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 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.

This book explores the development of Robert Lepage's distinctive approach to stage direction in the early (1984-1994) and middle (1995-2008) stages of his career, arguing that globalisation had a defining effect on shaping his aesthetic and his professional trajectory. In addition to globalisation theory, the book draws on cinema studies, queer theory, and theories of affect and reception. Each of six chapters treats a particular aspect of globalisation, using this as a means to explore one or more of Lepage's productions. Productions discussed include The Dragon's Trilogy, Needles and Opium, and The Far Side of the Moon. Making theatre global: Robert Lepage's original stage productions will be of interest to scholars of contemporary theatre, advanced-level undergraduates, and arts lovers keen for new perspectives on one of the most talked-about theatre artists of the early 21st century. -- .

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.

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

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.

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.

Frequenting circuses in Paris and Berlin, Frank Wedekind, best known for Spring Awakening and the Lulu plays, learned that trapeze artists and tightrope walkers rely on different artificial reference points in space, in order to maintain their balance and orient themselves and to create their own sensorial and phenomenal worlds. This lesson in radical perspectivism and constructivism is a key to Wedekind's practice as a playwright, and it links the Munich dramatist's work to the thought of Schopenhauer, who first used the term Elastizitat in a philosophical sense; Darwin, who considered adaptability to be a primordial characteristic of life; Nietzsche, whose commentary on acrobats in Also sprach Zarathustra announces the Overman; and Freud, who used the term to describe the reactive, conservative nature of the instincts. Taking Elastizitat and the modern notion of adaptability as its point of departure, this book explores Wedekind's construction of space, movement and character in his plays, pantomimes, ballets and theoretical writings as a means of understanding both the structural consistencies and the ideological incongruities that permeate his fiction and nearly all layers of his works. This work also disengages Wedekind from traditional discussions of the dramatist as controversial social critic and reintroduces him into more productive discussions of his connection to nineteenth-century philosophical debates surrounding determinism, dualism and perception, on the one hand, and modern notions of risk, danger and precarity on the other.

Originating in the conference held at the University of Cambridge in 2009, this collection of essays includes a range of innovative papers from across the diverse field of French and Francophone studies. From medieval texts to the dramatization of the novel, from postcolonial writing to the politics of film and the bande dessinee, the articles in this collection draw on recent developments in the theories of adaptation, translation, and cultural and textual transition. In keeping with these developments, they move the notion of adaptation away from questions of authenticity and fidelity, thinking instead about the movement across texts and time, and the way such movement generates new meanings. Offering insightful approaches to its subjects of study, the book is an engaging contribution to this growing area of research.

"Directors and Designers "explores the practice of scenography--the creation of perspective in the design and painting of stage scenery--and offers new insight into the working relationships of the people responsible for these theatrical transformations. With contributions from leading practitioners and theorists, editor Christine White describes the way in which the roles of director and designer have developed over time. Featuring chapters on theater and site-specific performance, theatrical communication and aesthetics, and the cognitive reception of design by the audience, this volume provides a valuable resource on current approaches to scenography for professionals and students.

This edited collection explores the roles of material culture in socializing young people through their play. Authors explore notions of play from diverse cultural viewpoints, as well as the impact of technology on play, and the kinds of resistant and liberatory play children might partake in. Informed by the field of performance studies, the book considers play as performance, asking questions about embodiment at physical, relational, and ideological levels, and considering "performance" to be part of identity construction, as well as a component of enculturation into various societies. Of interest are the ways in which children try on various identities through their play, and how these identities may (re)define their attitudes, values, and beliefs. As curriculum and instruction have become open to the use of games - and children's material culture more generally - as a forum for learning, intersections have emerged between schooling and culture at large. This book broadens the scope of "learning" to investigate how these cultural artifacts are open or closed to multiple perspectives and narratives, as well as how their use is constituted both in and out of the classroom.

This book contrasts the portrayal of kings and kingship in the drama of William Shakespeare (1564-1616) and the Spanish playwright Pedro Calderon de la Barca (1600-81), concentrating on the ways in which both dramatists use the individual complexities of their kingly characters to address the intellectual and moral dilemmas of the ideological backgrounds that helped to create them. Against the background of seventeenth-century Europe, when religious and political reformation was leading to reconstructions of concepts of authority and personal and national identity, these two dramatists of early modern England and Spain use the increasingly theatrical facades of absolutist power to explore the internal drama of individual psychology and the kinship of flawed humanity.

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

The art of wig making and wig dressing has been practised for centuries, and continues to be an exciting and essential part of costume production for theatre and film. With style inspiration ranging from the seventeenth to the twentieth century, A Practical Guide to Wig Making and Wig Dressing is a comprehensive introduction to the knowledge and techniques required to produce beautiful, durable and historical hairstyles able to withstand the demands of performance. Featuring over 700 photographs, this book offers detailed step-by-step instructions on how to make a wig, how to dress it according to time period, and how to fit and remove it, as well as advice on tools, products and suppliers. The work of current industry practitioners is showcased throughout the book, offering key insights into career pathways and professional styling gained from a wealth of experience. Additional material includes: a history of the use and development of wigs; examples of wig foundation making and wig knotting; an introductuion to facial hair making and dressing and finally, how to make hairpieces, sets and dressing for male and female hairstyles.

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.

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.

This well-established and respected directory supports actors in their training and search for work in theatre, film, TV, radio and comedy. It is the only directory to provide detailed information for each listing and specific advice on how to approach companies and individuals, saving hours of further research. From agents and casting directors to producing theatres, showreel companies, photographers and much more, this essential reference book editorially selects only the most relevant and reputable contacts for the actor. Actors' and Performers' Yearbook 2022 features: * 4 newly commissioned interviews conducted by Polly Bennett and Joan Iyiola (co-founders of The Mono Box) with theatre industry professionals including Cherrelle Skeete, Hazel Holder, Ned Bennett and Tom Ross Williams * a new foreword by Polly Bennett With the listings updated every year, the Actors' and Performers' Yearbook continues to be the go-to guide for help with auditions, interviews and securing/sustaining work within the industry. Covering training and working in theatre, film, radio, TV and comedy, it contains invaluable resources such as a casting calendar and articles on a range of topics from your social media profile to what drama schools are looking for to financial and tax issues. An invaluable professional tool that anyone working in the industry will benefit from.

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.

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.

As an actor, screenwriter, director, short story writer, and, most significantly, a playwright, Sam Shepard has long been an important figure on the American cultural landscape. A Body Across the Map focuses on the character conflict central to Shepard's most significant plays; that between fathers and sons. Beginning with The Rock Garden and concluding with A Lie of the Mind, this analysis shows how Shepard's worldview has evolved over a 20-year span. A long-standing pessimist who saw Oedipal revenge as a necessity, and genetic determination as inescapable, Shepard ultimately disavows these dark worldviews in favor of one where gentleness, spiritual generosity, cooperation, and the acceptance of long-denied truths prevail over rage, self-interest, and biological predestination.

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 SeniorEditor 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.
A quick reference guide containing all essential information
Provides useful on-the-job' information
Basic concepts are explained in a clear manner for ease of understanding