Based on the 1968 film version of Ian Fleming’s novel, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a beloved family classic, featuring an unforgettable score by the Sherman Brothers. It was recently revived at The Kings Theatre, Portsmouth and featured a live orchestra, dazzling effects, spectacular dancing as well as a magical flying car. The lighting designer for this particular production was Alex Musgrave who approached White Light (WL) to supply his fixtures.
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang tells the story of Inventor Caractacus Potts who transforms an old Grand Prix car into a magical flying vehicle that teleports him and his family to a kingdom ruled by the evil Baron Bomburs. The show first premiered on stage at the London Palladium back in 2002 and has been revived countless times over the past two decades. So how does a designer like Alex approach such a well-known show with their own unique perspective? He explains: “I think I might be one of the few people in the entire theatre industry who has never seen the show before! That said, I think this turned out to be a blessing as it removed any preconceived ideas of how the show should look. I also ensured that, when I started work on the production, I only read the script and listened to the soundtrack rather than seek out further visual research of any past productions which may have influenced my decision making”.
Whilst Alex and the creative team wanted to ensure that this version of Chitty Chitty felt wholly unique, they also had to ensure they created the looks and scale associated with such a musical. Alex comments: “Essentially, I had a brief of creating the feel of a big, traditional musical. The show has lots of different locations along with big glossy production numbers so the lighting had to both support and elevate this accordingly. I was also briefed on having to help create the magic of when the Chitty car flies into the audience – something those who’ve seen the show will appreciate is one of its biggest moments! Then there was the fact that the space on the rig was somewhat limited in The Kings Theatre; meaning my fixtures had to be agile and compact whilst still delivering the looks I required”.
Knowing what he needed to achieve with his rig, Alex approached the Hire team at WL who he has worked with on previous productions. He comments: “When I went to WL, it was to have an initial conversation; rather than me telling them these were the exact fixtures I wanted. As such, we discussed my requirements and the team suggested a range of products I could draw on from their hire stock. These included the newly-acquired ETC Halycons as well as the Chauvet Colorado PXL Bar 16. Both of these fixtures were feature-packed and gave me great flexibility for a multi-location musical. WL also worked hard to ensure they fitted within the budget I had.
He continues: “I hung the Chauvet Colorado PXL Bars between portals 1 and 2 to give me a downstage curtain of light which was also used for Chitty’s flight into the audience. I placed the Halycons overhead within the first couple of portals to give me the option of being able to lift them into the audience when needed. They also provided great flexibility over the main playing space, offering me the brightness I needed to punch through bright and busy production numbers”.
As expected, it was the production’s iconic showstopping moment – the Chitty car flying – that left the biggest an impact on audience members. Alex explains: “The Kings Theatre completely sold out during our limited run; meaning just over 10,500 patrons saw the production in one week! This also meant we had audiences spread over four levels of the theatre. Making sure the audience in the upper gallery and upper circle had the same experience as the audience in the Stalls and Dress Circle was imperative. As expected, making the Chitty fly over every single audience member was a tricky obstacle to overcome but we managed to do it”.
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang finished its run last month, achieving both critical acclaim and breaking The Kings Theatre’s box office records; with the show being the most successful week-long production in the venue’s history. Alex concludes: “I would like to say thank you to the team at the Kings theatre who worked tirelessly to get this production on its feet in a relativity short space of time. I also want to extend a massive thank you the team at WL for their ever-continuing support”.
Photos courtesy of Gabriel Worsley for The Kings Theatre.
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