In this monologue, scenic designer Adrian Jones explains his collaborative workflow with lighting designers, emphasizing that the director is his first point of reference. He describes how he actively seeks ways to incorporate practical lighting fixtures, windows, and side lighting into sets, even when the design presents limited lighting opportunities, such as a realistic box set at the Geffen Playhouse. Jones highlights a particularly intensive partnership with lighting designer Chris Kuhl on the production of The Nether at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, where a spinning house on a turntable required complex lighting solutions involving dozens of circuits and practicals. He stresses the importance of mutual idea exchange, aligning visions, and the practical challenges of integrating lighting into scenic design.
Chapters
I mean, obviously the first person is the director. I mean, there's nobody else that I go to first with anything. After that, I find that the lighting designer is my biggest and best ally in every way. I like working with lighting designers, and I think that lighting designers like working with me because I'm always looking for ways to get light into a set. I'm doing a show at the Geffen Playhouse right now that's a thoroughly realistic box set with a ceiling, with, you know, very few ways to get light into the space. But, and because it's the right energy for the show, there's no, the show should have a ceiling. But at the same time, everywhere I go, I'm looking for a way to put a practical on the set. I'm looking for a way to put a window in the set, side light, torn positions, ways to get light into the space. And I, 'cause I know that even though I'm creating a challenge for the lighting designer, if I actually go through and, and I think through what I would want as a lighting designer, then I can really help my space, the space really come to life with light because there obviously there's nothing there if the lighting designer doesn't, isn't able to do really good work. Recently on The Nether in that I just did this new play at the Kirk Douglas Theatre at Culver City, that work with Chris Kuhl, the lighting designer on that show, was one of the most exhaustive and one of the most intimate collaborations with a lighting designer because it was a spinning house. It was all on a turntable. I think he had 30 or 40 channels of circuits of lights running within the house, practicals, little birdies here and there. I mean, millions of things. And there was no real way to light it. We had to take out all of the electrics overstage. We had to, you know, the thing was touching the grid of the theater almost. He was, and it was great working with him. Chris was, you know, he would have ideas that I had had and I had thrown out, and I would say, no, I had that idea, why don't we do that? Because that was my, yeah, you just restated my idea a minute ago. And that's the way ideally the collaboration happens, 'cause they see things that are needed and you both are on the same page.
