The Winter’s Tale
Theatre · Northern Stage, NewcastleSixteen years pass in one cue. The first half is lit almost entirely from behind and above; the second admits front light for the first time.
Orfeo
Opera · Opera North, Leeds GrandA staging that puts the underworld above rather than below, so every descent in the text is a physical ascent into the flies.
Everything That Rises
Dance · Rambert, touringSide light only, for fifty minutes. No front, no down, no cyc. Six booms and a great deal of argument.
Blackout Sonata
Concert · Britten Sinfonia, Milton CourtA single amber special and eleven minutes of near-total darkness. The hardest thing we have been asked to light.
The Weir
Theatre · Almeida Theatre, LondonA pub in the west of Ireland, lit as though the only sources were the ones on stage. Practical-led, and almost nothing above.
Salt
Installation · Commissioned, touring warehousesNine hours, no performers, no cues. A room that changes so slowly nobody sees it happen.