Many of our customers will purchase gobos for corporate events, weddings and architectural ornaments. But another common use for gobos is in theater productions. Custom gobos can add a realistic and stylized look to a stage performance that matte painting is not always capable of delivering.
A recent example of gobos in action in the world of stage design occurred recently in Orange County, California, where students at Mission Viejo High School put on a production of Cole Porter's classic musical "Anything Goes." The staging received great reviews from local critics, who praised the students' acting abilities and musical performance. In addition, one writer remarked that the lighting and stage design, handled by Parker Genoway, helped to enhance the cheeriness and realism of the production.
"Lighting, designed and executed by Parker Genoway, is completed with great detail," writes Yamini Nambimadom in the OC Register, a local newspaper. "The moon gobo stage left adds to the nighttime atmosphere of the ship's deck, and the spotlights switching from one area to another greatly draw attention to the important happenings on stage."
While the producers of the play could easily have painted a moon in the background that would have at least served its purpose, clearly a custom gobo is much more useful as it can reflect the luminance to simulate moonlight. By using this instead of a matte, Genoway can add a more professional look to a production that is being created largely by non-professionals.
If you're in charge of lighting design for a school or amateur theater production, you should think about ways that a gobo can enhance your staging. You could use one of our moving gobo projectors to produce a water ripple effect on stage, or project a photo-realistic background behind your actors. The only limit to is your imagination!
