Another scary thing

Following Friday’s Hallowe’en special – which brought in another instance of a disembodied voice – I wanted to post a picture of what many people think is the scariest thing in the building (other than me). The lighting board.

It’s amazing how few people will go near this equipment. I don’t think it’s a question of being afraid of an electric shock, just an assumption that it will be extremely hard to get to grips with. In fact, operating the lighting board is the easy bit as, once programmed, each lighting cue is achieved simply by hitting the button marked ‘go’. It’s the programming that needs a little more knowledge, along with setting the lights themselves into position.

But it can be an awful lot of fun and very rewarding. The designer and/or operator are an extremely important part of the production team – without them, the show does not go on. Yet, so few people seem to want to undertake this side of things and, as a theatre, it is starting to become harder to find enough people to light all the shows during the year.

If there is anyone out there who would be interested in getting involved as one of our technical volunteers – whether you’re an existing member of the theatre or not – do please get in touch on 01242 522852. We can put you in touch with one of the regular ‘techies’ and put you through an apprenticeship!