QueerView in Technicolor
TV Studio meets Nightclub at Night Owl
Visual Dialogue by Jack Kelly | Photography by Jack Kelly
July 2010 | Night Owl | Gastonia, NC

Partners: Ricky Burns- Owner, Teresa Norman- Fabric Designer

Lighting Equipment
7 Chauvet COLORado Batten 72 Tour
8 Chauvet COLORband RGB
4 Chauvet MINWASH
16 Chauvet COLORdash Accent
4 Chauvet Trident
1 Chauvet Scorpion Storm FX
4 Chauvet COLORstrip

2 Chauvet Hurricane 1100
1 Martin Light Jockey
1 Chauvet Data Stream 4
1 Edirol V-4
1 Kramer WAV-6YC
1 Kramer C-MH1/MH1-75
Accu Cable DMX Cabling
Kramer Video Cabling

The backdrop had much to be desired. The row of mirrors presented all kinds of video issues. They usually solved those issues by covering them with props and fabric. Mirrors were the rage of the past but modern design usually uses them for accents not features. The unapologetic narcissist of the past dancing to himself for hours on end has been replaced by the more community conscious party goer. Pay attention to someone else and the game is more fun. For the club owners, if you eliminate the mirrors the crowd is more likely to interact creating a stronger community, a better time for everyone, and typically more bar sells. Another benefit of losing the mirrors is the absence of self awareness, the last thing you want is for someone to look at themselves in the mirror and be embarrassed. Keep reality out and the fantasy intact. So, keep the mirrors in the strip clubs and out of the night clubs. My first motion was to take the mirrors down and paint the walls black. The black walls would make the room seem endless and would not conflict with stage props. The more neutral the native environment is, the more dynamic the stage props seem to be. Ricky liked the idea but wanted a permanent adaptable stage design.

Throwing around several concepts, Sabrina and Ricky liked the French burlesque style. However, we wanted to put a modern twist on it. Teresa Norman, Eye Dialogue’s preferred fabric designer, helped create the vision. Instead of deep reds, we decided to use crushed white velvet with 300% fullness. White will reflect any color maximizing the use of the color changing LEDs. Combining tie backs, voluptuous swags, and white valances with poufs; the modern LED flattered classic fabric luxury. The use of color changing fabrics and crystal beads gave the backdrop the modern perversion we were looking for. Building a small soffit at the base of the curtains, the Chauvet COLORband strip LEDs brushed the curtain from end to end with color saturation. The stage although compact could create depth and contrast between the performers and the scenic elements.

The final challenge was to keep the performers on stage. Drag Queens in general are rebellious in nature. Defying stereotypes is there bread and butter. The lighting designer must cater to the performer because the community will not accept lighting confinement. Tell them no and they will do it. There was no room for a spot light. There was no room for audience lights without ridiculous cost. There is the Chauvet MiNWash. A great little LED moving head wash that can fit in the palm of your hand. Hanging snug with the ceiling, it allowed us to preprogram some in-the-crowd scenes for our renegade queens. Although the lighting in the crowd isn’t as bright as the stage, the little movers gave us enough light to keep the performers from disappearing.

Keep in mind, this TV studio is also a nightclub. We needed to address the unfilmed hours of the night. The fabric on the stage was added behind the bottles at the bar to bring continuity in design. COLORstrips were added to give the fabric life. The room design is given to modern environmental lighting techniques we have often used in high end corporate events. The LEDs are programmed to flicker, strobe, and flux in different color combinations. The light pushes the crowd like ocean waves. Everything is disappearing and reappearing as the lights flow seamlessly in and out of color. The different hues are constantly changing the appearance of everyone around them. The result is an emotional visual rush as different elements in the room take prominence. For example, if the room is red, everything red will become radiant with life as the blues and greens fade away. As the room transforms to blue, everything blue will dominate as greens and reds withdraw into the darkness. Everything in the room appears to be changing like a Warhol painting, constantly morphing and transforming into something fresh driven by an unsatisfied artist. The impact is immediate but can only be experienced in a crowded room. We still needed the classic beam effects for the early club appetite.

The Chauvet Trident is a breakthrough in gak lighting because it gives the designer intelligent options. In order to keep cost down they didn’t give full dimming capabilities but they did give the three primary, three secondary colors, and white. Instead of the multicolor gaktastic monotony one comes to expect from a hundred and fifty dollar fixture, controllable colors and movement speeds can harmonize with the nightclub’s visual experience. For illustration, the LEDs are flickering blue throughout the room then suddenly a barrage of aqua beams cut through the air like a futuristic water war. The Trident provides a fantastic addition to nightclubs lighting arsenal.

The end result was both functionally appropriate and dynamically adaptable. Modern in design for its use of color emersion and environmentally conscious energy consumption, Night Owl has paved the way for Live Video design in small spaces. The entire system has an electrical load of less than 20 amps; for the layman that is one outlet in your beach house! Put that into your green pipe and pass it around. Look for QueerView online and on YouTube, you will be impressed with the all LED cast of fixtures and vivacious drag performances working together to fashion a more educated world.