magazine and shutters mounted in or above the auditorium, used with an operator so that the light beam can be moved around the stage to follow an actor. Powerful followspots use discharge lamps which cannot be dimmed, so these followspots have mechanical dimming shutters to dim the light output
• Fresnel


  A type of lantern which produces an even, soft-edged beam of light through a Fresnel lens. The lens is a series of stepped concentric circles on the front and pebbled on the back and is named after its French inventor, Augustin Jean Fresnel (1788-1827). He developed the lens for French lighthouses so that they could be seen further out to sea and could achieve a longer focal length with a lot less glass than a standard plano-convex lens
• Gauze

  Cloth with a relatively coarse weave. Used unpainted to diffuse a scene played behind it. When painted, a gauze is opaque when lit obliquely from the front and becomes transparent when the scene behind it is lit. Many different types of gauze are available; Sharkstooth gauze is the most effective for transformations, because it is the most opaque. Vision gauze is used for diffusing a scene and for supporting cut cloths. Holo-Gauze is a metallised gauze optimised for front projection holographic illusions. Also known as a Scrim
• Gel or Gelatine


  See COLOUR FILTER
• Gobo


  A thin metal plate etched to produce a design which can then be projected by a profile spotlight. There are hundreds of gobo designs available-common examples are breakup (foliage), windows and scenic (neon signs, city scapes etc.). The image can be used soft focus to add texture, rather than a defined image. A number of composite gobos in different coloured lanterns can, with careful focusing, produce a coloured image (e.g. a stained glass window). Greater detail can be achieved using a glass gobo, which consists of a thin layer of aluminium etched onto glass
• Snap


  A lighting or sound cue with no fade time - the cue happens instantly. This can be acheived on a computerised lighting desk by using a fade time of zero seconds
• Spotlight


  General term for any lantern with a lens system. See Fresnel, PC, Profile
• Strobe


  Device giving a fast series of very short intense light flashes which can have the effect of making action appear intermittent. Because strobe lighting can trigger an epileptic seizure, the use of a strobe must be communicated to the audience before the performance begins. Strobes should be synchronised so that they operate outside the dangerous frequency band 4 to 50 flashes per second. (i.e. a strobe should operate at less than 4 flashes per second, or more than 50 flashes per second)