Types of Lights
Designed to flood an area with light, this fixture traditionally lights cycloramas and painted cloths.
What is a floodlight?
This property describes the controlled amount of light on stage.
What is intensity?
This primary objective helps the audience see the actors' faces and eyes.
What is visibility?
Early Greek theatre used this natural source to light performances.
What is the sun?
Objects that reflect no light appear to be this color.
What is black?
This fixture produces an intense, slightly oval beam in a sealed-beam housing.
What is a PAR?
Before LEDs, designers used these filters to change light color.
What are gels?
Lighting designers introduce this to make stage objects appear 3D.
What is revelation of form / shadow?
When theatre moved indoors, performers needed these.
What are new types of lighting?
This is the lighting position above the stage.
What is "top light"?
What is a Fresnel?
This property describes the type of light, its position, and how its focused on stage.
What is distribution?
This objective involves intentionally arranging light, shadow, and visual elements.
What is composition?
This has always been needed, no matter the light source.
What is the ability to control light?
A Fresnel's soft edge helps designers do this when creating general cover and stage washes.
What is "blend the light"?
This fixture can project a pattern with a gobo and shape its beam with framing shutters.
What is a profile?
A well-defined pool of light for a monologue and an even general wash are examples of different kinds of this property.
What is distribution?
Warm-toned lights often suggest this kind of theme.
What is a happy/positive theme?
What are new technologies and styles of production?
These two kinds of moving lights both allow designers to control their focus onstage.
What are spots and washes?
This profile fixture has a narrow beam angle and a hard edge, and is used to follow an actor.
What is a followspot?
This property means a change in one or more lighting properties as the stage transitions from one lighting state to another.
What is movement?
This objective helps the audience understand a play's location, time of day, and season.
What is information or scene setting?
Electric lighting was connected to these devices to control lamp intensity.
What are dimmers?
This fun fact connects Fresnel lights to their original use.
What are lighthouses?