Working with theatrical consultants Bill Connor & Associates as well as Philips Strand Lighting aauthorized dealer StageLight, Rigdon was tasked with creating a more intimate relationship between the audience and the actors on stage, and he did so using 68 Showline SL PAR 155 ZOOM LED luminaires.
"During the renovation, we actually changed the configuration of the theatre which created two zones of house lighting, said Rigdon. "We were committed to using LED lighting technology for the power consumption and heat advantages, but also because a lot of these fixtures would now be at heights that would make them inaccessible for changing bulbs. The fixtures had to have quality colour consistency, color rendering capabilities, plus a nice dimming curve and we found all of this using the Showline SL PAR 155 ZOOM LED luminaires."
He continued, "When we started looking at all the available LED house light options from various manufacturers, we did a traditional shoot-out at the theatre, but nothing really caught our attention on the first pass," continued Rigdon. "Afterwards, I brought over a Philips Selecon PLFRESNEL1 LED fixture from the University of Houston, and we loved its dimming curve and colour quality, but we also got excited about the colour-changing possibilities as well.
"We then decided to do another shoot-out using LED PAR fixtures and the SL PAR 155 ZOOM had the best colour rendering and white output, plus we gained the efficiency of having a zoom fixture without having to change lenses."
Now that the renovation is complete, the Hubbard Theatre recently opened to the public with the production of One Man, Two Guvnors.
"In designing a theatre space, you want it to be as flexible as possible for the different productions," concluded Rigdon. "To me, the ability to subtlety or not so subtlety change the colour in the house is an enormous benefit and extremely valuable. By enhancing the architecture and aesthetics of the space with the house lighting, we were able to retain the heart of the Alley Theatre while making it even more visually appealing at the same time."
(Jim Evans)
