Description
Dance and Light examines the interconnected relationship between movement and design, the fluid partnership that exists between the two disciplines, and the approaches that designers can take to enhance dance performances through lighting design.
The book demystifies lighting for the dancer and helps designers understand how the dancer/choreographer thinks about their art form, providing insight into the choreographer’s process and exploring how designers can make the most of their resources. The author shares anecdotes and ideas from an almost 50-year career as a lighting designer, along with practical examples and insights from colleagues, and stresses the importance of clear communication between designers, choreographers, and dancers. Attention is also given to the choreographer who wants to learn what light can do to help enhance their work on stage.
Written in short, stand-alone chapters that allow readers to quickly navigate to areas of interest, Dance and Light is a valuable resource for lighting design classes wishing to add a section on dance lighting, as well as for choreography classes who want to better equip young artists for a significant collaborative partnership.
Table of Contents
Introduction 1. Why Do We Need a Book about Dance Lighting? Or, if It Is All Done with the Same Lights, Why Is Dance So Hard to Get Right? 2. What’s It All About? Or, Dance, Meet Light; Light, Meet Dance 3. Learning about Dance 4. Dance and Light 5. Dance and Space 6. Talking with the Choreographer 7. Communicating with the Dancer 8. A Conversation I Wish I Had 9. Learning the Dance Work 10. Understanding the Piece or How to Approach Cueing 11. Why Did You Put That Light There? 12. Dance and Color 13. Color as a Storytelling Tool 14. The Designer as Storyteller 15. Sharing Your Ideas for the Dance 16. The Designer’s Toolbox 17. The Dance Light Plot 18. Changing Technologies and What They Mean 19. Simple Rules 20. Limitations as Design Ideas 21. On Being the Only Designer in the Room 22. Advice for the Choreographer Who Has to Go It Alone 23. My Partners in the Theatre 24. A Little Help from My Friends 25. Practical Examples Index
