In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and Sister!) discuss budget lighting equipment with President of Learn Stage Lighting, David Henry. Join David, Ellen, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: The genesis of Learn Stage Lighting; What makes a Budget Light a Budget Light?; Are there "typical" packages of lighting equipment?; How to become a stage lighting dealer; Why trade shows are important; Discovering new companies and new products; Specifying the right equipment for the...
Oct 28, 2023•43 min•Season 7Ep. 343
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and Sister!) discuss everything from MIdJourney to Cold Las Vegas Nights. Join Ellen, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: LDI Light Talk Pit Bull Swag Challenge; Your first meeting with the director; Table reads; Having a diverse background and finding a job as a lighting designer; Teaching lighting design with pre-viz; Creating designs with MidJourney; "The Butter Stick"; Looking back at 35 years of LDI; "The Battle of the Busk"; The P...
Oct 21, 2023•50 min•Season 7Ep. 342
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from David Byrne to "The Book of Mormon Podcast". Join Brackley, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: Snoot and Rudy; Brackley's view on the Sphere; The LDI Portfolio Review; Beverly Emmons, Wendall Harrington, and The Talking Heads' new "Stop Making Sense" restoration release; Working with co-designers; Getting over your hatred of working in the theatre; The "Distinctive Color Picker"; and The greatest gobo of all time...
Oct 14, 2023•43 min•Season 7Ep. 341
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from U2 to Louie the Chihuahua. Join Stan, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: Not getting credit for the work you do; The curse of being ahead of your timel; Being a goldfish; Should you share color ideas at early design meetings?; What to do when your friend and collaborator is fired from a show; "Budget in a Box"; The Sphere in Las Vegas; Studio Populus; How this affects future consumer entertainment technology; Som...
Oct 07, 2023•45 min•Season 7Ep. 340
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and Sister!) discuss everything from Priceless Lighting Angles to Where is My Assistant?... Join Ellen, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: The writers strike is over!; Cueing Processes; Working over rehearsals; The "Design Score"; The best way to learn how to program specific lighting consoles; Bad Discoveries; What if there are no overhead lighting positions?; "Career Maker!"; Brava, Tayler Swift!; Where are all the Assistant Lighting...
Sep 30, 2023•38 min•Season 7Ep. 339
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from The Las Vegas Sphere, to Being a Jerk, Rude, and Generally Unpleasant. Join Brackley, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: Not receiving your last fee payment; Small claims court; Protecting yourself with contracts; "Shystettes"; How to deal with cheap clients; Being paid by "The Lord"; Shysters in training; Dealing with friends who do not wish to sign contracts; Entertainment lawyers; Club owners; Working with peo...
Sep 23, 2023•44 min•Season 7Ep. 338
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and Sister!) welcome guests Richard Cadena and Neel Vasavada to the show. They discuss everything from Tesla Journeys to "The Chicken and Waffle Guy". Join Neel, Richard, Ellen, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: Sustainable Power Distriubution in our industry; Battery inverted systems for the stage; Burning Man technology; The "Skin Effect"; "Overdrive Energy Solutions"; Hybridizing; Entertainment lighting returning to Direct Current;...
Sep 16, 2023•45 min•Season 7Ep. 337
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers welcome guest listener Magnus Boyle to the show. They discuss everything from Dropping Theatre and Getting into Broadcast Lighting, to Solar Panels Orbiting the Earth. Join Magnus, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: Hurricane update; "Lucky Hank"; Life as a lighting designer in Norway; Advantages to having a musical background; Advice for touring your show in North America; Useful homework before your tour; Last second console nightmare...
Sep 09, 2023•47 min•Season 7Ep. 336
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from Fighting for your Students, to Hurricane Idalia heading for Light Talk Central. Join Steve, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: Lighting areas of control; Compromise or too many choices; Remembering "Dimmer per Circuit"; Fighting the Season Selection Committee for shows that serve lighting students; Knowing when to keep quiet; Successfully navigating Craft Services; "Future to the Back"; What the hell is going on i...
Sep 02, 2023•52 min•Season 7Ep. 335
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and Sister!) welcome guest designer Lap Chi Chu to the show. They discuss everything from Endless Previews to Bad Hair. Join Lap, Ellen, Steve, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: LDI Update; The Elvis Church; New Light Talk Live time at LDI; Moving from undergraduate to graduate training programs; Crosstraining; Lighting color training: LED or Tungsten... What's first?; Remembering John Gleason; The future of lighting and theatre educat...
Aug 26, 2023•49 min•Season 7Ep. 334
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers welcome guest listener Doug Feinberg to the show. They discuss everything from Lighting Measurements to Listening to LIGHT TALK Backwards. Join Doug, Steve, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: Lower priced lighting options for theaters on tight budgets; MEGA-LITE; Playing with gobo morphing and automated shutters; Unexpected light cues; When will LED completely replace incandescents?; "Creative Lighting Metrics of Los Alamos"; It's All Ab...
Aug 19, 2023•38 min•Season 7Ep. 333
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers welcome guest listener Jack Coody to the show. They discuss everything from Stan's New Medication to Royalty Lighting Designers. Join Jack, Steve, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: Remembering our Senior years; Vacuuming with LIGHT TALK; Point of View and Approach; Buffoonary and Puffary; Breaking down comedies; Brazilian Nuts; Program Notes; Weighing Production and Classroom work; Unknown knowns; Suck No-More Pro Edition; The Lumen Bro...
Aug 12, 2023•40 min•Season 7Ep. 332
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and Sister!) welcome guest listener Jack Justus to the show. They discuss everything from Stan's Solar Poser to "Divine Lighting". Join Jack, Ellen, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: No more incandescent lamps in the US; LDI's Professional Workshops; What happenes when you Power-Cycle?; Stan's Full Brain-Wash; Drain the Gunk!; Saving your life when working outdoor gigs; The two levels of neglegence; The path of least resistance; Light ...
Aug 05, 2023•53 min•Season 7Ep. 331
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers welcome Guest Listener Jacqui Thomassen to the show. They discuss everything from Sneaking into Barbenheimer to Owning Your Scan. Join Jacqui, Steve, Zak, and David, as they pontificate about: Weekend movie madness; The end of Chautauqua Opera productions; Broadway's Back to the Future; How to find an agent; 10% of zero; "Heads in Beds"; How to buy a big, bright video projector; B&H, Best Buy and Fry's; The Amazon counter at Whole Foods; Dram...
Jul 29, 2023•1 hr•Season 7Ep. 330
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and Sister!) welcome Lighting Designer Jim Tetlow to the show. They discuss everything from Lighting Presidential Debates to The Muppets. Join Jim, Ellen, Steve, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: Living in La Jolla; Working for the Democrats and Republicans; Getting into television lighting; Learning from the designers who invented television lighting; Moving to LA; "How many IntelliBeams would you like?"; Working with Vladimir in Las ...
Jul 22, 2023•49 min•Season 7Ep. 329
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and Sister!) welcome Lighting Designer Jared Sayeg to the show. They discuss everything from Talking to the Console, to Talking Turtles, Live Camels, and Flying Armadillos. Join Jared, Ellen, Steve, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: Backstage Babies; Training with mentor Elizabeth Stillwell; Recreating Phantom of the Opera in Jared's spare room; Working at the LA Opera; Being admitted into 829 as a teenager; "A Little Night Music" at T...
Jul 15, 2023•55 min•Season 7Ep. 328
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers welcome Guest Listener Dalyn Kvapil to the show. They discuss everything from Programmers Crossing the Line, to the Crisis in Regional Theatres. Join Dalyn, Steve, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: Programmers overstepping their place; Tips for working at summer festivals; The "Lightning Strike Deathzone"; "The Moti-Vay-Ta!"; The Crisis in Regional Theatres; Stan quoting Karl Marx; Bad Programming; Rediculous ticket pricing; Cheering fo...
Jul 08, 2023•50 min•Season 7Ep. 327
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and SISTER!) discuss everything from The Praguie Quadrennial to Snoot Saves the Day! Join Ellen, David, and Steve as they pontificate about: The Prague Quadrennial; Stuck at the end of the runway; The beauty of Prague; Real beer; Drinks with Thaddeus Strassburger; Eco-Scenery; Surviving abusive summer gigs; "Resident Lighting Designer" gigs; Is it OK to leave graduate school if you are unhappy?; "Lighting Twister"; Are graduate design programs s...
Jul 01, 2023•43 min•Season 7Ep. 326
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers (and SISTER!) discuss everything from Color Shifting Approaches to "Does Anyone Watch the Tony's Anymore?" Join Ellen, Stan, and Steve as they pontificate about: How to decide if your show should incorporate white light or heavy color; Tuning white light for individual actors; When to push new technology; Facade lighting strategies; Vertrical vs. horizontal illumination; "The Fixture Daisy-Chain-Gang"; Giving up your New Year's resolutions; Are t...
Jun 24, 2023•43 min•Season 7Ep. 325
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from Audience Members Giving You Notes to Getting Blottoed in the Hot Tub. Join Steve and David as they pontificate about: "The Groucho Marx Quote Kerfuffle"; David and Lori's Western Caribbean Research Cruise; Unlimited Drinks Packages; How to make suggestions to your design colleagues on a show; Protecting yourself in a dead-end academic job; Catch-22 RTP Policies; "The Focus Squad Mobile Lighting Maintenence Team"; Is lack o...
Jun 17, 2023•48 min•Season 7Ep. 324
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from Blinking Lights to Kim Kardashian. Join Ellen, Steve, Brackly, and Stan as they pontificate about: David's Margaritta to Go machine; The pros and cons of joining a union; How to design a problem-free lighting system; Stan's Wild Lights; A few beers and some chicken wings; Who has "disposable income"?; "The Gaffa No-Go"; The writers strike and how it affects our industry; Crossing a picket-line; "Here Lies Love" and the Ame...
Jun 10, 2023•43 min•Season 7Ep. 323
From the Vaults of LIGHT TALK, we bring you Episode 6 from way back on May 22, 2017. When we were deciding who to invite to be our first guest on our crazy show, Josh White immediately came to mind. I had met Josh the previous year as I was researching liquid light shows and synesthesia. I knew that Josh would fit in well with our special brand of insanity. As you can tell from this BEST OF LIGHT TALK episode, I was correct. Enjoy! In this episode of LIGHT TALK with The Lumen Brothers, Steve, St...
Jun 03, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Season 7Ep. 322
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from Original Muffins to “Rigging in the Rain”. Join Zak, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: Nooks and Crannies; Lumen summer plans; Initial impressions of Final Cut Pro for the iPad; Chinese balloons and Russian missiles; Whacky grids; What to do when the Artistic Director asks you to change the lighting after the show opens and you have left town; Signing union contracts when working abroad; “CHAT ALD”; Is YouTube g...
May 27, 2023•42 min•Season 7Ep. 321
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, The Lumen Brothers welcome lighting designer and Lighting and Projections Design Coordinator for the Canadian Opera Company, Mikael Kangas, to the show! Join Mikael, Steve, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: The roles of the Lighting Coordinator at Class A opera companies; The process of remounting the lighting for large scale opera productions; Considering what equipment to use as technology changes over the years; Using the EOS spreadsheet view when cons...
May 20, 2023•37 min•Season 7Ep. 320
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from Union Strikes to Romance Novels. Join Zak, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: Toronto Tales; Trouble at Central City Opera; Negotiating with Backstage Franks; New iPad versions of Logic and Final Cut Pro; Getting started with Projection Mapping; Matching LED and incandescent fixtures in a candle-lit color space; Build and Button techniques; The latest harnesses from The Cheeky Rigger; Other people using photos of...
May 13, 2023•49 min•Season 7Ep. 319
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from AI Writers to Surprise Tony Nominees. Join Brackley, Steve, and Zak, as they pontificate about: Chat GPT and the Writer's Strike; LDI vs. The F1; Keeping projectors quiet; Fond memories of Pani's; How to be kind when critiquing a distracting lighting design; Balancing university politics with your educational mission; Politics at private vs. state universities; Tony Award nominees; and Being stuck in the past. Nothing is T...
May 06, 2023•48 min•Season 7Ep. 318
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Sister (and Brothers) discuss everything from Shakey Scaffolding to Wet Dragons. Join Ellen, Steve, and Stan, as they pontificate about: Dance Booms 101; Cosmic trusses; The best IP65 rated fixtures and how to protect them between shows; How to put together a design showcase at school; Cheeky Rigger Muscle Relaxers; How directors should prepare for a successful tech week; Academic tech schedules; Scaffolding building tips; and Using moving lights as follo...
Apr 29, 2023•51 min•Season 7Ep. 317
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers discuss everything from Iconic Broadway Shows to The Band Geeks. Join Zak, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: The closing of The Phantom of the Opera ; Ripping off Puccini and Pink Floyd; NAMM Report; Do-it-yourself lighting rigs for David and Zak's bar bands; Discussing assistant fees with union designers; Living a normal, stable life as a theatre artist; Archiving your old shows for future revivals; "Moving Light Assistant"; "Pancake ...
Apr 22, 2023•49 min•Season 7Ep. 316
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, The Lumen Brothers (and Sister!) welcome "Legend of Light" Jennifer Tipton to the show! Join Jennifer, Ellen, Steve, Stan, and David, as they pontificate about: Jennifer's most vital career moments; White light and LED; Falling in love with the photon; Discovering moonlight; The "mystique" of being Jennifer; Light and music; Starting a career in Dance; Working with great directors and choreographers; The challenges of Dance lighting; Directing The Tempest ; Designi...
Apr 15, 2023•43 min•Season 7Ep. 315
In this episode of LIGHT TALK, the Lumen Brothers welcome High School lighting student, Light Talk listener, and young designer, Clayton to the show! They discuss everything from The Value of Working with Programmers to Inspiration Showers in Space. Join Clayton, Stan, Steve, and David, as they pontificate about: The value of doing an extra year of kindergarden; What we learn from programming, Full lighting automation at schools; Not Dead and Under 30; Spending a lifetime in Nebraska; Teaching f...
Apr 08, 2023•54 min•Season 7Ep. 314
