Types of lantern

This second chapter is where you apply everything you know about light into designing a lighting system.  As you learn about the different types of lamp used in theatres, keep thinking about how the features of that light help decide its purpose in a lighting system.

(a) Research the following types of light used in stage lighting.  For each one, explain as much as you can about how it works, what sort of light it produces, what aspect of stage lighting it is used for, and include a photo (and description) of a lamp of that type that can be bought for stage use.

• Fresnel – this is a lamp that uses a Fresnel lens.  Don’t get the lens and the whole lamp mixed up.
• Ellipsoidal – mention both the lens and the reflector
• Followspot – how do they adjust the focal length?
• Scoop / Flood
• PAR cans
• Intelligent / automated lights – these are slightly different, try to describe how

(b) In part (a) you included an example of each type of lantern.  For each one, find out the power rating in Watts or kiloWatts and use the following equation to come up with a cost in pence to use that light for one hour.

cost (pence) = power rating (kW) x time (h) x cost per unit (p)

You can find a suitable cost per unit by searching on the websites of any of the major energy companies.