# What color are your backstage areas painted?



## Aman121 (Jun 12, 2012)

I was just curious what color peoples backstage areas are painted. Im guessing that most are painted flat black, but ours, which are all quite old, are painted an off white color. I find it nice actually, as it is always bright backstage and is easy to see hazards with just a few lights on. I guess there are lighting reasons for painting stages dark colors but I have personally never found myself saying, "man, I sure wish the stage was black"
Granted, I dont do really get to do serious lighting design often in our spaces, for musicals and plays the choir teacher always hires a pro to do the lighting.  (his pro is actually some kids dad who was a roadie back in the day)


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## avkid (Jun 12, 2012)

Is brick a color?


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## Aman121 (Jun 12, 2012)

I guess!


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## chausman (Jun 12, 2012)

avkid said:


> Is brick a color?



It's what my backstage looks like, of that's what your asking. 

Flat black, or unpainted brick. Although they wanted to originally paint our black box tan, and our floor beige. 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD


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## dmx (Jun 12, 2012)

avkid said:


> Is brick a color?



According to Crayola, yes. brick red | crayola.com


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## josh88 (Jun 12, 2012)

Generally I say flat black for everything, but I can actually see the benefit of having white walls backstage so you can see better with less light. The downside would be reflecting more running light onstage, but it would be interesting to paint strips of black and white, (not everybody has it) for tight spaces where you can't always mask the wing and you have a few seats that can see things, paint what they can see black and some key areas white. I'd be curious to see it, but again I'm all for some nice black on black action and just adding more running lights if you can't see what you need.


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## cpf (Jun 12, 2012)

The same 3 tones of grey as every other surface in the building that isn't wood panelling :neutral:


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## DuckJordan (Jun 13, 2012)

Our back wall sometimes serves as an orchestra shell piece, so its painted tan just like our shells. In our other space its covered by a dark burgundy wood


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## erosing (Jun 13, 2012)

I'm a big fan of purple,  !


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## JLNorthGA (Jun 13, 2012)

If it can be seen from the audience, it generally gets painted black. Most of our side stage area is just concrete or cinder block and not painted. We do have an area that is painted a pale green (cool cucumber as I recall). That was painted more for "tagging" mitigation rather than anything else.


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## Ric (Jun 13, 2012)

Backstage for us refers to the dressing rooms, green rooms and loading dock areas. They're all painted neutral off white tones. Nice & bright & cheerful, and easy to see things in. I'd never want those painted black !
The rear and side walls of the stage are painted a flat black, as you'd expect.


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## JonasA (Jun 14, 2012)

Wings and back wall are flat black, but stupidly the control room is bright white. This doesn't sound so bad until you see the whole room glowing red or blue (depending on who gelled the lamps in there last) because all the light reflects off the back wall and into the house. The one thing I want to do before I leave the school is paint that room a nice deep, non-reflective black. (Unless anyone else can suggest a better colour.)


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## tdeater (Jun 14, 2012)

Funny thing you mention purple Arez. For our back stage, and our black box theater, control rooms, etc. the designers used this dark purple looking paint. By itself, it is not too bad looking. When you put a black curtain or anything else black by it, it looks really purple. The architect told us this is a more pleasing color instead of black. So, since then we have affectionately called it "Pleasing Purple".


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## Nelson (Jun 14, 2012)

Any area that might be visible from the audience is flat black. Everything else is white. We usually have the curtains arranged such that you can't see backstage at all, so for our space, its not real critical that backstage areas are painted black. White might actually be nice so it is easier for props folks and actors to see in the near darkness.


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## emoreth (Jun 15, 2012)

Greenish taupe, just like everything else in the whole place. Even the walls and carpet on our stage are that color. That's what happens when your church is designed by an architect who specializes in postmodern office buildings.


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## Clarkwg3 (Jun 15, 2012)

Our original color was Pale Pea Green. Still visible on the brick wall back of our prop cabinet. In '94 our entire stage wall and ceiling were painted satin white acrylic during the final phase of a building wide renovation. Promptly after the Architect signed the building over to the district the director at the time painted Gloss Black enamal as high as our A-frame Extension would reach. It's amazing how reflective gloss black is, yet the color reflected is there, just a brighter area. Even when Ghosty is Down, Center on the other side of a 2 story set.

Our nonstage backstage areas are gloss acrlic enamal a color called Bone. Isn't manufactured anymore, but our local Sherwin has perfected the recipe via their color matcher.


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## jglodeklights (Jun 16, 2012)

Bare wood. I, quite literally, work in a barn. Granted, it has had some work done since it was actually a barn to convert it into a theater, but backstage is mostly bare wood from the 1930's. The one exception is the "STAR" dressing room at deck level, which is white, and the bathroom stalls, which are the "Barn Red" the house is painted.


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## mccdeering (Jul 23, 2012)

*http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/stage-management-facility-operations/28791-what-co*

We are building a new church and wanting to know what color the wall at the back of the stage should be painted. We have color changing lights and spots. There will be a cross in the middle of the wall with back lighting on that. Thanks


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## DuckJordan (Jul 24, 2012)

*Re: stage back wall color*

Do a search, we covered what we've got a while back. Really if its a standard theater type, or if its a church it depends on the architecture.


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## derekleffew (Jul 24, 2012)

*Re: stage back wall color*

[Above two posts moved here from another location--although it's not quite the same question.]

mccdeering, as Duck said, much depends on the architecture. While a pure white may allow the widest range in terms of lighting with color, it may appear too stark, as it is doubtful that the color-changing lights will always be on whenever the room is occupied. An off-white beige or neutral may be a better alternative. A cyclorama backdrop is often unbleached muslin so the colors don't appear too vibrant and visually upstage the drama.

Note that "back light" is usually defined as coming from above and slightly upstage of the object (actor) at an angle of elevation of 70-90°. Back lighting does not mean "the lighting in the back," i.e., upstage of the action.


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## wiscolighting (Aug 15, 2012)

*Re: stage back wall color*

Black with flat clear coat, red in areas offstage that have to be kept clear like under fire extinguishers and in front of the fly rail. Walls are black all conduit is painted black no signage in potentially visible areas other than required by code. I am a big fan of glow in the dark signs like fire extinguisher signs onstage code does not always require them to be lit like exit signs but its still nice to be able to see them even on a completely dark stage. Our cyc wall is white no gloss. I have seen lighting designers not like a clear coat on a floor no gloss just because of the little bit of reflective property it has but hey what are you gonna do.


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## noderaser (Aug 16, 2012)

*Re: stage back wall color*

Some of the major venues in town have royal blue, orient red, pink and brown. I myself prefer good old black, or at very least dark gray.


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