Lighting the Stage, Amplifying Creativity

Lighting the Stage, Amplifying Creativity

New lighting in the Drama theatre

The Drama faculty are very excited to share some news that’s going to make a genuine difference to our drama students’ learning experiences. We’ve just installed a new cyclorama (backdrop) and three new spotlights in our theatre, and while that might sound like a simple equipment upgrade, the impact on what our students can actually achieve is significant. Students can now explore more advanced image and video projections and  theatrical lighting techniques. Students can spotlighting solo performers, creating dramatic contrast, building atmospheric layers that support their theatrical vision. They’re learning the same technical skills they’d encounter in professional theatre or if they pursue performing arts at tertiary level.

But beyond the technical side, there’s something deeper happening here. When students can fully realise their creative vision, when the lighting can actually do what they’ve imagined, it validates drama as serious, professional work. They’re not just “playing around”; they’re developing genuine technical theatre competencies.

The faculty have already noticed the difference in rehearsals. Students are experimenting more confidently, taking creative risks they wouldn’t have attempted before. That’s what our new lights do. They don’t just improve the final product; they transform how students engage with the learning process itself.

Mr Tom Coultas
Drama Coordinator

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