Lighting Designer
Catherine M. Pratt
Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow
University of Nevada, Las Vegas Dance Department and Youtube; April 2021
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-AXf7t-ER8
Photography: Louis Kavouras
Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow is the BFA showcase featuring choreography by students in the Dance Department.
"Ode" is a love letter to the art form of ballet that has withstood the test of time, to the greats, and to the world behind the curtain. Cool blue tones were the focus of the design, bringing out time and the journey the ballet art form has had through time.
"Sonder" is the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own, despite one's personal lack of awareness of it. The galaxy became the inspiration for the lighting. Each of us lives in our own vivid galaxy that is bigger and more connected to each other than we realize.
To have nothing, be nothing, wear nothing but skin: contorted, yearning, running, spineless was the concept behind "Spineless". An eclipse stood for the overarching motif. Each of us must dig into the depths of ourselves in order to come out brighter and more confident of ourselves. Purples and ambers connected this journey to the piece, leading us through the darkness into a brighter, new day.
"Command her Respect" took a present-day take on the rock n' roll era highlighting women finding their confidence and power through felinity and beauty. Reds, ambers, and blues brought out the rock n' roll aspect of the piece while highlighting the confidence and power we all have inside of us.
"Towards Becoming Dawn" highlights that hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness. Lighting focused on the contrast of saturated versus unsaturated colors. The lighter and less saturated tones have the power to brighten the surroundings. As saturation increases, color holds more influence over us and can darken our perception and surroundings.
Look Here!
Choreography: Elizabeth Adams
Lighting Design: Catherine M. Pratt
Photography: Louis Kavouras
In this piece, Adams wanted to focus on color psychology and how we are taught to relate colors to certain meanings and associations. Within the world of color, it assumes an identity that we can relate to ourselves. Adams also wanted to explore stripping away color before showing how overpowering color can be. In the end, she wanted red to become the dominant color, shifting the colors around it. A costume change was choreographed into the piece to show red taking over the other colors.
The lighting first started with down pools highlighting each color of the dancers’ costumes. This brought out the individual identity of each color before colors started to take over each other as dominant and recessive tones. In the first part of the piece, dynamic lighting shifts of colors on the back wall with changes in sidelight intensity highlighted the power color has over us. In a moment, color can shift how we perceive the environment. A blue background evoked a feeling of comfort. Yet, a second later, a red background brought forth aggression and heightened energy in the room.
With a music change in the middle of the piece, color was pulled from the space. White lighting filled the room to take away color, allowing the viewer to interpret the identities of the costume colors in various groupings. Yellow and green shared the stage before blue and lavender teamed up. As these small groups worked in various combinations, color was slowly added back, focusing on the dominant colors of the pair. Blue took over for a moment before red entered the space again. Red, symbolically the color that holds the most meanings and represents power, took over for the piece. Using the influence lighting can have over costumes, red dominated the space, slowly altering the other colors. To end, a costume change occurred, allowing all dancers to end in the color red to further drive home the change in identity and the power color can have over an environment.