Theatre Books: Online Versions & Excerpts

Part 1. The profession. Understanding assisting -- The tools required -- Production personnel -- Unions -- Part 2. The process. Design prep -- Load-In -- Tech -- Previews and performances -- Part 3. The paperwork. Pre-production paperwork -- Tech process paperwork -- Part 4. The industry. U.S.-based employment opportunities -- Working outside the United States -- Working in industries outside of theatre -- Part 5. The life. Working as an independent contractor -- Appendix A: Step-by-step assistant's checklist -- Appendix B: Design package checklist -- Appendix C: Assistant's kit checklist -- Appendix D: Electronic folder organization -- Appendix E: Site survey measurements -- Appendix F: Sample shop order -- Appendix G: Sample cover letter and resumé -- Appendix H: Contributing lighting designers and associates -- Appendix I: Product websites.

Concepts, procedures, and guidelines to ensure a successful production are covered as well as troubleshooting, much needed information on workflows, technology, work relationships, console networking, digital lighting, and more. Chapters are peppered with advice and war stories from some of the most prominent lighting designers and programmers of today. The fourth edition is the most comprehensive yet: added topics include programming structure, advanced recording/editing, cloning, multi-cell fixtures, safety routines, GDTF, and Pre-Visualization. Deep explorations into the work of programmers from Earlybird and Broadway provide readers with timely real-world scenarios and advice.

ch3ck availability of 2010 print version
"Now in its third edition, it has been fully updated to reflect the vast changes in stage and studio luminairies—including LEDs, switch-mode power supplies, optics, networking, Ethernet-based protocols like Art-Net and sACN, wireless DMX, and much more. Its written in clear, easy-to-understand language and includes enough detailed information to benefit for the most experienced technicians, programmers, and designers."

"Concert Lighting is a comprehensive book on lighting design for concerts. Placing special emphasis on rock-and-roll concert lighting equipment and techniques, the book takes its reader on tour, covering every aspect of that experience for the touring professional lighting technician and designer. It also provides several chapters to cross-media use of concert lighting techniques. Discussions of applications in film, video, the theatre, and the corporate world demonstrate the ways in which today's lighting designers cross over into other design areas."

Media Servers for Lighting Programmers, Second Edition, is the reference guide for lighting programmers working with media servers - the digital media devices used to control and manipulate video, audio, lighting, and projection content that have become the industry standard for live events, broadcast, and theatre performances. This book contains all the information you need to begin working with these devices, with topics ranging from common video terminology and equipment to the workflows for setup, patching, programming, and operating a media server from a lighting console via DMX. It also features a brief history of where this unique market originated from and offers a look at the current trends in media server technology and the growing digital media industry. This second edition also includes more information on alternative methods of programming and operating a server beyond using DMX, along with new information on projection mapping workflows, content creation software, and media management techniques.

Contents: Understanding Sustainability and Defining Greener Production. Setting the stage for greener production ; Understanding the assessment process ; Beginning the journey ; The forest-view: non-technical areas ; The cast, stage managers, and crew. -- Identifying Strategies for Greener Production. Greener scene design: the cradle to cradle philosophy ; Selecting scenery materials and construction techniques ; The paint shop ; Greener stage lighting design and technology ; Costume design: the crossroad of ecology and artistic expression ; Costume construction ; Costume crafts, make-up, and storage. -- Moving From the Theoretical to the Practical. Walking the walk: integrating greener practices into realized productions.

"Used from Broadway to Britain’s West End, QLab software is the tool of choice for many of the world’s most prominent sound, projection, and integrated media designers. QLab 3 Show Control: Projects for Live Performances & Installations is a project-based book on QLab software covering sound, video, and show control. With information on both sound and video system basics and the more advanced functions of QLab such as MIDI show control, new OSC capabilities, networking, video effects, and microphone integration, each chapter’s specific projects will allow you to learn the software’s capabilities at your own pace."