Lighting[edit]

Wilson believes that, "The most important part of theatre" is light. [24]:121 He is concerned with
how images are defined onstage, and this is related to the light of an object or tableau. He
feels that the lighting design can really bring the production to life. The set designer for
Wilson's the CIVIL warS, Tom Kamm, describes his philosophy: "a set for Wilson is a
canvas for the light to hit like paint".[24]:121 He explains, "If you know how to light, you can
make shit look like gold. I paint, I build, I compose with light. Light is a magic wand". [24]:121
Wilson is "the only major director to get billing as a lighting designer" and is recognized by
some as "the greatest light artist of our time".[24]:122 He designs with light to be flowing rather
than an off-and-on pattern, thus making his lighting "like a musical score". [24]:123 Wilson's
lighting designs feature "dense, palpable textures" and allow "people and objects to leap
out from the background".[24]:123 In his design for Quartett, Wilson used four hundred light
cues in a span of only ninety minutes.[24]:122
He is a perfectionist, persisting to achieve every aspect of his vision. A fifteen-minute
monologue in Quartett took two days for him to light while a single hand gesture took nearly
three hours.[24]:126 This attention to detail expresses his conviction that, "light is the most
important actor on stage".[24]:128