Kyle and Darren Fuller are two members of our tech team here at the theatre. Yep – they are a father and son duo! We got to chat with them about how panto works behind the scenes.
So! You are a father and son duo – how did you come about working together?
Kyle: It just sort of happened. I started coming here when I was younger, and Dad was working here already. It just kind of kept going… and here we are now.
Darren: I have been working here full-time since 2007. And Kyle was basically interested in it, I guess, having seen me do it when he was growing up. Over the summer holidays, he would come to work with me, and that was about it! Been here together ever since!
And then, how do you find working with him?
Darren: Oh, it’s awful!… No, it’s hard. Realistically, I expect more from him than I would from anyone else. I expect him to do more and be more proactive, but ultimately, I’ve never actually been your boss, have I? No. So that’s quite good.
Kyle: Yeah, it’s basically just like being at home; it’s a better way to work.
In panto, how many different lighting cues are there in the show?
Kyle: This year hasn’t been programmed yet. But last there were about 400 cues, and I expect this year to be about the same.
And when do you determine those? Is it far in advance or is it during the rehearsal period?
Kyle: It’s a bit of both. We go through the script, find the obvious cues that are in there. And then once we get the rehearsal tracks, we start listening to that- for the visual elements that go with it. And then as we get into the run, we start adding the bits that we need to make the scenes work.
How and what is the process working between costume, set and lighting?
Kyle: We get the set drawings first and consider what colour palettes we are going to pull from the set. There might be aspects that we need to enhance or give a bit more depth- like if the set goes far back on the stage, we need to plan for that. After that, we add effects on top of that; it is a multi-layered process.
The costumes usually go with the colours from the set, and that all works together quite nicely. Panto is often bright and shiny, so we expect that from the costumes – no surprises there.
Is lighting for panto different to usual theatre and musical productions?
Kyle: It is similar to most musicals. But there are a lot of visual effects that go with panto, because they want the flash, the glitz and the fun effects. Plays are a lot more straightforward and naturalistic – you don’t want a light show situation halfway through a play. But it depends on the type of production- the style and setting of it.
How long is the process from start to finish for panto?
Kyle: They start doing the Panto chats during the year that they’re in. They’ll start talking to the set company and stuff. Lighting-wise, we’ll have a rough idea of things we want to try for it. If we know there are going to be certain elements to the show we want to try, we start looking into that early on. The bulk of our work is during the summer, same with costumes because the set comes first.
Is there a particular character that has the most complicated sound and lighting cues?
Kyle: Usually in panto, the villain gets their own lighting for entrances – like a bit of a lighting change or thunder on their entrances, but we don’t have a traditional villain in this show, it’s just the wicked sisters. But usually, the villain is the most difficult to design and cue for. Or sometimes shows have characters that have a certain introduction, so we try to stick with that for the duration of the show.
How many techs are there per performance?
Kyle: There will be a board operator, a designer, a programmer and a production electrician. But the programmer and designer are only there for the tech sessions, because once that is over, he will hand it over for us to do during the shows. We have the follow-spot operator and site electrician who work every show, so four of us on lighting in total per show.
Do you find panto is a more relaxed teching environment and production compared to other types of productions?
Darren: Historically, not always. But this year, hopefully yes. I am going into this year with a different attitude because it is my last one in this more hands-on role, before I change positions here. I mean, in theatre it is stressful because we don’t want anything to go wrong, but it can go wrong and the good thing about the panto audience is that they are much more relaxed – They don’t know whether it’s a bit in the show or not.
Who is your favourite character in Cinderella this year?
Kyle: I think that probably… Buttons, is the best. It’s just a comedy. It’s probably the funniest role.
Darren: I’d say Buttons too or I’d say the Fairy Godmother. Some of them can be quite funny. It depends on how the script is.
Don’t miss Cinderella at Norwich Theatre Royal between 6 Dec – 4 Jan. For more information or to book, visit norwichtheatre.org or call the Box Office on 01603 630 000.
