[SML] house light control systems recommendations needed

[June Abernathy]

> On Dec 5, 2014, at 8:51 PM, Jason Salvatori <theatretd at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> I hate to be the contrary person on this one, but "because GOD FORBID
> WE HAVE A PATRON TRIP AND FALL!!!!!!!" really rubs me the wrong way.
> Having been through 3 lawsuits in the last 11 years as the venue rep.,
> this is a serious concern. It sucks that that is the world we live in,
> but it is.
> 
> I fully agree it is not up the the HM to turn lights on and off.  But
> our house rules now say that " this artsy shit" doesn't happen.  House
> lights are at full pre-show and post show.  The LD gets to decide
> everything from the house-half cue to the final blackout cue, but
> anything before or after that is house rules.
> 
> Jason


Jason, I'd like to think that we can all agree that patrons tripping and falling is bad. And that no one, including myself, wants to see that happen, or would intentionally create a situation where that would be a likely event. On the other hand, it is possible to take those concerns to heart to a degree that it is people start to lose a bit of perspective. And using emergency procedures to deal with every day events means that something in the planning or training has gone awry. For instance, perhaps an usher with a flashlight would be a more appropriate response to concern about a couple of patrons walking up the aisle before house lights are up than banging on a hot white panic cue. 

I also don't think, a lot of the time, that the concern is ACTUALLY about Patron safety. i think a lot of the time, they'd actually just like to hurry matters along. But they know that if they respond with a safety concern when confronted about bad behavior, that it serves as a get out of jail free card.

I'm glad that you have specific procedures in your venue regarding house light levels. Consider that other venues do not. And in many places, there's a difference between House lights at full and the addition of emergency lighting, work lighting, and the like that often comes up with a panic cue. Not to mention that taking control out of the hands of the operator is a bad thing. It's annoying at best, and can actually be dangerous. Sometimes there are things cued through the light board that need to happen after the curtain call cue. Like lights for safe and orderly egress backstage and in the orchestra pit. If the Light Board Operator has to wade out through a sea of patrons to find the station that the panic switch was thrown at so that he can release control in order to get back to the booth and take the end of show cues that need to happen, that's a Bad Thing.

And while "artsy" House Lighting sometimes mean house lights dimmed to a level that some people, like yourself, don't consider safe, sometimes, "artsy" just means eliminating house lights over the orchestra pit when it is in use, or taking out or dimming lights over the sound or lighting board, or dimming down decorative sconces. i submit that a House Manager's first response to "Hmmm, the sconces aren't on" should not be to engage the panic button on a House Emergency panel. 

I would hope that if a House Manager had concerns over a House Light level, or how long it takes before the Operator is cued to bring up House lights at intermission or the end of the show, that they would be trained enough to know who to talk to about those concerns, rather than just taking matters into their own hands on a daily basis. A little communication goes a long way.


June Abernathy
IATSE #321 (Tampa, FL)
FOH Electrician
The Lion King National Tour