Preparation – Before the Show

Whatever the type of show, preparation and pre-planning is important for it to go smoothly. Good planning and organisation means maximum use can be made of the focusing process. Ideally you should become familiar with the desk (offline simulators downloaded from the Internet are useful), the plan of the rig (so you know how the circuits are numbered) and any moving fixtures. A list of jobs can help you prioritise which ones are most important to do in the remaining time.

Programming Palettes and Submasters

Palettes and submasters act as shortcuts when using the desk. They enable you to select particular groups of fixtures and set them to particular attributes. For instance you could select all the fixtures front of house, then select a colour for them, a location and an intensity. To achieve the same result without palettes you would have to go through and select the fixture numbers individually, and dial in values for the required attributes (with fixtures from different manufactures the same appearance may require setting an attribute to a different value.

If practical, palettes or submasters should be set up before the focusing session. Not only will it make it easier when the designer asks to check a combination of lights together e.g. 'the full stage wash again please' etc. but can also be a great help with programming, or when running the show. With experience you will learn what it is sensible to group together, but as a rough guide, have groups for each colour wash, acting area and special. If you can't get to use the real desk it can be possible to programme submasters offline on another desk or simulator running on a computer and transfer the data on a disk or USB stick.

For live events a range of well stocked palettes and a few chases can provide enough options so you can pick and mix from them to create looks on the fly. If you are planning to busk a show it is worth experimenting with a range of looks and having a rough plan of how they could fit to different styles of music and action. Obviously if possible you should get a running order/script or attend the dress rehearsal.

The Focus Session

During the focus, the lighting designer will require lanterns to be efficiently brought up either individually or in groups. Here, being able to read the plan quickly is useful and being prepared for the next lantern (trying to pre-empt what the lighting designer will focus next) to be focused will get most out of the time pressurised process. Lanterns should be brought up smoothly (rather than instantaneously, to prolong lamp life) and before turning others off to avoid unnecessarily plunging the space into darkness. When going to blackout, notice should be given "going dark", or similar to warn other people who may be in the space. For efficiency, while you are waiting for the designer to focus a lantern, it may be possible to define a submasters 'blind' i.e. programming without affecting the output.

Programming Scenes

It is vital that before programming starts that somebody (could be the lighting designer, or chief LX) knows exactly how many scenes there are, what each one should look like and the order in which they come. Usually the most convenient way to do this is to mark the script up or agree the cues with whoever will be calling the show at a pre-production meeting.

Plotting every scene in a show can take a considerable amount of time. You need to work closely with the lighting designer to discuss what is realistically achievable in the time. Unfortunately most audiences don't share your passion for lighting and are more interested in the performers. That said they will pick up on any glaring mistakes and notice if there's not enough light for the action to be seen properly. Consequently it is better to be less ambitious and balance the available time well. Lighting states need only be good enough – a show with solid basic lighting throughput is preferable to a flashing opening number followed by random blackouts distracting from the action. Once a basic plot has been completed, improvements and additions can be made in the remaining time, yet you can be confident that you've always got a plot that is sufficient for the show to pass without any major cockups.

Move in Black (MIB)

For certain shows (generally 'theatre'), moving lights, scrollers etc. may need to be programmed to 'Move In Black' i.e. move to their next state while they are not shining, else they will be distracting. This can add a significant time to the programming process, as extra cues are added to go to black, change an attribute, then turn the light again. If used in chases, care needs to be taken to record attributes for start and stop states, else fixtures can wildly sweep across the stage/colour cycle in the subsequent state.