A new book by Allen Branton and Sharon Huizinga, Lighting Design Beyond Theatre, A Process for the Evolving Entertainment Industry covers the history, philosophy, and processes of lighting design for branches of the live production art form that extend past theatre, opera, and dance, namely live “events.” This broad term encompasses music concerts (and tours) of all varieties, corporate presentations and product launches. For television, it includes sports halftime shows, awards shows, and stand-up comedy, plus numerous other presentational styles that bring live audiences to a location for entertainment or grandly exhibited information gathering…for an “occasion,” as the authors explain.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, audience demand moved these events to sports arenas and stadiums, which were not designed to accommodate the overhead lighting that was standard in theaters and casino showrooms. Sound reinforcement and lighting for an arena show consisted of a few puny speaker cabinets on the floor, and followspots. There was no lighting designer role for these types of productions. But necessity forced improvement, and the industry’s pioneers began the evolutionary development of audio and lighting that not only could match the scale of an arena performance, but also set up, break down, and move in bumpy trucks to the next city for an endless repeat of one-nighters. When the networks and cable stations realized these shows had television value, they wanted more…and more. Suddenly, these presentations needed a lighting designer. Enter one Allen Branton.
These once fringe productions have, thanks to cultural shifts and advances in technology, surpassed their traditional ancestors in sheer quantity of show categories and worldwide performances, resulting in an explosion of careers that never before existed, and myriad opportunities for creative, technical, and production staff workers. The live event industry has stimulated exponential growth for the manufacturing, sales, and rental sector. It’s a “thing,” an economy unto itself, and a driver of innovation.
This is the launching pad for a hugely enjoyable book that, in the authors’ words, is “part manifesto, part memoir and part lighting textbook,” including an extremely interesting and compact history lesson on the birth of the technology and the business in which so many of us have been lucky to participate. And, interestingly enough, as the authors remind us, this—as we know it today—all began…from its origins…only about fifty years ago. That makes for an aggressive timeline of progress.
Lighting Design Beyond Theatre is replete with fascinating war stories about famous, history-making shows, and tales of wild successes, challenges that initially appeared insurmountable, and lesson-teaching disappointments. The authors include interviews with many of the most important creators (who did so in their basements and garages) of early, formative technology to which today’s advancements, now light years beyond, owe everything.
But the meat of the book explains Branton’s carefully honed design process, seasoned with copious amounts of guiding philosophy, work ethics, and career advice. He breaks down his tried-and-true method for designing live entertainment, and later, adapting his technique to televised live events, in clear and descriptive language over the course of several chapters, to logically lead the reader through his organizing system, created and refined over a fifty-year career at the top of the industry. He and Huizinga are insistent that the designer has obligations: to the audience, first and foremost; to the client who does the hiring, (no matter how much or little they know about lighting;) to the other members of the creative and technical teams; to the budget; and to the schedule. They call it “accountability.”
The authors remind the reader, repeatedly and obsessively, that this is a mental job that requires careful and nimble thinking. The projects may have some common denominators in what the design will require, but past those, each job is radically “singular” and the designer needs to operate almost like driving a car on a complex route: be prepared for anything to happen…and it probably will. “Never take for granted that things will go right.” So, be organized and oriented to react accordingly. As they frequently advise throughout the book to the reader who hasn’t yet experienced the chaos and arbitrarily unpredictable nature of a show that loads-in, focuses, programs, and rehearses in too-little time before the doors open:
- Accept this. It is another design problem.
- This is normal.
- This is a given. Do not panic.
- Remain calm
I had to smile whenever I read another instance of this wise counsel, because it is coming from professionals who undoubtedly lived through the wildest, most illogical, and head-exploding episodes imaginable, and had to use sheer force of will to breathe, smile, and make it happen.
The book is important for the early-career designer, programmer, or technician interested in live events and their ever-present television component, to observe through a window that, but for the authors’ generosity to share, would not be available except via the great oral tradition of spinning yarns at the bar. The book explains these concepts concisely, and imparts raw, useful information and wisdom, with storytelling and detailed case histories. It’s not just about design. It’s also about behavior, work habits, and relationship building. This vital segment of the entertainment industry is lamentably undocumented, despite offering thousands of jobs, generating millions of dollars, and being of intense interest to students who seek to pursue other avenues than the more traditional options of yesteryear.
I can relate. I, myself, had to figure out the world beyond theatre on my own. There weren’t many mentors because we were there from the beginning, and had almost nobody who already had “been there and done it.” So, we made it up as we went along. Yes, we all swapped ideas whenever our trails crossed, but most of us were traveling a parallel path on our own tours and events, and those cross-pollinating opportunities were limited. This makes the book that much more compelling a read. It really explains how a process is created from scratch, spurred on by urgent necessity. A process that is as useful today as it ever was.
I really wish this book had been available to me when I began my journey.
I would also recommend the book to anyone in the “business”—of a certain age more or less— who is interested in reading a very fun recap of the earliest days of our industry. I was there for much of it, too, and enjoyed reliving it or being reminded of the chronicles. Knowing Allen as I do, I heard his intellect and articulate voice narrating every word.
Branton, the celebrated lighting designer and one of the ground-floor founders of the concert touring and live-for-broadcast movements, has keenly observed how development of technology, equipment, and more sophisticated logistics methods ultimately paved the way for higher degrees of artistic application. Or was it the other way around?
Huizinga comes from the more traditional theatre side of the equation, and is an Associate Professor of Lighting at the respected University of Cincinnati College of Music (CCM). But early on, she found herself all over the world applying creative solutions to otherwise impossible production challenges, and in so doing, broke conventional molds. She discovered that an open mind, a design simplified to what’s most important, and some chutzpah, can make magic in the most unlikely circumstances. As such, she’s the perfect balance to Branton.
Throughout, there are highlighted sidebars with tips, stories, and advice from several of Allen’s most trusted team of collaborators. They have learned from “the best,” and reinforce or restate his ideas from their own perspectives.
Another recurring sidebar, “What Gets You Hired Back,” is a series of eight bits of guidance and opinion, born from the authors’ and their friends’ practical experiences in the biz. It might be tempting to search for these and read them all immediately upon cracking open the book, but I recommend waiting for each as they come, since they occur at points in the book at which the reader should have acquired the necessary knowledge to best appreciate them.
Each chapter ends with one or two “thought” exercises, in which the reader is prompted to relate the chapter’s subject matter to their own experiences. When I finished every chapter, I had to pause to reflect on what I had read, so these questions helped me absorb the information in a way that really bolstered my comprehension.
There are numerous production photos, and examples of the industry-specific show rundowns and other paperwork one might find on a professional television production.
Just when you think the book has said all it can, there is an Afterword with Appendices that include extended interviews with the authors, their industry cronies, and some noted directors and producers. There are a few rare fragments of little-known industry history, finally ending with an extensive glossary of real and made-up terms as they relate to the business of lighting and lighting design. The Afterword is a worthy book unto itself.
I’ll close on this note. This book is a gem. Buy it, read it, and discuss it with your friends, colleagues, and teachers. It took Allen and Sharon a career’s worth of experience to develop these ideas and compile them into an information-packed manuscript. Please take full advantage of their willingness to pull back the curtain on techniques and thought processes. It will make you a better professional.
Jeff Ravitz is an Emmy-winning lighting designer, writer, and lecturer. His book, "Lighting for Televised Live Events," helps unlock the mysteries of lighting stage shows for the camera.