Rory Giddings

Lighting Scene Breakdown for Billy Elliot:

The Hall:

• Warm wash

• One warm spot for big Davey.

The House:

• Spot on Billy’s bed

• Wash over the table

• Spot on the stove or oven

Boxing Class:

• Cold lighting wash

• Normal lighting

Dance Studio:

• Bright warm light lights

Songs:

The stars look down

• Bare stage with newsreel footage- no lighting

• Dark stage

• Light staging with possible follow spots

• In the hall – lower lighting – evening

• Spotlight on billy? Low when it’s just him

• Ensemble come in so a bit of light and faint blue wash

• Then lighting dims to Billy’s bedroom

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Shine

• Lighting goes up as ballet girls come in – light and warm

• A little blue was

• Spot light on Mrs Wilkinson and billy

• Dark lighting when they put the chairs away and bluer lighting and then It goes lighter

• Spotlight on billy too with the punch bag

• Dark when they all leave and just spotlight on Mrs Wilkinson and billy

• When the return with the fan, low blue and white wash

• Then pink and purple washes

• Then lights of and just spot on billy and Mrs Wilkinson and low wash

Shadow dance

• Spot lighting on billy and the occasional light- low wash

Grandma’s song

• Spotlight on billy and grandma

• Lighting dims and blue wash on the barman- low and dark

• Gets lighter and spotlight on grandma and billy

• Spotlight on the occasional man she danced with and then just he and billy and the blue wash light

• Finish with one spotlight on them

Blackout

Solidarity

• Dim lighting blue and white on the soldiers

• Lighter when the girls come in and spotlight on billy

• And then Debbie when she comes in

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• Spotlight on Mrs Wilkinson

Expressing yourself

• Spotlight on Billy and Michael

• Blue wash

• Lights on mirror

• Follow spot when they move

• Lighting then increases

• Blue and pink washes

• Few changes of lighting when they start tap dancing

• Then back to light - no colour

• Then follow spots on dresses and increased lighting

• Light warm colour when they are all dancing

The letter

• Low lighting and warm colours

• Spotlight on Billy and Mrs Wilkinson

• Then when the mum comes out spotlight on her and following her when she moves to Billy

• Increase lighting intensity after she leaves

Born to boogie

• Hall lighting to start off with

• Then as it gets more upbeat and the music comes on then lighting increases and warmer colours are introduced.

• Follow spotting on Mr Braithwaite Mrs Wilkinson and Billy the whole time

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Angry dance:

• One red spot

• Bright white wash

• Strobe on the red light

Merry Christmas Maggie

• First just hall lighting and then gradually going into Christmas colours- green and red- not to intense

• Ensemble so no individual spots for most of the song.

• Flashing lights?

• Ballet girls- spot light on them

• Back to warm colours

Deep into the ground

• Spotlight on Jackie and everywhere else dark

• For the whole song and possibly a lighter stage setting when the ensemble join in and fade out when they finish singing

• Then spotlight on Billy when he joins in – so just Billy and Jackie

He could be a star

• Spotlight on the person calling their names

• Just before he calls Jackie‘s name- spotlight

• Then gets darker and changes to where the gates are – spotlight on Tony before he speaks

• Background lights quite dark

• Then just spotlights on Tony and Jackie

• Warm colours when the ensemble join in and lighting on them but still spotlight on Jackie and Tony

Rory Giddings

Electricity:

• Spots on Billy when he is being talked too

• Spot on his dad too

• A few white spots and smoke on stage.

• A bit of blue wash.

Once we were kings

• Spots on him and Mrs Wilkinson

• The change to dark stage – no lighting (BLACKOUT)

• Just the torches on for the minors

• Spot on tony when he says goodbye to Billy

• Some lighting when they go down?

The letter- Reprise

• Just spots on Billy and his mum – warm background

• The only two things in focus

• Say goodbye to Michael- spot on him

The Finale

• Gradual increase of stage lighting

• Light colours – white

• Flashing lights?