UK - The multi-award-winning stage adaptation of Studio Ghibli’s 1988 animated film My Neighbour Totoro is brought to life by the Royal Shakespeare Company, in collaboration with composer Joe Hisaishi. Following its run at the Barbican Centre in 2022, the production has now transferred to the Gillian Lynne Theatre, continuing to captivate audiences with its spellbinding storytelling and imaginative staging.
Having supplied the lighting fixtures for the original production, White Light were approached once again by lighting designer Jessica Hung Han Yun and associate lighting designer and programmer Tamykha Patterson to provide the lighting rig for the transfer.
“The unusual thing about this show is that I’m both an associate lighting designer and a programmer,” says Tamykha. “During the prep leading into tech weeks, I wear my associate hat. But from the moment we step into the theatre, my programmer hat goes on. I really enjoy the dual nature of my role on this production.”
Tamykha collaborated with Jess on the original Barbican production in 2022, and she shared how exciting it was to reimagine the lighting design for the new venue: “The Gillian Lynne Theatre has a smaller stage than the Barbican, which meant the set had to be adapted. As a result, we couldn’t simply replicate the previous lighting design. We decided to cut back on generic fixtures and rework the rig from scratch. Jess and I created a new lighting rig, cross-referencing them with the Barbican’s to remind ourselves of the key effects we wanted to retain. Our aim was to make the design future-proof, budget-efficient, and easy to maintain.”
Reflecting on how she helped bring Jess’s lighting vision to life, Tamykha says: “The front-of-house layout is quite different, so we had to adjust fixture positions to ensure the audience experienced the same visual impact as they did at the Barbican. Some of the props were also changed from 3D to 2D, which required us to rethink how we incorporated set electrics. The reduced stage depth meant we had to find new ways to recreate shadow backlighting. Fortunately, having worked closely with Jess from early on in our careers, I understand her vision instinctively, which allows me to be more hands-on and express creative ideas.”
To create the production’s signature magical atmosphere at the Gillian Lynne Theatre, the lighting team increased their use of moving fixtures by 28%, while drastically reducing the number of generic units, by more than half. This streamlined rig helped cut down focus time and featured fixtures such as ETC Halcyon, Martin MAC Encore, Martin MAC Aura XB, Ayrton Eurus, and High End Systems SolarFrame, all controlled via an ETC Eos console.
Tamykha praised White Light’s support throughout the transfer process: “The support we received from WL was fantastic. We were able to use WL’s WYSIWYG suite to prep our fixture swaps and colour-match, which was especially helpful during the hectic post-Christmas period. The team was incredibly flexible and accommodating.”
WL’s hire business development manager, Stuart Porter, reflects on the partnership: “We’re incredibly proud to continue working with Jess and Tamykha. The production is visually stunning, and they’ve done a phenomenal job adapting it for the new venue. The show looks even slicker now, and we hope it continues to enjoy a long and successful run. Their hard work has elevated what was already an exceptional production.”
