Look up catwalk in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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A catwalk is an elevated service platform from which many of the technical functions of a theater, such as lighting and sound, may be manipulated.
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A catwalk is an elevated service platform from which many of the technical functions of a theater, such as lighting and sound, may be manipulated.
Catwalks are used to suspend lighting instruments and microphones directed at the stage. The catwalks provide easy access for theater personnel to perform common tasks. For example, lights may need to be accessed for maintenance, position adjustment, or addition and removal of gels and gobos.
Typically, catwalks are located in positions hidden from audience view or directly above an audience, and are considered "behind-the-scenes". For example, many proscenium theaters have a series of two or more catwalks running parallel to the proscenium arch above a false ceiling. Stairs or a ladder up to the catwalks is usually located somewhere backstage. In modern theatres, many architects design catwalks into the "look" of the theatre. In black box theatres, catwalks and pipe grids may be the only architectural feature.
A catwalk may also be placed upstage of the proscenium as part of the fly system. These may be fixed, or they may be able to be raised and lowered.
In older decorated theaters, the catwalks are not designed to be seen by the audience. Sometimes, because of this, they are placed in the attic area above the auditorium’s ceiling, where slots and movable panels provide openings into the auditorium from the ceiling.
Most catwalks have several battens (pipes) that lighting fixtures may be attached to. Lights are usually attached by a C-Clamp or a hook clamp around the pipes. In addition to this primary attachment, fixtures generally have an additional safety cable attaching them to the catwalk, so that if the clamp or bolt gives way, the safety cable will catch the light. This is used because the lights are generally very expensive and heavy, but mainly to protect the audience members and performers from the possibility of fixtures falling down from the catwalks. Catwalks often include a platform for a spotlight operator to work from.
A typical catwalk has a built in electrical conduit to carry power for the lighting fixtures from the dimmers. They often hold other electrical wiring, for example standard sockets for tools, coaxial cable for projection and video monitors, built-in safety lighting to protect technicians, audio cables, and special cables for headset communications with other technicians.
Since a catwalk is usually placed high above the floor, spaces where lighting instruments can go are usually chained or otherwise blocked off when a light is not present to prevent people and/or objects from falling through. The instruments themselves are attached by a safety chain to prevent them from falling. Technicians normally attach objects (such as wrenches) to themselves before going onto the catwalk, so that such objects cannot fall and possibly injure someone or damage something. This also prevents objects from falling into a place where they cannot be retrieved, such as between the catwalk floor and the ceiling, or into an HVAC vent.
Sometimes, to create better lighting positions or allow more flexibility, catwalks have minimal railings. Because of this, sometimes it is necessary for people working on them to wear fall arrest to satisfy safety requirements, as the railing cannot be considered sufficient.
Stage lighting is the craft of lighting as it applies to the production of theater, dance, opera, and other performance arts. Several different types of stage lighting instruments are used in this discipline. In addition to basic lighting, modern stage lighting can also include special effects, such as lasers and fog machines. People who work on stage lighting are commonly referred to as lighting technicians or lighting designers.
In theatre, a lighting designer works with the director, choreographer, set designer, costume designer, and sound designer to create the lighting, atmosphere, and time of day for the production in response to the text while keeping in mind issues of visibility, safety, and cost. The LD also works closely with the stage manager or show control programming, if show control systems are used in that production. Outside stage lighting, the job of a lighting designer can be much more diverse, and they can be found working on rock and pop tours, corporate launches, art installations, or lighting effects at sporting events.
An electrical lighting technician, or simply lighting technician, are involved with rigging stage and location sets and controlling artificial, electric lights for art and entertainment venues or in video, television, or film production.
In the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, grips are camera support equipment technicians in the filmmaking and video production industries. They constitute their own department on a film set and are directed by a key grip. Grips have two main functions: The first is to work closely with the camera department to provide camera support, especially if the camera is mounted to a dolly, crane, or in an unusual position, such as the top of a ladder. Some grips may specialize in operating camera dollies or camera cranes. The second function is to work closely with the electrical department to create lighting set-ups necessary for a shot under the direction of the director of photography.
Grips' responsibility is to build and maintain all the equipment that supports cameras. This equipment, which includes tripods, dollies, tracks, jibs, cranes, and static rigs, is constructed of delicate yet heavy duty parts requiring a high level of experience to operate and move. Every scene in a feature film is shot using one or more cameras, each mounted on highly complex, extremely expensive, heavy duty equipment. Grips assemble this equipment according to meticulous specifications and push, pull, mount or hang it from a variety of settings. The equipment can be as basic as a tripod standing on a studio floor, to hazardous operations such as mounting a camera on a 100 ft crane, or hanging it from a helicopter swooping above a mountain range.
Good Grips perform a crucial role in ensuring that the artifice of film is maintained, and that camera moves are as seamless as possible. Grips are usually requested by the DoP or the camera operator. Although the work is physically demanding and the hours are long, the work can be very rewarding. Many Grips work on both commercials and features.
In theatre and performing arts, the stage is a designated space for the performance of productions. The stage serves as a space for actors or performers and a focal point for the audience. As an architectural feature, the stage may consist of a platform or series of platforms. In some cases, these may be temporary or adjustable but in theaters and other buildings devoted to such productions, the stage is often a permanent feature.
A theater, or playhouse, is a structure where theatrical works, performing arts, and musical concerts are presented. The theater building serves to define the performance and audience spaces. The facility usually is organized to provide support areas for performers, the technical crew and the audience members, as well as the stage where the performance takes place.
In theatre, the master electrician is responsible for implementing the lighting design for a production drawn up by the lighting designer. This involves overseeing the preparation, hanging, connection and focusing of stage lighting fixtures.
A fly system, or theatrical rigging system, is a system of ropes, pulleys, counterweights and related devices within a theater that enables a stage crew to fly (hoist) quickly, quietly and safely components such as curtains, lights, scenery, stage effects and, sometimes, people. Systems are typically designed to fly components between clear view of the audience and out of view, into the large space, the fly loft, above the stage.
A light fixture, light fitting, or luminaire is an electrical lighting device containing one or more light sources, such as lamps, and all the accessory components required for its operation to provide illumination to the environment. All light fixtures have a fixture body and one or more lamps. The lamps may be in sockets for easy replacement—or, in the case of some LED fixtures, hard-wired in place.
Grand Théâtre de Genève is an opera house in Geneva, Switzerland.
Stage lighting instruments are used in stage lighting to illuminate theatrical productions, concerts, and other performances taking place in live performance venues. They are also used to light television studios and sound stages.
Theater drapes and stage curtains are large pieces of cloth that are designed to mask backstage areas of a theater from spectators. They are designed for a variety of specific purposes, moving in different ways and constructed from various fabrics. Many are made from black or other darkly colored, light-absorbing material. Theater drapes represent a portion of any production's soft goods, a category comprising any non-wardrobe, cloth-based element of the stage or scenery. Theater curtains are often pocketed at the bottom to hold weighty chain or to accept pipes to remove their fullness and stretch them tight.
A tension grid is a type of non-standard largely-transparent catwalk. Tension grids are composed of tightly woven wire rope steel cables that create a taut floor strong enough for technicians to walk on.
In theater, a worklight is a high-intensity light fixture which is used to illuminate the stage for the benefit of technicians. Technicians use these lights, rather than the stage lights for a number of reasons. Firstly, it takes much less technical knowledge to turn on worklights, so even people with no knowledge of electrics can turn them on. Secondly, regardless of the lights hung for the specific show, they provide fairly consistent and complete lighting. Finally, and most importantly, they are designed to be cheap and easy to re-lamp, in contrast to theatrical fixtures, which have expensive lamps and would burn through color gels if used to illuminate stage work.
A theatrical technician, also known as a theatrical tech, theatre technician, or theatre tech is a person who operates technical equipment and systems in the performing arts and entertainment industry. In contrast to performers, this broad category contains all "unseen" theatrical personnel who practice stagecraft and are responsible for the logistic and production-related aspects of a performance including designers, operators, and supervisors.
In theatre, an electrician is a person who works with the various aspects of lighting. Some of the positions among electricians include the lighting supervisor, master electrician, deck electrician, light board operator, moving light programmer, followspot operator, as well as simply electricians. This group is generally known as the "Electrics" Department or LX Department.
In theaters, a batten is a long metal pipe suspended above the stage or audience from which lighting fixtures, theatrical scenery, and theater drapes and stage curtains may be hung. Battens that are located above a stage can usually be lowered to the stage or raised into a fly tower above the stage by a fly system.
There are different types of theatres, but they all have three major parts in common. Theatres are divided into two main sections, the house and the stage; there is also a backstage area in many theatres. The house is the seating area for guests watching a performance and the stage is where the actual performance is given. The backstage area is usually restricted to people who are producing or in the performance.
The Rialto Theatre in Tacoma, Washington was built in 1918 to showcase movies. Its design reflects the affluence following World War I. It reflects the character of a palace and is the result of efforts by entrepreneur Henry T. Moore and Tacoma architect Roland E. Borhek. Designed to hold 1500 patrons and retail space. The two-and-a-half-story structure is in the historic downtown of Tacoma. The area has long been associated with theaters and entertainment. The theater is freestanding, with a dramatic view on an incline with a classical façade sheathed of glazed white terra cotta. Both the interior and exterior retain most of the original design of Roland E. Borhek. The theater has an auditorium, proscenium with stage, a relocated projection booth, balcony, lobby, and commercial space. It has been altered with the removal of the storefronts and marquee. On the inside, the lobby's decorative ceiling has been hidden and the concession areas expanded.
Stage lighting accessories are components manufactured for conventional (non-automated) stage lighting instruments. Most conventional fixtures are designed to accept a number of different accessories designed to assist in the modification of the output. These accessories are intended to either provide relatively common functionality not originally provided in a fixture, or to extend the versatility of a lighting instrument by introducing features. Other accessories have been designed to overcome limitations or difficulties some fixtures present in specific applications.