Ghostlight
Lake Forest IL (2018 Ragdale Ring)

Ghostlight creates a performing art space of light and surface. The skin, as a reflection of the activities within,  is a participant in the performance through projection and shadow.  

Drawing inspiration from winterized translucent skins found on boats in the Great Lakes, Ghostlight uses this membrane, catching shadows and illuminating, while delineating the thin skin between stage and the world.  Ghostlight wraps an internal skeleton to create surface and form.  A prosaic structure, assembled in an unexpected configuration, is transformed when skinned with a luminescent surface.

Using scaffolding as a base for support, objects petrute and extend beyond their normalized boundaries, creating points of stress and accent.  These points are used to contour and contort the marine grade shrink wrap surface.  This luminescent surface’s shape created by a variety of complex patterns, is accentuated when raked with both natural and artificial light.  These profiles capture shapes and movement that are changed and manipulated by the performance and performers within.

A plywood proscenium frames the opening to the 20ft x20ft stage and reveals a complex background of dark patterns of scaffolding and infrastructure beyond.  Inside, the open system infrastructure encourages performers to utilize, connect, and adjust sets, props, and lighting freely. 

From the exterior, light and shadow variation display a complex and intriguing interaction with transparency.  The object in the landscape appears solid with shades of transparency and color. The film captures, and makes visible, the shadows of the performers, objects, and structure from within.