A Few Good men
Design Notes
A Few Good Men was the first show that I designed on my own. The show itself is not overly complex in terms of lighting which allowed me to make simple yet effective design choices. This helped me learn more about the basics of lighting such as focusing, color, and texture mainly. One complexity was figuring out how to backlight a 100 foot flag that wrapped around the stage. I achieved this by troubleshooting and tinkering with architectural fixtures I found in a closet and utilized them to achieve this effect. Overall I am still happy with how A Few Good Men turned out despite its simplicity.
Example of using light for a flashback. Used same colors isolated to emulate prior scene. Flashback scene pictured on left original scene pictured on the right.
Example of lighting for scene in cellblock during nighttime.
Blocking notes for lighting taken during rehearsal
Backlighting the 100 foot flag using architectural striplights.
This scene is during Jessep’s final monologue in which he reveals that the code red he ordered lead to the murder of Santiago. Light slowly illuminates the side of Jessep somewhat revealing him after being shrouded in dim light before all the details of the case are clear.
Example of wiring and system used to control flag lighting
Example of notes from preliminary script reading
Scene takes place in cell block. Shades of white used to create sterile environment. Jessep, Kendrick, Markinson (Background) backlit to reinforce idea that they are behind the actions of Downey and Dawson (2 in jumpsuits).
Courtroom scene set by illuminating pediment and window gobos
Example of early focusing done for this production
Cue sheet used for show.