A NEW SWITCHBOARD

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 154, 27 December 1924, Page 4

A NEW SWITCHBOARD

A GREAT ADVANCE

•Marking greatest advance in the. mechanics of stage lighting ■ since electrical illumination was first used to produce stage lighting effects, a multi-pres-ent theatrical switchboard, the first of its kind in the world, has just been perfected in the Westinghouse works at East Pittsburg, Pa. -' - -

The new stage theatre switchboard is quite revolutionary in character in that it permits the lighting effects for twentydifferent scenes to be present, and then thrown on merely by the turn of a, master switch. because of the great number of present lighting effects, stage producers will be able to provide more perfect and beautiful lighting effects in the future, and thus give theatregoers more novel entertainment than has been possible in the,past. The inventor ,of -the new swjtchboara is James C. Masek, an electrical engineer in the service of the Westinghouso Electric Company. Mr. Mesek has been a. developer of theatrical lighting., mechanics since his school days. Tho stage has always had a deep interest for him, and it was .quite natural.that since he became an electrical engineer the electrical properties of .the stage should have for him the greatest fascination.

To those who. never have been behind the scenes, one of the .greatest mysteries of the stage is the production of beautiful lighting effects. Even those who have been behind the scenes and have" watched the stage electrician as he changes the lighting for every ecene have often felt mystified at the great number of seemingly unrelated switches. Of- course, when the lighting effects .on tlie stage g,row dim, or when they change, it does hot just happen: There are electrical devices' behind the stage' that are operated to produce these, effects. .Tlie, two principal devices 01 ;units~are known :as.the -dimmers:. Vhich" do to the lights'what their name'suggests^ arid the switches w.hich throw on or off combinations of coloured light The etage. electrician miisf change '• "tKese combinations '•of lights, &d' alsp''"the;r combinations with corresponding dimmers when the different scenes require different lighting effects:- Thus it is always - a,-mysterious .process to: the novice, whp . sees the stage electrician' jumping about from switch'to switch seemingly without rhyme or reason, and' oiten ,to the- accompaniment of, harsh words from the actor or sta K e manager when he.-pulls the wroit \ It was the manoeuvring of the jstio-n stted Mr It^t S™<* £ invention • m PerfeCt% **» »£ ofde^VTa^alftht^e ov less haphazardwork, animal* rtage lighting the most scientific part of tile drama. With this idea in vjew M Masek .sought to assemble the thousands of switches necessary to produce the various Wing effects in one unit, and also to build this unit in such a manner that lighting effects once secured could trouble^" 011 aSaill aU(I "^ Witllout

multi-preset switchboard .is thus the outcome of a love for the - theatre and also an electrical engineering education As the name suggests, TUr. Maseks switchboard makes it possible for the stage electrician to set in advance the lighting effects for all the scenes of any production. Then with the switch combination for the scenes set by merely turning a master switch he can produce instantly proper lighting effect for any scene* without, trouble ' and, ;what-is more important,' without mistakes. ' ■ ■ ...

\Mr. Masek's switchboard permits the setting up of twenty different scenes, which is ample for the most intricate of modern stage effects. Twenty is not the limit of the multi-preset system, but is only the limit of the board at its present stage of 'development. One of the most exasperating things that happen to a stage manager has automatically been eliminated by the new switchboard. This has been the setup of lighting effects for a scene. It is well known that lighting the stage is one of the most important parts' of the show. Stage managers spend hours with their electricians trying to find the proper lighting effects for the different scenes. These variations are carefully recorded and kept by the stage electrician. The stage manager, however, is absolutely at the mercy of his electrician during the show. ..If he forgets tiie '•combination" tor a certain scene its effect is lost. Because previously wl>-n the stage was "white" or in jess thwitrical language when the stajre had no colouring effect, it meant that every other combination of lights was off, and the electrician had to immediately set his.other combination for the next scene. Thus working hi the dark, and with ofttimes only his memory to guide him, ths eUiju electrician has made many mistakes in lighting, which has caused good stage muiugers and actors to use abnormal theatrical, language. In addition to speeding up the changes of lighting effects the new switchboards eliminate tin's hazard of mistakes in switching, for the scenes when once set can be left the same wav for months at a' time, and only used when required.

The enormous amount of work necessary in combining all the lighting effects in one panel can he appreciated by those familiar with the switching arrange-ments-now superseded by the multi-pre-set switch. In one unit"of this twenty-sce-no switchboard arc 1900 switches all designed so that variation of lighting can be secured.- The 3900 switches are in addition, to the master switches, the switches for the dimmers and the myriad of other switches and connections necessary for the board. In operating this complicated device the electrician now does nothing .more than throw the master switch or turn the dimmera.