Six Characters in Search of an Author

Every once and a while I go back and re-read my blog, fix mistakes and add new photos when I scan more or find some new ones online.
Well it seems that I left out an important play from my senior year at SUNY Buffalo.
I was asked to design the lighting for a production of Six Characters in Search of an Author by Luigi Pirandello that was scheduled for December 1977.

Six Characters in Search of an Author , 1977

The play is an odd one and we did a good job making it even odder.
The play begins at an audition for a play when the “Characters” step out of the play and talk with the director.
The real director changed it from a play to a magic and circus act audition.

As the audience came to the theatre they were divided in half and brought into the Theatre in two groups.
As they would pass through the lobby they would see the “Characters” from behind some glass doors.
As they stepped into the Theatre the lights would come on with a Linda Ronstadt’s “Heat Wave” blasting through the speakers and the magic and circus acts performing onstage.
After everyone was in the music and action would stop and the second group would be brought in and the same things would happen to them and then the play would start.

As you can see from the show photos the set was unique with a hole in the floor center stage.

For the first entrance of the Father and Daughter “Characters” several flash pots were set off in the hole and the two would come up through the smoke.

I had worked with the director before; he is the one who cast our introduction to Theatre class as extras in his play the previous year.
I went to an early rehearsal to start thinking about the lighting when the director asked to read a few lines for someone who was not there and I said sure I would help out.
After the scene was over he said “Good, you now have the part.”
I said wait, but it was too late.
The part was for a stage hand, so I guess it was type casting and that is how I got into my second play at UB.

For some reason the play was delayed until after Christmas break and because the lights were set I felt that I did not need to be at every rehearsal.
I left one rehearsal early and turned off the stage lights and put on the work and house lights.
When I came back the next day the director said that he liked that look so the house lights into one section of the play and I had the crew gel all of the house lights with good old R51.

Speaking of gels I had to change all of the back lights because I had originally chosen a pale green that made it look like the actors were walking in mud.

As part of the publicity for the play the cast would roam about the campus and do parts of the play, hand out fliers and run off.
I was in the Student Union one time when they did this and was very funny to see the reaction to the other students as most had no idea on what had just happened.

The play was well received and I really enjoyed working on it, even when I had to yell my two or three lines out of the control booth window each night.