Collegian

Issue date: 11/7/07 Section: Arts

Media Credit: Patricia Bergquist Colleen Williams and Brian Sprague work on getting the lights ready for the upcoming performance of "Alice in Wonderland." [Click to enlarge]

Long before the curtain rises, workers such as Lighting Designer Colleen Williams are hard at work getting the stage ready for the production of "Alice in Wonderland."

Almost three weeks before the first student matinee performance, Williams quickly typed the lighting cue sheet for "Alice in Wonderland" into her laptop computer outside the empty theatre.

Williams was soon joined by her assistant Brian Sprague in the bare theatre that will feature "Alice in Wonderland" beginning Nov. 5. Sprague, working from a wire mesh known as an Eisenhower grid, placed the lights where Williams directed.

"Not very many theatres have it [the grid]," Williams said. Although walking on the grid can be intimidating at first, Williams said that the grid can hold the equivalent of four cars.

Along the grid are 60 dimmers, which can accommodate two to three lights a piece. These give Williams and Sprague numerous lighting combinations to highlight the action on stage.

To experience what the lighting crew prepared the stage for, contact the Stocker Center Box office at (440) 366-4040 or (800) 995-5222 ext. 4040. Tickets for "Alice in Wonderland" are $7 for adults and $6 for LCCC students, staff, and seniors 65 and older. Performances are at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Nov. 9 and Saturday, Nov. 10. There is an additional performance Saturday at 2:30 p.m.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools