In telling the story of how an irrepressible nanny helps a busy
banker slow down to discover the family hes been largely ignoring, the
story reminds us about what is really important in life. Perhaps this
balance between the lighthearted and heartfelt is one reason why the story,
which was first written in 1934, has been so enduring, being made into an
iconic Disney film in 1964, and then 40 years later into a musical that has
been performed in languages ranging from English and Icelandic to Czech and
Spanish.
Lighting designer Toni Fernandez-Medina enhanced the magic of Mary Poppins
recently in a theatrical production at San Juans Centro de Bellas Artes
Santurce by calling on the versatility and gobo capabilities of the Rogue R2
Spot moving LED fixture from CHAUVET Professional. Deploying 10 of the
fixtures, which were supplied by Musique Xpress, she flew two units on the
first electric pole, four in between the second and third electric, and four
between the third and fourth electric.
Fernandez-Medina selected the Rogues for the Mary Poppins performance, which
was produced by PBS Productions, after consulting with Musique Xpress. I
asked Mircord, one of the Musique Xpress technicians, if he could give me a
demonstration of the different moving fixtures they have. After seeing their
variety of fixtures, I decided the Rogues were the right ones for Mary
Poppins, she recalled. I selected these fixtures because their light is
powerful, their spread good enough to be used as a wash, and at the same
time they could be used as spot lights for effects.
Unlike the film version of Mary Poppins, which relies primarily on special
effects (who can forget Julie Andrews flying through the air with her
umbrella?), the theatrical version of the classic tale captivates audiences
with a blend of effects and dance. Supporting the magical aura of the
productions choreography with richly textured gobos was of paramount
importance to the lighting designer when she put together her rig.
Mary Poppins is a musical that I consider to be refreshing and light, she
said. My goal was to enhance the choreography and the scenery without
taking away from the directing and the acting. I relied on the Rogues gobos
mostly to enhance the choreography. During the songs and dances I used the
gobos -- they helped by giving the choreography a sort of texture.
At other points in the production, Fernandez-Medina drew on the Rogues
varied performance features to achieve her vision. There were times I
needed to create depth on stage and enhance the scenery, so I used the Rogue
Spots as back lights to wash scenic elements, she said. The Rogue fixtures
also worked perfectly when Mary Poppins was flown. We used them instead of
the followspots to light the actor. The followspots could not reach her when
she was in flight.
The Rogue R2 Spots, which have an illuminance of 5,500 lux at 5 meters, were
bright enough to create a vivid impression on stage at the spacious Antonio
Paoli Theatre (also known as Sala de Festivales) inside the Centro de Bellas
Artes Santurce. Yet as LED fixtures, the spots produced less heat on stage.
Although it was an outstanding success, the lighting of Mary Poppins was not
without its challenges. The rigging for one of the flights was in front of
the catwalk, which made it challenging to light the front of the stage and
at times some of the other areas as well, said Fernandez-Medina. Still
with teamwork we prevailed.
On the subject of teamwork, the lighting designer thanked the Musique Xpress
team. Enrique Nuñez of Musique Xpress and Mircord were very helpful, she
said. They understand the mind of a lighting designer, which made this
project more rewarding.