Technical Design Solutions for Theatre

A Television Lighting Effect

Michael Van Dyke

 

Many modern scripts call for a television onstage. Directors and lighting designers want to see the effect of the TV screen illumination on the actors and the scenery. The easiest way to achieve this effect is to plug in a working TV with the volume turned down. There are several disadvantages to a practical television, however. The intensity of the light coming from the screen cannot be adjusted beyond the limit of the set’s brightness control. The effect cannot be faded in and out of the scene with the stage lights. And, unless a videotape is used, the effect is inconsistent since few stations broadcast the same episodes of the same shows night after night.

The effect of the light from a TV ...