Robert Wilson & Light

Solo Theatre Report

Table of Contents
1. The theorist, the selected aspect/s theory and the contexts 1

2. Practical explorations, performance and production intentions and development of the

performance and production of the solo theatre piece 2

3. Evaluation of the solo theatre piece and the implications this has on my work in theatre 8
 1. The theorist, the selected aspect/s theory and the contexts
Robert Wilson is a highly influential and multi-talented figure in theatre, known for his roles as a
director, playwright, choreographer, designer, painter and sculptor. It is the combination of these
skills that aided the emergence of his unique, distinct artistic visions which “transcend theatrical
convention” (“Robert Wilson Biography”).

Wilson’s training as an architect provides the foundation of his understanding of light and space,
which helped in his early exploration of experimental scenic puppetry design in 1966 for
Jean-Claude Van Itallie’s ​America Hurrah! (Carlson 1). Wilson has collaborated with many other
artists; he is associated with the Brooklyn Academy of Music, where his second major production
The Life and Times of Sigmund Freud was performed, with ​Einstein On the Beach and ​Letter to A
Man among other productions (“Robert Wilson”). He has long “challenged the traditional visual
vocabulary” of theatre, distorting space and time and drawing heavily on dreams as a way to
distance himself from the realism of commercial theatre (Carlson 2).

Wilson’s innovation and aesthetic are heavily influenced by his family, for example, his deaf,
adopted son Raymond Andrews inspired Wilson to create ​Deafman Glance​, a piece where Wilson
highlighted imagery and visuals over words and text (Bennett). Wilson’s work with gesture and
movement is influenced by Japanese Noh theatre - he scales down each movement into its “simplest
form” (“Bob Wilson’s Theatre of Light”). His work generates pieces for the audience to combine
with their own interpretations and knowledge in order to create meaning, giving the audience “a
rich visual and aural experience, encouraging them to interpret and process that experience”
individually (Bennett).

The aspect I have chosen to focus on is Wilson’s use of light. In every scene, Wilson’s light “moves
across the stage” as an independent entity, becoming “an actor” (Bennett 19). He is meticulous and
precise with his design of lighting, taking considerable time to determine the precise colour,
intensity, timing and angle of each light, which he manipulates to alter and mold performance
spaces (The Byrd Hoffman Foundation 40). Actor David Warrilow describes Wilson’s light as
having “presence, weight, power”, occupying space and working with the actors on stage to create
theatrical presence (Cole 151). In Wilson’s own words: “All the rhythms of the lights and the
actions are calculated to the second, as in a score in which light, sound and action converge” (qtd. in
“Bob Wilson’s Theatre of Light”). This suggests Wilson’s light is defined by its tandem with other
theatrical elements.

When creating his theatre, Wilson’s first step to “discover” a performance space is to light it - he
does not begin creating with text, but rather explores how lighting changes the way a space can be
perceived (Wilson). Morey et al. describe Wilson’s light as a “visual libretto” for his directorial
process, giving the entire performance “structural function”, providing a foundation for the
movement of actors, the creation of atmospheres, driving plot and helping to guide the audience’s
gaze throughout a performance (48). Wilson’s light is frequently juxtaposed with the darkness
found within a performance space, with fluid chromatic palettes that work in harmony with the
actors on stage, who are “buoyed up” by light and colour (Morey et al. 54).

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 2. Practical explorations, performance and production intentions and development of the
performance and production of the solo theatre piece
Practical Explorations
Before exploring my chosen aspect of light, I had to learn how to use the equipment available to our
drama department. Much of my preliminary explorations thus involved exploring the opportunities
and limitations of the equipment I had available to me. I communicated with our school’s technical
team who taught me how to design and program cues into the lighting board in our drama
classroom.

I first experimented with colour - changing all six lights to the same hue, then blending colours
together from stage left to right (see fig. 1). I layered colours together to create jarring shadows and
shape combinations (see fig. 2). Wilson’s design of lighting “remodels” the body of the actors
(Morey et al. 54), making my classmates instrumental in the beginning stages of my explorations by
acting as placeholders, or helping me to take photos of myself.

Figure 1. Initial Colour Exploration (image taken by Figure 2. Shadow Exploration (image taken by student)
student)

After becoming confident in manipulating colour, I adjusted the positions of lights to create
different spaces within the room (see fig. 3). In keeping with Wilson’s theory: the greatest
possibility within his light stems from “the different textures, densities, atmospheres and the
appearance and disappearance of elements” interacting together (Morey et al. 57). I programmed the
lights (seen in fig. 1) to fade in and out at different times using the cue and playback functions on
the switchboard, paying attention to how the speed of the cue altered tension and atmosphere.

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 Figure 3. Space Manipulation Exploration (image taken by student)

For example, a pale green light layered with blue that faded in over 15 seconds made me feel
peaceful, as softly lit colours with cool tones have a calming effect. A sharp mix of red and orange
that immediately cut in felt more jarring and ominous due to the harsher nature of the warm colours.
Figures 4-9 highlight the variety and flexibility of light I was able to manipulate. Each of these
moments brought certain images, emotions or atmospheres to mind, which lead me to consider how
I could potentially control light in my final performance.

Light used to show contrast - the shadow of the stool is Light used to create setting - blue brings images of
made more evident by the pale spotlight layered with water to mind.
red.

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Light used to create mood - the actor’s isolation is Light used to define distinct spaces - a soft, warm
highlighted by the narrow beam of light on their body, space and a harsh, narrow space.
juxtaposed with overwhelming red surroundings.

Light used to invoke images - a moon immediately Light used to express emotion; a bubble of safety
comes to mind. around the actor - or perhaps a cage?

Figures 4-9. Lighting Explorations (all images taken by student)

While the majority of my practical explorations took place in the room seen above, I had to shift my
performance to our school’s auditorium prior to my draft performance due to technical difficulties
with the lights. The final staging of my performance was greatly impacted by the different lighting
equipment in both these areas - the auditorium had over 50 lights compared to the ten initially
available to me. Not only did my blocking become more spaced out to accommodate a wider stage,
I also was able to add cues that I couldn’t execute in the original space. The increased flexibility
given to me by the unexpected change in performance location allowed me to implement more
creative light combinations, as when the variety in lights paralleled the variety of change in
emotions, settings and atmospheres, I had better control over depicting these parts of Persephone’s
journey, allowing my piece to become more refined. The most significant lighting element that
changed was my portrayal of the emotion of “hope”: initially, I wanted a growing white light to
spread across the stage, beginning from a small pinprick and spiralling into brightness to symbolise

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Persephone’s returning hope. Instead of my original compromise of simply flooding the stage with
light, the auditorium allowed me to program spotlights that produced the growing pinprick effect.

Development of the Solo Theatre Piece & Performance Intentions

My explorations as evidenced above showed me how open-ended light truly is. Because of the
infinite lighting possibilities available to me, I had to set limits for myself, one of which was the
decision to create my piece based on a story that already existed. Robert Wilson often designs
lighting for existing operas or plays; for example ​Einstein on the Beach is an opera about the famed
scientist (Service). After discussions with my teacher, we agreed it would be beneficial to limit my
creative decision-making only to lighting and movement and not storyline.

I have always been drawn to Greek mythology and other fairy-tales, which contain poignant
elements of contrast and volatile emotion, involving battles between good and evil while depicting
fantastical, other-worldly settings. I thought choosing a Greek myth would enable me to showcase
the diversity of my lighting explorations, particularly by using light to juxtapose with darkness, to
demonstrate a character’s rapidly changing emotional journey, or to represent mythical settings like
the Underworld or Olympus. I discussed several myths with my peer mentor, notably the myths of
Pandora’s box and the journey of Persephone - the Greek goddess of spring - to the Underworld, as
both these myths have clear binaries of good, evil and spikes in emotional intensity. My mentor
guided my thoughts about which myth had the most opportunity to showcase my lighting,
ultimately leading to my selection of the journey of Persephone as my storyline, as I felt I would be
able to effectively manipulate a wider variety of light to show her character development. My initial
intention was therefore “to highlight the changes in physical and emotional setting that occur in the
Greek myth of Persephone.”

One of the greatest obstacles I experienced during the creation process was devising movement. I
am not particularly confident with creating movement spontaneously, and although I knew my
storyline, I was struggling to link movement with my light to tell my story. Feedback from my
mentor was invaluable, as she constantly reminded me that the focus of my performance was “not
the movement, but how to elevate light” - this led me to only consider devising movements that
prioritised simplicity and naturalism over being abstract and representational, as the sole purpose
for these movements was to elevate my designed lighting. As a result, my final movements and
physicality included the repetition of several uncomplicated gestures, as they were the minimum
needed to convey the progression of characters through different settings.

Feedback I received from my peers after my draft performance was that they didn’t fully understand
the storyline of the myth, nor the different characters I was trying to convey. I was initially very
focused on communicating shifts between three major characters in the myth, as well as
Persephone’s journey from being carefree, to trapped, to free and balanced. My teacher suggested
that the audience doesn’t “need to fully understand your story” and that instead my concentration
should be “on your light”. This made me question whether my audience needed to fully
comprehend the myth at all. Wilson uses light to guide the audience “to see and listen to the scene
[...] without presupposing a prior space-time” (Morey et al. 57), implying that full comprehension
of the plot’s context is not necessary when it comes to Wilson’s light. Thus, I chose to focus on

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elevating the emotions and atmospheres present within this myth, rather than conveying concrete
plot points, which influenced the subsequent adjustments I made to my lighting and movements.
My light had to move independently across the stage, creating atmosphere using only sound and my
physicality to tell the story. My new artistic intention evolved to the following: “to fuse the physical
settings, vivid emotions and striking atmospheres contained within the Greek myth of Persephone,
and impart them on audiences using using a diverse range light”.

The role this feedback and my new intention played in shaping my performance can be seen in the
“temptation” scene (4:40-6:10 in the video). When devising this scene, I focused on identifying key
emotions that Persephone would undergo: internal conflict, curiosity and temptation. My lighting
clearly reflects the growing tension and desire Persephone experiences during the scene - the hue
and intensity of the light becomes more saturated and intense as the moment progresses (see figs.
10-15).

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Figures 10-15. Temptation (taken from video recording)

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 3. Evaluation of the solo theatre piece and the implications this has on my work in theatre
Evaluation of the Solo Theatre Piece
Artistic intention: to fuse the physical settings, vivid emotions and striking atmospheres contained
within the Greek myth of Persephone, and impart them on audiences using a diverse range of light.

Strengths of Piece
A highlight of my performance was when the stage is bathed in red (3:21-3:43) and a sliver of white
spotlight illuminates my shadow on the cyclorama behind me (see fig. 16). One audience member
said “I actually watched your shadow more than I watched you [...] that image that was more
powerful.” From a directorial standpoint, it was my intention that my audience would focus on the
way my shadow interacted with the edge of the spotlight, meaning my manipulation of light and
shadow was successful in this moment. When Wilson creates light, “the shadows that are at times
cast by the actors’ bodies assume a life of their own, they are presences that accompany the body”
(Morey et al. 54). This description of Wilson’s light aligns very well with the feedback I was given
from my peers, clearly indicating my control over my aspect and the ability of my piece to draw the
audience’s eye to moments of tension and vivid emotion.

Figure 16. Shadows With A Life of Their Own (taken from video recording)

The audience appreciated my physicality and facial expression within this moment as well,
commenting: “your emotions on your face [were] exaggerated [...] [to] the perfect point” For this
particular individual, my actions worked in harmony with light to elevate the story I was telling,
making it “much more clear”. This feedback clearly fulfils the part of my intention relating to
conveying vivid emotions.

Sound was another key element addressed consistently in the talkback, with one person saying
music “[enhanced] telling us where you were”. The “cold” scene where Persephone’s mother
mourns the loss of her daughter to the Underworld was referred to by multiple audience members
(see fig. 17). Not only did I light the space with varying shades of blue light, I also chose to include
ambient sound in the form of the wild, howling winds of a blizzard to denote setting. My audience
felt “immersed” in my performance, stating that: “the blue and those sounds [made me feel] cold
watching it,”; the fact that my audience was able to experience such feelings despite no actual
temperature changes demonstrates the effective, harmonious balance I struck between light, sound

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and action, fulfilling my intention of imparting vivid emotions and communicating physical setting
with light.

Figure 17. Cold (taken from video recording)

Another person referred to the scene in Figure 18 when red light slowly floods the stage and an
eerie rumbling crescendos, signalling the arrival of Hades, God of the Underworld: “I felt scared for
you, for me, and for everyone [...] with the scary music that was going on”, demonstrating how my
selection of sound that complimented my lights was able to impart intense emotion within the
audience. Referring to the same scene, another peer said “I could feel the ground shaking; I felt like
I was you [...] It was really empowering”, adding that she felt she was truly “immersed in the story
with you”. This ultimately contributes to achieving my intention of conveying the emotions,
atmosphere and settings of my chosen storyline.

Figure 18. Hades’ Arrival (taken from video recording)

Weaknesses of Piece
An area where my piece could be improved would be the clarity of abstract scenes and emotions.
Moments where I chose to have the lighting represent more abstract concepts like childhood and
innocence, particularly toward the beginning (see fig. 19), were not noticed as much in the audience
feedback. This could be because a specific setting wasn’t pinpointed within the performance, thus
making the emotion and context behind the colours more difficult to comprehend. One audience
member did comment that there was a “sense of wonder” about my whole piece, particularly the
moment seen in Figure 13. This limits the extent to which my intentions were met, as “wonder” was

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not the primary emotion I wanted the audience to experience, rather it was one of several. This
means some of the audience did not fully experience or immerse in the entire spectrum of setting,
emotion and atmosphere I was trying to convey, presenting a one-dimensional experience of my
performance.

Figure 19. Persephone as a Child (taken from video recording)

Another subtle cue that I designed that was not commented on by the audience occurs at the end of
my piece (7:36-7:46) (see fig. 20). In the myth, Persephone and Hades strike a deal where she is
allowed to return to Earth from the Underworld for certain months of the year. I attempted to show
this balance and return of order and calm through a faint red light that seeped in slowly at the edges
of the stage. It was meant to echo the intense red light in Figure 18, but represent equilibrium
through the change in hue intensity. However, as no comment was made about this final moment, I
can infer that it was not as impactful for my audience as some of my other moments, perhaps
because of the subtlety of the design.

Figure 20. Balance (taken from video recording)

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Implications For My Work in Theatre
Throughout the exploration of my aspect, my understanding of the importance of balance and
harmony between theatrical production elements has been reinforced. While past devised pieces
have hinted to me that technical elements can be used to enhance meaning and atmosphere in
theatre, it was my experimentation with blending visual and auditory elements in my performance
to strongly reinforce setting and atmosphere that demonstrated how indispensable the harmony
between light and sound is.

I also learned the importance of setting boundaries for myself as a theatre maker. Previous
experiences, particularly my Collaborative Project, have demonstrated that I am most comfortable
with discussing stimulus in depth, prior to devising. However, I was forced to develop more agency
over my creative process during the Solo Theatre Piece, as I could not discuss lighting without
knowledge of the equipment, forcing me out of my comfort zone. Thus, during the devising
process, I often felt anxious or stressed when faced with the infinite possibilities of lighting design.
When I chose to only focus on devising light and movement, rather than an original storyline, I
created a boundary for myself that ultimately allowed me to place more creative focus on the
important aspects of my performance. In turn, this allowed me to realise that I don’t always need to
begin devising with lengthy discussions. I am now more capable and comfortable with practically
exploring ideas, as long as I set boundaries for myself.

Additionally, I now recognise the importance of being adaptable in unforeseen circumstances when
devising theatre. I had to overcome a great challenge where my original cues programmed into the
drama room equipment could not be used due to a switchboard malfunction. I had to be flexible and
communicate with our school’s theatre technicians to reprogram my lights, while also adjusting my
blocking to accomodate a new performance space. In the past, obstacles to the creative process like
having to re-block an entire piece have proved daunting to me. Through this experience, I have
acknowledged that flexibility actually allowed me to include more diverse lighting in my final
performance, which helped solidify my intentions of conveying varied emotions and settings in my
piece.

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