Drama 16 Stage Lighting

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THEME: Shadows

I love the contrast in this photo – not the visual contrast as in light and dark, but the inferred contrast. You see an adorable little puppy, trotting along, and then its shadow comes along and completely alters your opinion. It’s menacing, it’s vicious, like a werewolf or something out of a George R. R. Martin novel. The angle in which the light catches the animal is awkward and unsettling, elongating the legs to much more than their actual length. It also catches the wisps and tendrils of dog hair that stray from the body – that coupled with the extended teeth and jaw of the pup makes it look almost manic. You are distracted enough to easily forget that the animal is tethered, but are happily assured of its restraint by the shadow of the leash as well.

Tuesday 14 February, 2012 (any night, really)
My dorm room
Around 1:30 am

The blinds are down over our 9′-0″ x 4′-0″ window, slats pointed up. The orangeish-red of the lampposts outside and down seven stories gently furnishes our room. Faint stripes of orange are visible across the far upper wall and ceiling and the room is cast in a subtle orange glow mixed in with the dark of nighttime.

I’m reminded of just how awake I am this late at night. The room is never in the full black of night, the way the campus is never unlit. Artificial light seeps into every corner making it quite easy to move about when my roommate’s asleep, regardless of the vain attempt of sleep-worthy dark. The campus is never fully asleep, even when it’s inhabitants are. It can’t be to ensure a respectable amount of safety. In a way it’s comforting – nothing is ever unseen, hardly anything is missed. But for now all I can think is how my eyes are still open, fully adjusted to the dark, and I can still make out all the details of my shoe rack, vaguely tucked away into a corner. I wish I were asleep.