In The Art and Practice of Costume Design, a panel of seven designers offer a new multi-sided look at the current state and practice of theatrical costume design. Beginning with an exploration of the role of a Costume Designer, the subsequent chapters analyse and explore the psychology of dress, the principles and elements of design, how to create costume renderings, and collaboration within the production. The book also takes a look at the costume shop and the role of the designer within it, and costume design careers within theatrical and fashion industries.

Theatre designers need to be proficient in an extraordinarily diverse range of skills to carry out their work. They are expected to be able to draw, both creatively and technically, to be able to use colour imaginatively, to make accurate scale models of their set designs, to design costumes, whether of a specific period, modern or entirely fantastical, to understand the relationship of their work to stage lighting, and to be able to use computer-technology in creative and imaginative ways. Topics covered include: Instruction on drawing and sketching, the use of colour and hand-drafting techniques; Advice on model-making, textures and perspective; A Guide to costume designs and costume-rendering techniques In-depth look at creative use of digital techniques; Practical methods for the effective presentation of a range of design-work. Drawing on a lifetime's experience as a professional theatre designer and teacher, Colin Winslow describes these techniques in detail with explanatory drawings and photographs, and suggests practical ways to acquire them.

Nonlinear is a buzzword for every broadcaster and facility house worldwide. Systems range from the humble to the exotic, and despite the growing acceptance of the technology, many users, both new and experienced, find the complexity of the operation and the time spent loading the material and rendering effects difficult to manage at first. Non-linear editing also comes with its own specialist language, requiring each editor to be conversant with a new range of skills from day one. As desktop systems improve the role of the traditional editor is constantly evolving and expanding. This is an operational manual for professional trainees and students in the post-production industry. It will also serve as a useful reference tool for producers and directors. Written in a concise and clear manner, the book serves as a practical guide to the efficient management and operation of non-linear editing systems. It describes the technology involved, the essential techniques to be mastered including on-line and off-line editing, project management, rendering effects, working with graphics and audio, and adding third party applications. Designed for quick and easy reference, this is a practical user guide to non-linear editing that comes complete with an extensive jargon buster that will get you fully conversant with the technology in a short space of time. Patrick Morris is a Trainer in Post-Production for the Television Corporation of Singapore and the Singapore Broadcasting Authority as well as Chairman of the South East Asia User Group. He is an AVID Certified Trainer with a working knowledge of Lightworks, Media 100, Quantel, D Vision and other systems. Formerly a consultant and Senior Editor for BBC, ITV and SKY TV, he also spent many years a Training Manager for BBC Wood Norton and as Senior Video-Tape Editor for Television South West.

Essentials of Period Style: A Sourcebook for Stage and Production Designers covers the visual, social, and political dynamics of multiple epochs and cultures and discusses how these trends affect the design of the architecture, costumes, and furnishings of the time. This book relates these characteristics and cultural movements to the design needs students encounter as they design a period production. Each chapter contains examples of period style in both theatre and film from a variety of notable productions and a glossary of specialized terms and words used in the chapter. Technological and aesthetic developments that affect design, lighting, and music are also included. This is a textbook meant for Period Styles courses in Theatre programs.

Theatrical Makeup clearly and concisely explains the basics of theatrical makeup techniques to allow stage actors to put their best face forward! Readers will gain understanding of the physiology of the human face and, using cream based makeup, as well as commercial cosmetics, learn how to contour it to suit the character with the use of highlight and shadow. Hundreds of full color images and step-by-step instructions illustrate how to visually manipulate bone structure and apparent age, apply simple facial hair and wounds, and create glamorous and natural stage makeup. Also covered are the tools readers will need to apply their own makeup, along with critical health and hygiene tips. This book is suitable for beginner Theatrical Makeup courses and for stage actors of all levels.

The art, practice, and technique of scene painting is an essential part of theatre design. A scenic artist is responsible for translating the vision of the scenic designer to the realized scenery. Unlike all other scene painting books, this text will take you step-by-step through actual individual scene painting projects. Each project is commonly used in theatrical productions and each project builds upon the skills learned in the previous lesson. From wood and marble, to foliage and drapery, this book will teach the you how to become a skilled scenic painter.

The Technical Brief is a collection of single-focus articles on technical production solutions, published three times a year by the prestigious Yale School of Drama. The primary objective of the publication is to share creative solutions to technical problems so that fellow theatre technicians can avoid having to reinvent the wheel with each new challenge. The range of topics includes scenery, props, painting, electrics, sound and costumes. The articles each describe an approach, device, or technique that has been tested on stage or in a shop by students and professionals. Some articles included are: Building Authentic Elizabethan Ruffs; Simple and Inexpensive Stained Glass; A Quick-Load Floor Pulley Design; A Simple Approach to Stretching Drops; Flexi-Pitch Escape Stairs; Spot-Welding Scrim with Sobo; Handrail Armatures for a Grand Staircase; The Triscuit-Studwall Deck System; A Frameless Turntable; Stand on Stage: Minimum Weight, Maximum Effect; A Self-Paging Cable Tray; Roller Chain Turntable Drives; A Bench-Built XLR Cable Tester

The Art of Light on Stage is the first history of theatre lighting design to bring the story right up to date. In this extraordinary volume, award-winning designer Yaron Abulafia explores the poetics of light, charting the evolution of lighting design against the background of contemporary performance. The book looks at the material and the conceptual; the technological and the transcendental. Never before has theatre design been so vividly and excitingly illuminated. The book examines the evolution of lighting design in contemporary theatre through an exploration of two fundamental issues: 1. What gave rise to the new directions in lighting design in contemporary theatre? 2. How can these new directions be viewed within the context of lighting design history? The study then focuses on the phenomenological and semiotic aspects of the medium for light - the role of light as a performer, as the medium of visual perception and as a stimulus for imaginative representations - in selected contemporary theatre productions by Robert Wilson, Romeo Castellucci, Heiner Goebbels, Jossi Wieler and David Zinder. This ground-breaking book will be required reading for anyone concerned with the future of performance.

Every great design has its beginnings in a great idea, whether your medium of choice is scenery, costume, lighting, sound, or projections. Unmasking Theatre Design shows you how to cultivate creative thinking skills through every step of theatre design - from the first play reading to the finished design presentation. This book reveals how creative designers think in order to create unique and appropriate works for individual productions, and will teach you how to comprehend the nature of the design task at hand, gather inspiration, generate potential ideas for a new design, and develop a finished look through renderings and models. The exercises presented in this book demystify the design process by providing you with specific actions that will help you get on track toward fully-formed designs. Revealing the inner workings of the design process, both theoretically and practically, Unmasking Theatre Design will jumpstart the creative processes of designers at all levels, from student to professionals, as you construct new production designs.

Theatre as Human Action is the ideal textbook to introduce students to the various aspects of theatre, especially for those who may have little or no theatergoing experience. Seven diverse plays are described to the reader from the start, and then returned to throughout the book so that students can better understand the concepts being discussed. Both the theoretical and practical aspects of theatre are explored, from the classical definition of theatre to today's most avant-garde theatre activities. Types of plays, the elements of drama, and theatre criticism are presented, as well as detailed descriptions of the different jobs in theatre, such as actor, playwright, director, designer, producer, choreographer, and more. The book concludes with a look at where and how theatre is evolving in America and the latest changes and innovations today. This fourth edition has been greatly expanded and updated, including: The introduction of four new plays-Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street; Fences; Angels in America; and Hadestown-in addition to Macbeth, You Can't Take It With You, and Hamilton A discussion of the rise of social media in raising awareness and replacing traditional review outlets An entirely new, enhanced section on diversity and inclusion in theatre An updated selection of playwrights featured, including Terrence McNally, Lynn Nottage, Tony Kushner, and Lin-Manuel Miranda, to better reflect the diversity of those writing for the theatre today. Featuring full-color photographs, updated learning guides, and suggested topics for discussion and research, the fourth edition of Theatre as Human Action is an invaluable resource to introduce students to the world of theatre.

The Theatrical Firearms Handbook is the essential guide to navigating the many decisions that are involved in the safe and effective use of firearm props for both the stage and screen. It is an invaluable resource for fight choreographers, props designers, backstage crew, directors, actors, stage managers, and more, at all levels of experience. Written in an informal and entertaining manner, with over 100 illustrations, it establishes baseline safety protocol while empowering performers and designers to tell their story of conflict in a way that makes the most of both established convention and current tools of the trade. Within these pages you'll find practical instruction couched in the language of theatre and film, making firearms technology and concepts approachable to dramatic artists without any dumbing-down of the subject material. This handbook is equally at home within the worlds of academic training, professional performance, and independent or community theatre and video productions

Of all the playwrights from the age of Louis XIV, only Moliere's work is still regularly performed in France and beyond. This book analyses certain elements of the plays that may explain Moliere's longevity: a plausible chain of events peppered with shocks and surprises; tensions between opposites; intellectual concerns that had not previously been the province of comedy; and plots founded on situations that are anything but comic. These hallmarks added up to an intense type of comic theatre, meaningful in ways that gave the genre a new dimension. The author of this study does not treat Moliere's plays as variations on a single prototype, but brings a fresh approach to each. The book's witty, learned and penetrating readings examine critical issues such as the ambiguous anti-feminism of Les Femmes savantes, Moliere's revisions of the myth of Don Juan, 'conversion' as the theological starting point of Le Tartuffe, contrariety as the basis of comedies such as George Dandin and Le Misanthrope, and coded satire in the comedie-ballets. Each play is revealed to have a seamless comic design, while at the same time speaking to the wider world. Moliere's works are shown to be entirely and immediately involved in human society, in the social dimension of the human condition.

Covering every phase of a theatrical production, this fourth edition of Sound and Music for the Theatre traces the process of sound design from initial concept through implementation in actual performances. The book discusses the early evolution of sound design and how it supports the play, from researching sources for music and effects, to negotiating a contract. It shows you how to organize the construction of the sound design elements, how the designer functions in a rehearsal, and how to set up and train an operator to run sound equipment. This instructive information is interspersed with 'war stores' describing real-life problems with solutions that you can apply in your own work, whether you're a sound designer, composer, or sound operator.

The aim of this book is to demystify the technology of stage lighting, and it does so by uniting its text with quotations from literature, thus setting a common ground for the perception and understanding of light, in our daily lives as well as on stage.

This book is ideal for anyone keen to understand how contemporary plays and playwrights work, particularly those wanting to write for the stage themselves. Drawing heavily on contemporary practice, it considers moments from a range of plays, with a focus on those from the National Theatre's repertoire. The book embraces a range of different dramaturgical structures and styles popular today; plays by a diverse selection of writers; and the current openness of dramatic form. A book of tools, rather than rules, this guide provides suggestions and provocations, exercises and tricks, examples and discussions. An ideal text for playwrights to hone their craft.

A hands-on, step-by-step guide to directing plays - by one of Britain's leading theatre directors. Stephen Unwin has worked with hundreds of different actors in a multiplicity of different venues. He is the ideal author of a 'how to' guide to directing. As Unwin himself says: 'Directing plays is difficult. The aim of this book is to lay out what skills are needed, and to give some sense of how you might develop them. The emphasis is on the professional theatre, but the book is useful for directors in other contexts - amateur dramatics, university drama, school plays and so on. Directing is directing, wherever you do it.' Starting at the very beginning, Unwin takes us step by step through: * Choosing the play * Casting * Design * Rehearsal - Establishing Facts, Improvisation, Language, Character, Blocking, Using Specialists and so on * Running the Play * Putting it on the Stage * Opening Night

Art mirrors life; life returns the favor. How could nineteenth and twentieth century technologies foster both the change in the world view generally called «postmodernism and the development of new art forms? Scholar and curator Faye Ran shows how interactions of art and technology led to cultural changes and the evolution of Installation art as a genre unto itself - a fascinating hybrid of expanded sculpture in terms of context, site, and environment, and expanded theatre in terms of performer, performance, and public.

Master the art and technique of blue and greenscreen compositing with this comprehensive how-to course in creating effective and realistic composited scenes in video formats. You get clear, understandable explanations of the different types of keying techniques and how they work, including real-world examples and tutorials. Topics include setting up a greenscreen studio, how to light the screen effectively, how to light the talent or foreground material, and matching lighting to the composited background plate. Complete tutorials of each of the major software keyers walk you through the process for creating a clean and accurate composite.

Sound Design for the Stage is a practical guide to designing, creating and developing the sound for a live performance. Based on the author's extensive industry experience, it takes the reader through the process of creating a show, from first contact to press night, with numerous examples from high-profile productions. Written in a detailed but accessible approach, this comprehensive book offers key insights into a fast-moving industry. Topics covered include: how to analyze a script to develop ideas and concepts; how to discuss your work with a director; telling the emotional story; working with recorded and live music; how to record, create, process and abstract sound; designing for devised work; key aspects of acoustics and vocal intelligibility; the politics of radio mics and vocal foldback; how to design a sound system and, finally, what to do when things go wrong. With helpful advice on finding work and negotiating contracts, this guide will be especially useful for emergent sound designers and directors, focusing on the creative and collaborative process between sound designer, director, performer and writer.

This beautiful new book guides readers with intermediate to advanced level sewing skills toward the successful creation of costumes for theatrical or dance performances, and for re-enactments and interactive fiction. Nearly 250 beautiful color photographs and detailed line drawings of many types of costumes, along with solid design principles, provide a wealth of easy to understand information and how-to instructions. Practical tips concerning theatrical production teams, lines of authority, budgets, scheduling, and post-production storage of costumes are included. An annotated bibliography and a resource guide are both useful references.

For readers who want to become part of the thriving wedding video industry, Wedding Video Handbook explains everything a wedding videographer needs to know. Each chapter explores a different part of either the business or the production ends, and covers topics including secrets for getting clients, selecting the proper equipment, and tips on capturing special wedding moments despite difficult filming conditions. The book includes handy primers on marketing and advertising, handling phone calls and appointments, pre-production preparations, what to shoot on the wedding day, interacting with other vendors, editing and packaging the DVD or video, and generating referrals. Fully up-to-date with information on the newest tools and equipment used in this rapidly-evolving market as well as the cutting-edge trends in wedding video products, Wedding Video Handbook is packed with practical advice from a pro who has spent years in the field.

Packed with more than 350 techniques, this book delivers what you need to know - on the spot. If you create graphics for television, this book is for you. 'Broadcast Graphics on the Spot' show you how to produce more compelling TV graphics. From gathering images for use in broadcast graphics to working with fonts, mastering keying and rotoscoping, or working with logo motion, this book includes step-by-step procedures for creating over-the-shoulder graphics for news anchors, lower thirds, titles, and full-screens that can be used in everyday news productions.

UNDERSTANDING DIGITAL CINEMA: A PROFESSIONAL HANDBOOK is a comprehensive resource on all aspects of finishing, distributing and displaying film digitally. For technical professionals as well as non-technical decision-makers, the book is a detailed exploration of every component of the process, from mastering to theater management.
* An overview of digital cinema system requirements
* Post production work flow
* Color in digital cinema
* The digital cinema mastering process
* Fundamentals of compression
* Security
* Basics of audio
* Digital distribution
* Digital projection technology
* Theater systems
* The international perspective: Views from Europe, Asia and Latin America
* A realistic assessment of the future of digital cinema
With contributions by:
Richard Crudo, President, American Society of Cinematographers
Leon Silverman, Executive Vice President, Laser Pacific Media Corporation
Charles Poynton, Color Scientist
Chris Carey, Senior Vice President, Studio New Technology, The Walt Disney Studios
Bob Lambert, Corporate Senior Vice President New Technology & New Media,
The Walt Disney Company
Bill Kinder, Pixar Animation Studios
Glenn Kennel, DLP Cinema
Peter Symes, Manager, Advanced Technology, Thomson Broadcast & Media Solutions
Robert Schumann, President, Cinea, Inc., A Subsidiary of Dolby Labs
David Gray, Vice President, Production Services, Dolby Laboratories, Inc.
Darcy Antonellis, Executive Vice President, Distribution and Technology Operations
Warner Bros. Technical Operations Inc. and Senior Vice President, Worldwide Anti-Piracy Operations Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
Matt Cowan, Principal and Founder, Entertainment Technology Consultants
Loren Nielsen, Principal and Founder, Entertainment Technology Consultants
Michael Karagosian, Partner, Karagosian MacCalla Partners (KMP)
Peter Wilson, Vice President, Display Technologies, Snell and Wilcox Ltd.
Patrick Von Sychowski, Senior Analyst, Screen Digest
Wendy Aylsworth, Vice President of Technology, Warner Bros. Technical Operations Inc.
* Learn how to manage the change and control costs, from a "who's who" list of the leaders in this ground-breaking field
*Walk away from reading this book with an essential understanding of digital cinema today
* Understand the benefits of the transition to digital cinema