In 1924 Thomas G. Moses wrote, “Some small work has filled in very nicely. We secured the contract for my old hometown theatre.” Moses was referring to the Illini Theatre in Sterling, Illinois. The 1,200-seat venue was a combination house, built by George Greenough and W. A. Weeks. Moses & Megan delivered both fabric draperies and painted curtains, each now considered necessary for venues featuring both live entertainment and film. This project was secured and completed while Moses and Fred R. Megan were waiting to purchase the Sosman & Landis name.
From the “Sterling Daily Gazette,” 10 March 1924.
On March 19, 1924, The “Sterling Daily Gazette” described the stage of the new theater. The article reported, “The stage, 28 feet deep and 52 feet wide, an arch opening which is 30 feet wide. The stage is equipped with appropriate drops to harmonize with the color and decorative scheme of the theater. The asbestos curtain is plain but for the letter “L.” Back of that are beautiful tobacco brown velour drapes which operate on tracks so that they may be gathered back in drape effect. Furnishing an outline setting for the silver picture screen is a lavender and gold drape of sateen. An advertising olio curtain, a wood scene and the usual interior and exterior boarders are included in the stage drops. All of the curtains were designed and furnished by Tom Moses of the firm Moses and Megan. Mr. Moses is a former Sterling resident and has many friends among the older citizens.”
From the “Sterling Daly Gazette,” 10 March 1924.
After a brief nod to the scenic elements, the article described the new “beautiful lighting effects” at the Illini Theatre. The article continued, “The lighting effects comprise a tribute to the highest genius of electrical science. It is doubtful if Fairyland with its pale, delicate hues – the pinks and purples, the reds and yawning yellows, balmy blues and gentle greens of the most resplendent imaginative array – could be more adequately illuminated to reveal its hidden charm. An ingenious system of lighting operated by a new type of remote-controlled switchboard and cleverly adjusted dimmers, whose levers may be operated with piano touch, is the source of the subtle brilliance in the reflector boxes under the organ screen on both sides of the proscenium arch and throughout the auditorium. The seven primal colors of the rainbow may be blended and diffused by this artful scheme to suit the whims of the picture upon the screen, with unerring faithfulness to plot suggestion. There can be pink dawns, golden noons and purple twilights, bleak breaks-o’-day, cheerless noontimes and drab sunfalls, sombre nights shot with silvery moonlight; yellow hazes simmering in the summer in the summer sun; mountain blues and grey flecked with snowy whites, the vital greens of meadow and hillside, the pinks of rose and the red glows of pulsating life whichever the theme of the picture suggests.”
From the “Sterling Daily Gazette,” 12 June 1924, page 2.From the “Sterling Daily Gazette,” 24 May 1924, page 2.From the “Sterling Daily Gazette,” 10 June 1924, page 2.
In 1914, Thomas G. Moses wrote,
“Did a spectacle set for the Stanley, Philadelphia. I went with it, and spent a whole week with
it. Got some good lighting effects. Kleigel [sic.] came on from New York to do
it.”
In 1914, the “Kliegl Bros.” were advertised as “the greatest
experts in their line in this country” (The Indiana Gazette, 1 Dec. 1914, page
1). The brothers had worked their way up
from employees in a factory that manufactured electric arc lamps, to
establishing their own company in 1896 – Universal Electric Stage Lighting Co.
Much has been written about their early history, but here is a link to some of
their patents: https://klieglbros.com/patents/default.htm
In addition to being marketed as the famous duo, “Herr Kleigl” was mentioned in newspapers for his design of special effects for stage spectacles. It remains uncertain whether “Herr Kliegl” was Anton T. or his brother Johann “John” H. My gut instinct says it was Anton.
Anton Kliegl
Regardless, newspapers claimed that “Herr Kliegl” created a specific effect for Al G. Field’s Minstrel Show in 1914. That year Field’s touring production included “sumptuous stage pictures” and “mammoth pictorial presentations” featuring four unique spectacles (Pensacola News Journal, 18 Oct, 1914, page 12). The four spectacles were “The Birth of Minstrelsy,” “Minnie Ha Ha,” “The Land of the Midnight Sun” and the “Panama Pacific Exposition.” The lighting effects for “The Land of the Midnight Sun” were credited to Herr Kliegl and described in great detail.
Al G. Field’s Minstrel Show“The Land of the Midnight Sun” featured lighting effects designed by Herr Kliegl in 1914. From the “Port Star,” (Glen Falls, NY,) 13 Feb 1915, page 8.Advertisement noting the special effects designed by Kliegl for the 1914 show, from the “Jackson Daily News,” (Jackson, Mississippi) 26 Oct. 1914, page 80.
Alfred Griffin Hatfield was the namesake of the touring
minstrel show, going by both Al G. Field and Al G. Fields by the early
twentieth century. Hatfield was born in Leesburg, Virginia, between 1848 and
1850; surprisingly, the date varies in many historical records. The man led an
exciting life and traveled extensively as he made a name for himself in the
beginning. Hatfield first appeared on stage at Jeffries Hall in Brownsville,
Pennsylvania. It was early in 1871, and his black-face portrayal of “Handy
Andy” caught the attention of Sam Sharpley. Sharpley was a well-known member of
Sharpley, Sheridan, Mack and Day’s Minstrels. Hatfield began performing with
the group by the winter of 1871, and his career took off. Later shows included Bidwell
and McDonough’s “Black Crook” Company, Tony Denier’s “Humpty Dumpty,” Haverly’s
“Blackbird’s of a Nation,” the California Minstrels, and Simmon’s and Slocum’s
Minstrels, Duprez and Benedict’s Minstrels.
By 1884, he organized his own show in Peru, Indiana; a
popular company that became known as the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus. He remained
with the group until 1886 when he established the Al G. Field’s Minstrels. Later
in life, Fields claimed that his minstrel show was the first to carry their
entire stage setting and scenery, as well as being the first to operate their
own special train of cars. For more information pertaining to Field, see “Monarch
of Minstrelsy, from “Daddy” Rice to Date” by Edward Le Roy Rice (1911). Here is
the link: https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=rRc5AAAAIAAJ&hl=en&pg=GBS.PP10
By 1910, the Al C. Field
Minstrels company was incorporated and continued to expand their offerings,
producing increasingly elaborate shows each year. In 1914, the “Jackson Daily
News” advertised, “Al G. Field, the dean of minstrelsy, is the one minstrel
manager who dares invited the public to accept the past as a criterion of the
present, and hence the slogan of the Al G. Field Minstrels this season is
‘Twenty-ninth Successful Year.’ Likewise the annual guarantee is given
‘everything new this year.’(Jackson, Mississippi, 26 Oct, 1914, page 80).
The article continued to
describe “The Land of the Midnight Sun” reporting, “it is conceded to be the
most elaborate and impressive effort ever undertaken in a minstrel production.
The spectator beholds the Arctic north, with its seemingly boundless reaches of
ice, snow, and sea – all opalescent with every hue, color and tone from the
reflection of the sun, moon and stars. This evolves into the transformation
picture, ‘The Aurora Borealis,’ when this magnificent phenomenon of nature is
shown so realistically as to transport the audience. These wonderful scenes
accompany a travesty skit, which introduces old Doc Cook, the North Pole, a
Polar bear, cleverly acted by Henry Neiser, the Esquimaux, the seals, ice floes,
bottomless well, and other Arctic features that accentuate the comedy
situation.”
In 1914, the “Charlotte News” further
described the “Land of the Midnight Sun:” “The Arctic regions, with the sun
sinking behind the polar mountains of ice and snow, and yet illuminating all by
a reflected iridescence. Then is beheld the gorgeous phenomenon of the Aurora
Borealis with its irradiation of dazzling contrasted colors. Never before has
it been possible to project separate colors so as to give a representation of
this magnificent rainbow-like phenomenon. The device by which it is
accomplished is the invention of Herr Kliegl and he worked for over four years
before perfecting it. The exclusive rights to the stage use have been secured
by Al G. Field, and the spectacle can only be seen in connection with his
minstrel show. The scenery and effects employed in displaying this novelty are
of the most elaborate and expensive, and the combined results are among the
sensational surprises of the year. In starting work, Herr Kliegl had no
detailed scientific analysis of the real Aurora Borealis upon which to base his
experiments. Even today, the scientists have not fathomed the actual richness
by which the real Aurora Borealis is produced. They are all agreed that it is
caused by some kind of an electrical discharge in the atmosphere. This in turn
is brought about by a magnetic influence emanating from the sun. When the
particles of the earth’s atmosphere are thus charged magnetically, the
electrolyzation causes such an arrangement of the light rays that many of the
spectrum colors are visible. Thus it is that the crimson and gold, apple green,
sea blue, violet, purple haze, mellow yellow and azure blue, form magnificent
color arch, or band, or corona, or curtain that is known as Aurora Borealis. This
phenomenon is not visible to the people of this country very often. Here to see
it accurately reproduced in the theatre is a rare opportunity for the present
generation when it can acquaint itself with one of nature’s grandest and most
imposing spectacles” (10 Sept, 1914, page 7).
I would give anything for a time
machine right now and see the show.
The “Wilmington Morning Star” also
reported, “No invention of a mechanical device for realistic, beautiful stage
effects has aroused more interest and discussion than the one which creates the
awesome gorgeousness of the Aurora
Borealis, as pictured in the performance of The Al G. Field Minstrels. Just as
the tread mill device by Neil Borgess for the horse race in ‘The Country Fair’
made possible the one employed in ‘Ben Hur,’ so this new lighting contrivance
controlled exclusively by Al G. Filed, promises a revolution along lighting
lines. This is true because it enables the projectment [sic.] of separate
colors. The invention is the work of Herr Kliegl. Prior to his endeavor, little
had been done in trying to produce artificially the color sheen of the Aurora
Borealis. The most conspicuous experiment was that of German savant Kr
Birkland. [Dr. Kr Birkland was from Christiana, Norway, and he wrote about the
division of terrestrial magnetism, publishing his findings in 1911]. His
apparatus consisted of a vacuum vessel containing a magnetic atmosphere. A
partial Aurora Borealis effect was secured by sending electric currents through
the glass vessel to the magnetic sphere. With this elemental knowledge Herr
Kliegl evolved the present successful device. The Aurora Borealis is presented
in the number, “The Land of the Midnight Sun,” which shows the Arctic North,
with its sweep of ice and snow, indescribably brilliant from the reflection of
sun, moon and stars. This spectacle is only one of four, which the unrivaled
minstrel program of The Al G. Minstrels offers this season. The production is
at the Academy of Music tonight and seats are now selling at Woodall &
Sheppard’s” (28 Sept. 1914, page 6).
Other than one advertisement, I
have been unsuccessful in locating an image of the spectacle. However, the
Kliegl Bros. electrical effects called the “Aurora Borealis” in Julius Cahn’s
Official Theatrical Guide, 1912-1913 (page 38).
Note the “Aurora Borealis” effect offered in the ad. A year later, Kliegl designed an “Aurora Borealis” effect for Al G. Field’s Minstrel spectacle “The Land of the Midnight Sun.” Universal Electric Stage Lighting Co. advertisement in Cahn-Leighton’s Official Theatrical Guide, 1912-1913.
As for Field, he passed away in
1921, a victim of Bright’s disease. He bequeathed his show and a substantial
estate to brother Joseph E. Hatfield and relative Edward Conrad. Field was a
member of the Elks. Tomorrow I look at Kliegl’s Masonic affiliations.
A reporter from Chicago’s “Inter Ocean” interviewed
Walter Burridge on June 8, 1902 (page 42). His interview took place while Burridge
worked on the stage set for “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz;” the production opening
at the Grand Opera House. This is a great snapshot of information pertaining to
his approach to a design and the production process.
Walter Burridge, from the “Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 6 Sept. 1905, page 22.
“How Scenic Work is Done.
“How does the scene painter go to work on a new
production? “ Mr. Burridge smiled at this question. “I don’t known just how to
begin explaining,” he said. “There are so many details that it is a hard matter
to explain. Suppose, however, that a manager tells me he has decided to produce
a play or opera or a description of the scenes furnished by the author. In such
a lay-out there is a detailed write-up of the action, as to whether a character
enters through a door and jumps over a cliff. These points are called the
practical notes, the artist making a careful study of the play and noting all
the important points, action, and locality, the period, time of day, etc.
“If possible the studies are made on the ground, and
should the scene be laid in the present time and in a place easily accessible
to the artist he obtains photographs and makes studies and sketches. When Mr.
Hamlin put on “Arizona,” three summers ago at the Grand he sent Frederick
Remington and myself to Aravalpa valley, and a delightful pilgrimage we had,
positively one of the most enjoyable artistic experiences in my artistic
career.
“In the case of “The Wizard of Oz,” however, the story is
laid in fairyland, so I am obliged to draw from my imagination for the scenes
to fit the action of the play. First of all I make a ground plan of each act
and the separate scenes, drawing a diagram on a scale of one-inch to the foot.
On this scale I draw the different parts of the scenes on cardboard, finishing
the model in watercolor, pastel, charcoal, or sometimes simply in pencil. When
the different parts are ready and cut out they are fitted and glued together
upon the line of the ground plan upon a miniature stage, the front of which is
modeled in shape like a proscenium opening of a theater. The model is a reduced
copy of the stage setting, so that one realizes the relative proportions in
color and composition.
“At the Paris Exposition, the scene model exhibit was one
of the features of the fair, being a picture history of the theater in France
for a hundred years. The creation of the scene and the model is one of the most
interesting of the many processes that constitute the scene painter’s art. The
uninitiated in the theatrical world would be surprised to see the odds and ends
used in the make-up of a model – glue, pieces of coal, clay, plaster of Paris,
sticks, wire, gauze, muslin, and colored gelatins. In one of the scenes of “The
Wizard of Oz,” the entire depth of the stage will be used to represent the
approach to the throne room of the Wizard, and it will be lighted with hundreds
of illuminated globes. In making my model I was obliged to use small pearls to
indicate the globes. The time spent with the models pays in the end. With a
complete model one thoroughly understands the practicalities of the scene, its
color, lighting, etc., and changes are easy to make. To re-make and alter the
scene proper, however, would entail an enormous amount of expense.
“After my models have been approved they were given to
the master carpenter who superintends their construction, builds the scenes and
delivers them to the artist to be painted. The different sections of scenery
are taken from the carpenter shop to the paint-room or ‘bridge.’ The paint
frame I am now using is the largest in this country. It is seventy-five feet
long and forty feet high, and it is lowered and raised by water power along the
rear wall of the stage of the Auditorium. The carpenter attaches to this frame
the different portions of scenery to be painted. Drops are tacked on the paint
frame, which are then raised to a level with the paint bridge floor. The
assistants then ‘prime’ a canvas with a coating of glue and whiting, and
artists begin work with charcoal placed in a crayon-holder on the end of a
stick, observing the proportions as they appear in the model. The artist, as a
rule, paints by daylight, so he must make allowance for the effect of
artificial light on his colors. He must make his tones stronger because the calcium
and footlights invariably bleach them out, and when a daylight effect is called
for of a moonlight one he must allow for the lighting-up of the scene as the
time and action differ in each set or scene. “Yellow or amber light dominates
the daylight effects; blue is the tone for moonlights-green is used by some,
but I prefer blue, as experience has taught me that a green tone tends to make
the faces of the characters appear ghastly.”
I have been exploring the lighting specified for Scottish Rite stages during the first decade of the 20th century. Another example of a Scottish Rite stage using white red and green lights was Fort Scott, Kansas. The Fort Scott Tribune and the Fort Scott Monitor published an article on April 30, 1904 describing the opening of the Scottish Rite Cathedral and dedication ceremony.
Postcard depicting the 1904 Fort Scott Scottish RIte
Bestor G. Brown, Past Grand Master for the state of Kansas, gave an address during the event. Nespapers reported, “He made a fine impromptu talk which reflected great credit on his ability as an entertainer. He amused the audience and kept the guests in good humor all the time. In addition to his princely proclivities in this respect Mr. Brown is an orator and has a fine command of English.
“A Temple of Liberty.
Scottish Rite Cathedral Dedicated Last Night.
Fitting Ceremonies.
Hundred of People in Evening Dress Astonished at Magnificence of Structure and Furnishing.
The Scottish Rite Cathedral, the existence of which is due largely to the unceasing efforts of the officer of the Scottish Rite bodies and the members at large, was fittingly dedicated last night. The services were impressive and the program carried out consisted of a couple of impromptu addresses by members of the Consistory and several musical selections, all of which was hugely enjoyed. The door of the cathedral for the reception that preceded the short program opened at 8 o’clock and the scene that was afforded by the hundreds of guests that crowded into the spacious building was one of attractiveness, and everybody was so surprised at the luxury that predominated and was seen at every nook and corner and all expressed delight and congratulations for so magnificent a place. The dining room and kitchen, which apartments are in the south wing of the third floor of the building, and also the small lodge room on the second floor and in the back part of the north wing were not completed and consequently was not furnished, but the principal parts of the cathedral wer e furnished in elaborate style. The parlor, lobby, ant-roooms, and the main auditorium were carpetd with fine velvet carpet of exquisite pattern. The stage and scenery was the delight of all. Never did the people of Fort Scott suspect that such finery could be crowded into a place like the Rite cathedral, but all know the members of these bodies. Nothing is too good for them and never do they do things in halves. The decorations in the auditorium are simply fine. The hall is finished in white and gold with panel sides and the walls and ceiling are studded with rows of incandescent lights, surrounded with individual mirrors. On either side of te auditorium near the stage there are two imitation boxes, and while one of these is used for the music room the other is simply there to complete the architectural beauty. The balcny is one of the nice features of the auditorium. It has a large seating capacity and this, together with the auditorium, was jammed with humanity. When the auditorium is lighted up the scene is a rare one. Of the guests that were present last night from out of this city all expressed themselves most forcibly on the arrangement of the cathedral. To some extent the hall was patterned after the Little Rock cathedral, which is one of the finest in America. The magnitude is not so great but the arrangement and decorations are as fine.
The scenery which was installed at a cost of several thousand dollars, is the finest in the west beyond all question. The electrical effects are even greated and this arrangement was the work of Freeman Martin, who wired the building. The lights used on the stage are white, red and green and the effect is caused by their use is most brilliant to the eye. During the program last evening a half dozen scenes were displayed to the audience, and they excelled in effect and grandeur even the best opera houses in Kansas City and St Louis. Over 400 lights are used on the stage. All of the curtains are drops and this is not only more convenient than the slide scenes but is more satisfactory in other respects. The scene of hades was elaborate.”
The original Hades scene for the Fort Scott Scottish Rite was enlarged for their second stage.
Detail of 1904 Hades drop for the Fort Scott Scottish Rite
On the eve of the Scottish Rite Cathedral dedication, a Mr. C. E. Benton gave a brief history of the Fort Scott Scottish Rite Bodies. He explained that the Fort Scott Consistory had only been established six years prior to the building. Those instrumental in getting a permanent home of the Fort Scott Scottish Rite bodies included Dr. C. A. Van Velzer and Joe Liepman. The current building was purchased for $20,000 by the Scottish Rite Association in Fort Scott. $40,000 was spent remodeling the hall after the purchase.
The newspaper reported, “He stated that the temple of all that is good and noble, the temple of justice and liberty and brotherly love would stand after we are dead; our children’s children are dead, as a school for Masonry. In closing he stated that the cathedral is a credit to the city and state and everybody should well feel proud of the undertaking.”
The building was home to the Scotttish Rte for only two decades. Grander plans began and the final Scottish Rite home was planned and constructed from 1924-1925. Again Thomas G. Moses of Sosman & Landis provided the scenery. The old scenery was returned on credit for the purchses of a new collection. However, a few scenes were reerved and enlarged for the new stage. One of the refurbished scenes was the scene of hades that the newspaper described as “elaborate.”
Part 690: Proper Lighting for Scottish Rite Stages
In 1881, The Building News included the article “Art on the Stage.” A small section addressed the scenic artist’s involvement with lighting at the time:
“The last thing that the scene-painter does before the production of a new play is to have his scenes set upon the stage at night in order that he can arrange the lighting of them. The “gas-man” of a theatre is the artist’s mainstay. It lies in his power to ruin the finest scene that was ever painted. Ground lights turned too high upon a moonlight scene, calciums with glass not properly tinted, or the shadow of a straight edged border-drop thrown across a delicate sky – all these things are ruin to the artist’s most careful work. The proper lighting of a scene is, therefore, a matter that requires the most careful study. The artist sits in the centre of the auditorium and minutely observes every nook and comer of his scene under the glare of gas. Here a light is turned up and there one is lowered until the proper effect is secured. The gas-man takes careful note of his directions, and the stage-manager oversees everything. Long after the audience has left the theatre on the night before the production of a new play, the stage-hands, the artist, and the stage manager are at work, and the public sees only the charming result of their labours when the curtain rises on the next night.”
Over three decades later, electric border lights and other lighting instruments replaced their gas predecessors. In 1913, Bestor G. Brown, western sales manager for M. C. Lieelley & Co., wrote a letter to William G. Bell at the Austin Scottish Rite about the proper way to light a Scottish Rite stage. He cited the recently installed lighting system at the Santa Fe Scottish Rite installed the year before. Brown described the electric border lights:
“Each border ought to be hung the same way as we hang our scenery, on counterweighted cable; it requires a little larger counterweight frame for these border rows on account of the weight. We ordinarily install the border rows where we furnish the fixtures, at the time we install the scenery.”
A stage lighting pamphlet was created by M. C. Lilley during the early twentieth century to identify the recommended lighting equipment for Scottish Rite stages. The equipment for a Scottish Rite stage was classified as border lights, ground rows, floor pockets, strip lights, bunch lights, arc lights, dimmer plant and switch board. M. C. Lilley & Co. offered either three-color or four-color options for border, strip lights and ground rows.
Of the colors, a three-color system for the Scottish stages recommended by M. C. Lilley & Co. included white, red and green. In the case of their four-color systems, the company recommended white, red, blue and amber. Around this same time, the increased use of amber was noted by scenic artist Ernest Albert. In 1913, Albert addressed appropriate lighting colors for the stage. It was in an interview with “The New York Dramatic Mirror,” He commented, “we are now avoiding many of the hard qualities of the electric light by greater use of ambers, straw colors, and pinks.”
Border lights at the Yankon Scottish RIte
Border lights at the Yankton Scottish Rite
Border lights at the Austin Scottish Rite
Border lights at the Deadwood Scottish Rite
Border lights at the Grand Forks Scottish Rite
The M. C. Lilley pamphlet also noted the additional expense incurred by a four-color light system
noting, “The incorporation of the fourth color not only increases the size of the fixtures, but materially increases the expense. For the majority of Masonic stages, the three color lights are found to be ample.” That being said, the three-color systems of white, red and blue appear to be visually more successful, for the night scenes.
For a stage depth of thirty feet, six border rows were recommended, with each border measuring the same length as the proscenium width. Similarly, there would be a minimum of six ground rows, each measuring four feet long.
Reflections about Scottish Rite Scenery, Spatter and Lighting
For some artists, the use of spatter is always the final step in painting every backdrop. Shaking a brush to scatter little dots of warm and cool colors throughout the painting completes the composition. This was not a common technique before the 1920s.
Spatter is used for a variety reasons. It can break up solid areas in a setting and provide texture. It can help shape and define objects such as tree trunks, interior walls, draperies, meadows and the exterior of buildings. It may suggest atmospheric conditions, such as rays of light emanating from clouds overhead or a hazy landscape.
Spatter used to enhance the distance of the landscape. Detail of Scottish Rite drop in Joplin, Missouri.
Spatter used to enhance the distance of the landscape. Detail of Scottish Rite drop in Joplin, Missouri.
Spatter used to create texture for painted drapery. Scene from the Joplin Scottish Rite.
Spatter used to create texture on tree trunk. Scene from the Scottish Rite in Joplin, Missouri
Cool spatter used to reflect the cool lighting conditions in a crypt scene. Scene fromt the Joplin Scottish Rite.
Orange and blue spatter used in forest scene at the Scottish Rite in Hastings, Nebraska.
Sometimes, it is intended to help the composition, anticipating the possibility of a poor lighting design. As many of us know, certain light colors can “kill” portions of a painted scene, sapping the life out of the color. Spatter is a way to resuscitate a scene when poorly lit with an inappropriate color choice. Some individuals in charge of lighting a historic scene may not be familiar with the demands of two-dimensional settings and let one color dominate their palette – green for forests, red for hades. Proper lighting that mixes a few colors can make backdrops appear as magical and transformative. Uninformed choices in regard to color and intensity will make a backdrop static and lifeless. I have walked into many Scottish Rite buildings where the lighting fails to show the potential of what is possible on stage; the backdrops are lit with whatever color is predominant in the scene. Lighting is an important aspect of Scottish Rite degree productions as the scenes were designed with specific scenic illusions in mind and specific lighting. Often the border lights are red, blue and white. When more colors have been added in contemporary systems, they are seldom balanced to enhance the painted settings.
The Masonic stage crew often does not realize that there are transparent and translucent sections in painted compositions, intended for surprise revelations or the magical appearance of a hidden object or message. In some instances beautiful woodland scenes have the ability to depict brilliant sunsets, and this scenic effect has been forgotten over the decades. Stained glass windows in cathedrals will glow, enhancing the setting for a degree. Many Scottish Rite stage crews no longer realize the potential for each painted setting as a lot of the backdrops are no longer used during a reunion. Declining membership, shrinking stage crews, and the loss of backstage “memory” are all factors that now conceal these popular visual effects.
As Scottish Rite theaters continue to upgrade their lighting systems, some theatre consultants and system installers fail to understand that potential of historical backdrops and their lighting needs for degree productions; borders lights are replaced with a few individual lighting instruments. Clients are promised that the actors will be more visible with modern lighting, yet the painted illusion becomes collateral damage. Some of the new lighting systems for Scottish Rite stages have destroyed the historical aesthetic of the venue when the primary focus is redirected to the sole illumination of the actor – not the stage picture. Instead of placing an character within a scene as part of a unified whole, the performer is now placed in the midst of unevenly lit stage pictures that appear flat and unrealistic. The magic is disappearing.
The Hastings Scottish Rite was one just example of how a new lighting system was designed and installed for a historic venue without taking into an account that the purpose of the stage and that majority of performances would use painted drops. Sadly, all of the painted scenery now shows a series of “hot spots” across the top, accentuating wrinkles and other flaws on the painted surface. The previous border lights that provided a general wash over the painted surface were replaced with instruments that were not intended to illuminate large-scale paintings.
Border lights at the Santa Fe Scottish Rite. The system originally included blue, red and white lights. When a new system was installed in the 1930s, the new lamp colors were red, green and white, making nighttime scenes difficult to stage. The lights now hav an haphazard mix of red, green, blue and white lights.
Traditional border lights above a Scottish Rite stage in Madison, Wisconsin. These were the standard way to light painted scenery, providing a general wash over the painted backdrops. Sometimes, there were also strip lights placed along the bottom of each scene too.
The new lighting system for the Scottish Rite stage in Hastings, Nebraska, that replaced the original border lights.
The new lighting system at the Scottish Rite in Hastings, Nebraska, does not light painted scenery without throwing “hot spots” on the composition. They have seventy lines and over forty historic backdrops.
Strip lights at the Santa Fe Scottish Rite. these were placed on the floor behind leg drops to illuminate the lower portion of painted backdrops upstage.
In terms of modern lighting systems in Scottish Rite theaters -the Scottish Rite scenes from the 1920s that incorporated spatter into the painting process do better than those without. However, there is only so much the scenic artist can do to protect a composition from poor lighting conditions.
