Deck 11: Lighting and Sound

Question 1

Which of the following responses places these theatrical lighting practices in the proper chronological order?

A) candles and oil lamps, the sun, gaslight, limelight, LEDs, incandescent lights
B) the sun, candles and oil lamps, limelight, incandescent lights, gaslight, LEDs
C) candles and oil lamps, the sun, incandescent lights, LEDs, limelight, gaslight
D) the sun, candles and oil lamps, gaslight, limelight, incandescent lights, LEDs

Answer 1

the sun, candles and oil lamps, gaslight, limelight, incandescent lights, LEDs

Question 2

Visibility is the most obvious function of stage lighting. Which of the following is also a primary function of lighting?

A) reveal shapes and forms
B) assist in creating mood and reinforcing style
C) provide a selective focus and an artistic visual composition
D) All of these answers are correct.

Answer 2

All of these answers are correct.

Question 3

When a beam of light is aimed at a particular area on the stage, it is said to be

A) focused.
B) guided.
C) trained.
D) pointed.

Answer 3

focused.

Question 4

When light from one area falls into an adjacent area, it is said to

A) wash.
B) dribble.
C) spill.
D) run.

Question 5

Through the use of color, shadow, and intensity, lighting can suggest

A) a time of day.
B) a season of the year.
C) a place.
D) All of these answers are correct.

Question 6

A light plot does NOT include the

A) kind of instrument to be used.
B) location and color of each lighting instrument.
C) length of light cues.
D) area of the stage on which an instrument is to be focused.

Question 7

The technical rehearsal is the time to establish

A) the safe operation of all scenic shifts.
B) all light cue levels and timing.
C) the placement and length of all sound cues.
D) All of these answers are correct.

Question 8

Fresnel lighting instruments are most often used for

A) side lighting.
B) front lighting.
C) top lighting.
D) All of these answers are correct.

Question 9

A conventional spot light that produces a soft-edged beam and allows for variable beam spread is called a(n)

A) ellipsoidal reflector spot light.
B) Fresnel spot light.
C) flood light.
D) strip light.

Question 10

A conventional spot light that throws a sharp, concentrated light and allows for the shaping of the beam with shutters is called a(n)

A) ellipsoidal reflector spot light.
B) Fresnel spot light.
C) flood light.
D) strip light.

Question 11

A light that is typically used to light the large cyclorama all the way upstage is

A) ellipsoidal.
B) Fresnel.
C) a strip light or flood light.
D) a strobe light.

Question 12

When one set of lights comes down at the same time that another set of lights come up, this is known as a

A) fade.
B) blackout.
C) cross-fade.
D) washout.

Question 13

Lighting changes typically programmed in a computerized control system are referred to as

A) fades.
B) blackouts.
C) cross-fades.
D) cues.

Question 14

In order to meet the aesthetic demands of a lighting design, the stage manager must

A) call all cues precisely 1.5 seconds before the action happens.
B) call all cues with an understanding of the pace and rhythm integral to the production.
C) call each lighting cue on the first line of every scene.
D) never call a sound cue before a lighting cue.

Question 15

High-tech lights often used by rock musicians move up and down and from side to side, change colors, and change the sharpness and width of a beam of light and allow for numerous decorative or atmospheric patterns, are now used industry-wide. Such lights are called

A) toggle lights.
B) flexilights.
C) automated lights.
D) spot lights.

Question 16

Which of the following is a critical member of the lighting design team?

A) assistant stage manager
B) master electrician
C) automation engineer
D) All of these answers are correct.

Question 17

The amplification of sounds produced by a performer or musical instrument is called

A) sound reinforcement.
B) sound reproduction.

Question 18

A wireless microphone attached to a performer is called a ________ mike.

A) shotgun
B) general
C) body
D) hidden

Question 19

When sound effects are recorded and arranged in the order of their appearance in the script, the process is called

A) composition.
B) plotting.
C) editing.
D) writing.

Question 20

Sound that recreates the noises of everyday life and help create the verisimilitude of a play, but are not specifically called for by the script, are called

A) motivated sounds.
B) environmental sounds.

Question 21

Sounds that are called for in the script are called

A) motivated sounds.
B) environmental sounds.

Question 22

The sound designer's primary collaborator on any theatrical production is the

A) automation engineer.
B) master electrician.
C) director.
D) moving light programmer.

Question 23

A harsh red light from below an actor's face can create a disturbing mood, but you would only find that kind of light in a nonrealistic production.

Question 24

A warm golden red light from below an actor's face could establish a suggested light source of a campfire or candles on a table in a completely realistic production.

Question 25

The lighting designer can only use the following four controllable properties of light-intensity, color, distribution, and movement/change-in setting the lights for any cue in the theatre.

Question 26

Split cross-fades are quite difficult to make consistent on a manual lighting console, but computerized light boards make this complicated timing easy to accomplish.

Question 27

Sound effects in the theatre can be produced effectively with either advanced technology or with age-old manual theatrical mechanics, depending on the style of the production.

Question 28

Digital sound technology will allows musical instruments to be connected through a theatrical sound system, but at this time it cannot yet interface with lighting or projection technology.

Question 29

To this day the most common form of sound reproduction technology in the theatre is reel-to-reel tape.

Question 30

Sound travels more slowly than light.

Question 31

Describe the qualities of light at certain times of the year or in different weather. What is its color, intensity, angle, and mood?

Question 32

Discuss the use of light to create mood. What kind of light would you use in the following situations: a romantic dinner, a child's birthday party, a funeral, a party for adults, an evening of television? Explain the reasoning behind each choice.

Question 33

Read a play from the reading list and indicate where the lighting and sound cues should come. Explain the reasoning behind your choices. (Examples of lighting: a person enters a room and switches on a lamp; a scene ends; a scene takes place at sunset. Examples of sound: a doorbell rings; a train comes into a station; birds are singing.)

Question 34

Music is almost always used in film to underscore scenes. However, it is rarely used in live theatre. Why do you think this is the case? Do you think that music would be effective in theatre? Why or why not?

Question 35

With the increasing sophistication of lighting and sound technology, these elements are becoming more and more spectacular. Connect this to the increase in spectacle in scene design, and discuss the effects on theatre. Will plays change because of these inventions? In what ways? Do you feel these changes will be improvements?

Question 36

Discuss the differences between motivated sounds and environmental sounds. Could the same sound effect be a motivated sound in one context, and an environmental sound in another context? For instance, consider contexts that might make a gunshot, a door slamming, or a car crunching on gravel a motivated sound. Then discuss a context in which they might be environmental sounds.

Question 37

Could the setting for a play be created solely with light and sound on a bare stage? Why or why not? Would there be any advantages to such an arrangement?

Question 38

How might lighting and sound design become even more important for plays produced in an arena space as opposed to a proscenium space?