In POTO during the overture while the chandelier is rising there are often a lot of lights flashing/strobing. I had forgotten about this and while it was happening a had a 'moment' and thought people were taking pictures...
Has anyone here seen "Little Mermaid?" (Well, I'm guessing Josh Freilich has, given his signature.) Anyway, at the end of Norm Lewis' big old thunderous reprise of "The World Above," he gets to blow up a lot of Ariel's stuff with his trident. This involves humongous, painfully bright flashes of light. I swear, there were dots floating in front of my eyes for the next four of five numbers.
Yes, as a matter of fact, I did, and that was one of the most painful exposures to strobes ever in a Broadway show. That's why that show has warnings outside. Just got back from [tos], and yes, there are strobes posing as cameras during "Awkward Photoshoot." I think cameras are the best uses for strobes if they aren't lightning storms, passages of time, explosions, or just there for dramatic purposes.
"How could she just suddenly, completely disappear into thin water?" - The Little Mermaid
The whole piece uses a strobe light and it lasts about 6 minutes, but it's amazing. It's not technically Broadway, but the lighting designer for many of David Parsons pieces has done a lot of work on Broadway.
From the website:
David Parsons’ unforgettable signature stroboscopic tour-de-force, features a solo dancer defying gravity and flying above the stage. Described by one critic as “one of the great pieces of recent times.”
YF definitely beats out Cats, but dancing in the Jellicle Ball for 12 minutes with nonstop stobe lights was probably the most annoying and headache-causing thing in the entire world.
theatrespaz - I was going to mention Caught as well. One of my favorite dance pieces performed by my favorite company. I love Parons' work. For all those that loved the Puttin' on the Ritz effect in Young Frankenstein, check out the amazing dance piece from which they copied the effect.
"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian
MM- That is so true. When I saw Young Frankenstein in Jan. and saw that effect, I thought that it was a blatant rip-off of Parson's original work. The Parson piece is infinitely better though, much more daring and extremely difficult to pull off perfectly.