Lighting Design - Directing Thesis

Prior to starting work on any Columbia Theatre production, please make sure to read and understand the duties and stipulations for general design work at Columbia and the specific design area as detailed below.

General Information for All Design Disciplines

• The Theatre Program will only be responsible for department-approved designs that are received by their designated deadlines.
• Columbia property may not be altered without express permission.
• It is the responsibility of each designer to keep and fill out a comprehensive list of their items, categorizing everything by owner and location origin.
• There are no deliveries of purchased goods available on the weekends.
• All items purchased by the production budget are the property of Columbia University after the production.
• NYU designers need faculty permission from NYU to participate in Columbia SOA thesis productions.
• If a designer is going to be remote for all or most of the design process, their participation in the production must be approved by the relevant production staff to ensure that the designer’s in-person duties are adequately covered by a member of the production team. It is strongly recommended that designers be able to attend in-person rehearsals and meetings.
• A written and signed agreement indemnifying Columbia of liability must be provided for any items loaned to the production or borrowed for the production from sources outside Columbia.  This form is provided by the Production Manager.

Lighting Designer Responsibilities

1. Present at all Columbia Production Meetings
2. All drafting MUST be turned in on time in Vectorworks format. If you work in CAD, ACAD, Sketch-up, hand drafting or another form, you must convert this to Vectorworks before the Production Electrician will assess the design.
3. Working directly with the Production Electrician to realize lighting load-in and focus, as well as spec’ing of perishables and purchases.
4. Maintaining clear communication with Production Electrician throughout pre load-in and load-in process, responding to emails or other communication within a timely manner.
5. Source any purchases needed and send links/information to the Production Manager for payment.
6. Being present at scheduled Light Focus.
7. Being present for Lighting Write-Over rehearsal, the day before the first Technical Rehearsal (programmer provided).
8. Present at the entirety of all Technical Rehearsals/Dress Rehearsal to write light cues (programmer provided).
9. If any items were borrowed, the Lighting Designer must coordinate the return of items with Production Management and the Production Electrician prior to the last performance.
10. Designers are responsible for the transportation of their personal items.
11. Responsible for keeping a master list of their items – categorizing everything by owner and location origin.

Process / Resources

1. The drafted seating arrangement is the only approved seating for the 2026-27 school year (see Lenfest Center for the Arts Google Drive for drawings).
2. Lighting stock inventory is listed in the Lenfest Center for the Arts Google Drive.
3. For online orders (always preferred), send links with description of quantity, color, size, delivery preference, etc. directly to the Production Manager and Production Electrician.
4. A small amount of petty cash can be fronted for lighting purchases through the Producer - please see purchasing rules below.
5. The theater has a robust rep plot in place, which contains sufficient units (both LED and incandescent) for lighting washes in all of the theater’s playing areas. (Refer to the Lenfest Center for the Arts Google Drive for drawings and tech specs).
6. Units in the rep plot can be refocused/repurposed and gel can be swapped.
7. Units in the rep plot cannot be moved, struck, or re-channeled.
8. Added units, including set electrics, practicals, conventional units, and any special projects are possible with approval from the Production Electrician. Any additions must be able to be loaded in within the hours already scheduled for LX calls (typically, 5 hours are dedicated to overhead hangs and 5 hours are dedicated for all deck units/set electrics). If all additions are conventional lighting instruments, the maximum possible number of added units is 10; this number may be reduced if labor is required to be diverted to the installation of set electrics or special projects.
9. Loans and/or borrowed lighting gear may be approved on a case-by-case basis. Please note that even though equipment can be acquired, that does not necessarily mean that the production staff will be able to install it - any additional equipment from outside of Lenfest’s inventory must be approved by the Production Electrician to ensure it will work with our current rig and can be installed within the labor budget. Additionally Columbia cannot repair or maintain loaned or borrowed equipment. For more information on loaned and borrowed items, please see Renting / Borrowing Items from Outside Sources.
10. Gel and gobos can be purchased using the production budget. Lenfest has gobos and templates in stock, which can be used for thesis productions, if desired. Lenfest does not maintain an inventory of gel; please reach out to the Production Electrician about gel requirements. (Refer to the Lenfest Center for the Arts Google Drive for gobo inventory.)
11. A common request is to include LED tape as part of the set electrics. The production team can (and does) work with normal LED tape, but cannot install pixel tape or similar products. Any LED tape installation must fit within the 5 hours of load in time available for deck units and set electrics.
12. Any set electrics and/or special projects must be submitted as part of the prelim lighting design to be approved by both the Technical Director and Production Electrician. Any equipment that is being purchased, rented, or borrowed must be spec’d as part of the prelim design to allow the production team to review the actual product and ensure it can be installed.
13. All scenic elements, including soft goods, must be at least six inches away from all theatrical lighting instruments and scenic practicals, unless specific permission is granted from the Technical Director and Production Electrician. This is required even of elements that are inherently flame proof.
14. There is no dynamic rigging of electrics in Lenfest; lighting fixtures (e.g. chandeliers, sockets, lamps) cannot be lowered or raised.
15. No chemical fog, haze, or smoke (Venue Restriction)
16. The use of carbon dioxide and/or liquid nitrogen (dry ice) is prohibited in accordance with requirements as set by the NYFD.
17. No flame, running water, sand, fake snow, dirt, or other small particles (venue & NYC law restrictions)
18. Columbia technicians will hang and focus the rep plot and all added units/specials.
19. Columbia will provide a lighting programmer for all tech and dress rehearsals, as well as one light-over rehearsal prior to tech, so designers might pre-cue/create looks in the space before tech begins. Hours for the lighting programmer will be determined by Production Management.
20. A 1^st year MFA student will run lights for performances. They will be trained by the programmer during final dress.
21. Unless express permission is granted by the Production Electrician, the lighting rig and board may not be used at any time without the presence of the programmer, Production Electrician, or technical supervisor. 

Drafting

1. All drafting MUST be turned in on time in Vectorworks format. If you work in CAD, ACAD, Sketch-up, hand drafting or another form, you must convert this to Vectorworks before the Production Electrician will assess the design.

Fire Safety

1. Exit signs may not be covered. Additional Exit Signs may be added for sight line issues, pending Technical Director approval.
2. There must be 42” egress to fire exit doors at all times during the production. No scenery, lighting instrument, chair, cables, or curtain may obstruct the exit.
3. All scenic elements must be flame proofed. Items built in the shop will be flame proofed by the shop and covered by the production’s material budget.

Purchasing

1. As much as possible, please allow Production Management to make purchases on your behalf. It is faster and significantly less complicated than requesting reimbursements.
2. Please see the Making Purchases section for more information.
3. If making a purchase, please confirm shipping address with Thesis Production Manager before finalizing the purchase.

Recommended Lighting Resources

Production Resource Center - Columbia’s Prop, Furniture, & Costume storage

1. Located at 3280 Broadway, 5th floor. ID required for entry to building.
2. All appointments must be made with 48 hours advance through PR’s Google Calendar Appointment app.
3. Unless specially requested, appointments are for one-hour blocks only.
4. If you are late for your appointment, you will forfeit the time lost. We do not have overlapping appointments.
5. We will store items in PR or the Ramp Room for thesis productions.
6. If you plan to check out fragile (such as glassware or lamps) or bulky items please bring the appropriate packing and transportation items with you. We have some packing materials and bags available at PR, but we cannot guarantee this will suit your transportation needs.