BY ELLIE KAPCAR
The lighting crew of this year’s spring musical, The Secret Garden, has spent an unprecedented amount of time and money. Over 100 hours and $1600 to be exact.
Seniors Logan Urbanski and Noah Dill, junior Seth Medlin, and sophomores Colton Urbanski, Brett Gilbertson, and Will Weston comprise the lighting team, the unsung heroes of this weekend’s production.
They’re breaking new ground in behind the scenes production with 24 LED units.
Junior Corinne Fanta, who plays Mary Lennox (the lead), shares how this year’s musical is different than most. “The lighting has a major impact on the set and scenes because of the way it portrays the story. This year the lights provide different colors for different characters and the lighting affects the mood,” says Fanta.
Medlin, who has roles both onstage and behind the scenes says, “This year we’ve gotten really technical with the lighting. We rented LED’s for the first time, which changes and expands what we can do. They’re the most fundamental part of what we have.”
Though the lighting crew works with a board, pit lights, LED’s, and spotlights, Logan agrees. “This is the year of lights. Our favorite saying is ‘Blame it on the LED’s,’” he says with chuckle.
Medlin shares that the crew’s inspiration came from the Playhouse in the Park production of The Secret Garden this past fall. “One of my main goals was to light the stage with only LED’s to give it a more realistic effect,” Medlin says. “A yellow fluorescent glow has worked well for big numbers in past productions, but this show is serious and has a point to get across,” he adds.
Along the catwalk where the lights are fastened, dust and wires have been piling up from past productions. With the addition of the new LED’s, the crew needed to reorganize. “We rearranged the lights to cover the stage in the right places, and we had to vacuum the lightbulbs, the concrete, everything. There was a ton of dust, which we refer to as ‘magic snow,’” says Logan.
Weston says, “As we were setting up the rented LED’s on Friday, I didn’t know what to expect. Finally Logan and Seth turned on the LED’s while Colton and I were on set. It was awesome.” Then Weston spontaneously hopped on the piano and began playing “Sail” by AWOLNATION, which the others timed the lights to.
“The moment when Will was playing ‘Sail,’ I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, we can do this. This is actually going to happen,’” says Medlin.
Meticulous in their setup and documentation, the crew has been working hard in hopes of being nominated for a Cappie, a musical theater award voted on by critic teams of local high schoolers.
“This year’s end goal is different because we’re putting all we have into the lighting for the opportunity to win a Cappie,” says Medlin. “We’ve put in a lot of extra hours to get work done when o one else is around,” he says.
“We have a notebook documenting all of our lighting techniques, which we will present to the Cappies with pictures and a poster on Friday night,” adds Logan.
Co-director Lee Lowery shares, “The team has been working their tails off right from the beginning and are doing phenomenal work. They’ve challenged themselves to learn new techniques and different ways to light the stage.
Whispering into the mouthpiece of his defunct ESPN headset, Dill loves to pretend to be in charge. “I love to mess with people. They think I’m super official, and it’s hilarious,” he says. Dill enjoys sauntering along the catwalks before the show. When he’s not working the spotlights, he can be found dancing near the sound booth upstairs.
Though they are not featured on stage, the lighting crew feels like an integral part of the cast and are proud of their work. “Everyone works together, and the equipment we’re working with is really cool. The lighting crew may be one small part, but it really contributes to the overall production,” says Colton.
The Secret Garden runs this Friday and Saturday at 7pm and Sunday at 2pm. Tickets are available on the district website.