ASTC: Did You Know (DYK) that a Black Box Theatre does not have to be black? It can easily be a deep, rich, warm, dark color such as a deep royal blue or a deep purple, or some other lovely, deep and dark color that absorbs more light than it reflects.
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I actually did know a lot of these things and I feel like some of these things are common knowledge. I think that this thread is really interesting though because it does sprinkle in some things that might not be so common. In my undergrad our black box was painted a deep purple and everyone joked and called it the plum box but it was explained to us during class why that was and, having done multiple productions in there, I think it really does work better than a true black box and is also more appealing to audiences when they enter and exit the theatre. I also had head about the green room from a TD that I worked with who said "If any theatre that you work in has a green room that is actually green, leave." Though there is a sense of joking in that statement, I haven't yet seen an actual green room that was green (or brown) so I have to believe that there is some truth to that as well.
I really liked this article. A lot of the things laid out may seem a little silly, and perhaps they are, but I bet these are things that people forget about quite often when they are designing a new theatre. I know I have been in many spaces, as I am sure other people have, and have wondered why something was painted some color, or why some architectural thing was placed where it is. What this article seems to get out is the larger idea that just because something is done a “traditional” way or has been done in one way for a long time, there is no reason it needs to continue to be that way. I really like the idea of the confetti seating. I am thinking that in high schools this might be a fun idea because maybe the audiences aren’t full every night and it could be better for the students if they don’t feel like the audience is so empty.
This article reminded me of a book I read called the Joyful: The Surprising Power of Ordinary Things To Create Extraordinary Happiness by Ingrid Fetell Lee. She talked about how each element of design can be used to create a mood within an environment, and affect our psychological state, and perception of the world around us. The little things like the transition to dark colors in the front of the house so it works with the proscenium, and even the “confetti” approach to seating, plays into this. Either by creating a calm transition from stage to audience or by giving the illusion of filling up the house with bold bright positive colors. Of course, the confetti approach is relatively controversial. These bright happy colors may play with the serious mood of a work, and disrupt the impact of the work. I highly recommend reading this book, it has been very essential to my understanding of design in our lives.
Where did these traditional constructions in theatres come from? Are they based of a “golden” standard that is likely a western or european theatre space? How have these shifted in the ages? Are they more based on regulations now as I imagine before regulations would have been pretty loose and more would have been based on prominent spaces and I imagine those spaces still have an effect, but are now constrained by standardized imagination and regulation. Every theatre I’ve been in has been slightly different, and there are always those rooms where I’m not sure why they were placed where they were, especially from the article where it talked about architects tending to not build a theatre in the way that is most practical. How many theatres end up like this? Does this extend into other buildings as well? It does make each one feel unique and fun/comforting to get to know as I work in them.
I liked that this articles called to attention the norms for the colors we use in the theatre space but something about them putting Did You Know at the beginning of every sentence came off as really pretentious to me.
That said I do think that traditions and rules are made to be broken when it comes to aesthetics. But also I really would hate having to paint an entire black box to match the theme of a show (though it is certainly undeniable that it would help to immerse an audience in the story and mood being conveyed if the environment they were in when the lights came up pre-mid-and post show also helped to reinforce that mood.
But I can only imagine how long it would take to paint the entire black box at the space I used to be at. It would be doable since the ceiling and all the architecture could be reached with a 12 foot ladder. But no way in hell would I want to do that tedious work.
This article is interesting in that it provides some good explanations for common design and architectural norms in theaters, but I take issue with the structure of the article (DYK? Gets really annoying after a while, not to mention very pretentious) as well as the fact that while some of the facts are explained properly and well, some of them either have no proper explanation or just an opinion attached to them.
That being said, I appreciate the challenging of norms in this article. The general trend of safety and accessibility being prioritized more in theatre today is a welcome one to see, and this article outlines some safety trends regarding coloring of audience and production spaces that are great to see (the tips about grid steel and the fly tower walls were something that I had never thought about before but make perfect sense, since even up close to a stage, if it is properly masked, an audience member will never see those things).
Love the small nod to the eternal war against architects and theatrical designers. I once worked in a completely new space one time doing sound design for a high school show at the request of a professor, and when I asked "why is x missing" or "why was x installed this way" the answer was usually "it was the architect's decision" or "they didn't think we needed it".
I've got to say I've never thought of most of these things, but they all make sense. I do find that every time I walk into a theatre, I form an opinion on the architecture and design of it beyond the show, but it's usually not backed up by much besides the use of space (I usually love smaller spaces where the stage feels close). I feel like high school auditoriums should also take this information into account even though they're not professional houses by any means. Also, with a lot of these tips it usually comes down to the use of a certain paint color. One concept I found particularly interesting is the use of multicolored seats, and how that has an effect on the audience size. I do wonder though who the look of a larger house serves--is it just to make the audience feel like there's more people around them? Or for the performers?
I absolutely love learning about new theatre. I always wanted to break out of the traditional theatre mold, whatever that may be. I wonder when and where these constructs of traditional theatre came about, and why they stuck? I think entertainment is alot about innovation and surprising the audience, and I also believe that theatre has a lot to do with space. If the space is predictable and boring, how can we expect to bring a space that is exciting and new? I also like how the article really dives into challenging theatre norms. I think that this world is often times too strict, and likes to shun those who try to change it in a fundamental way. So, I appreciate what this is trying to do. I like that these creatives are striving to do something new even if they confined to a box. I also think that it is cool the use of colors. The space itself doesnt always have to fade into the background.
This is a super cool article and great to read when thinking about the future of the industry. So many theatres are built in a funky way, or even a "standard" way and these specific Did You know facts from a consulting agency is great to rethink what a theatre could be. OF COUSE grid steel should be painted yellow, I can think of so many times I would have felt safer had everything not been the same color tones and blending together where there may have been a gap. Also repainting the top of the grid or fly tower to a lighter color for more visibility really makes a lot of sense. I also had never thought about the purpose of confetti style seating, to have the house appear full all the time. This is great, well done Guthrie!
My first question is if masking should always be black, then why does a black box not need to be black? That makes no sense at all to me. If you put masking in a black box, and it were black, and the black box were not black, that would look off. However, if you put navy masking in a navy black box, I think that might look a bit off. The seating upholstery makes sense to me, I think a different dark color that ties into the carpeting could be nice. On the topic of the carpeting that also makes sense, although a pattern feels important to hide stains. The guthrie seating is not personally my taste, even if it does appear more full, it however just be the color palette. I think bright colors in a theatre seem off. It is particularly interesting the note about architects vs scenic artists.
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