Tools and Apps for Technical Theater

QLab is the bomb. Ten years ago, at least, it was deservedly ubiquitous at every level of theatre: it's massively powerful, but progressively complex. That is to say, basic features are super-simple to learn, set up, and use - I was able to teach novice users how to create sound plots in... an hour? - then the more-advanced features build on that familiarity in relatively straightforward ways.

Furthermore, I once contacted QLab's technical support for help with an ambitious effect - it was theatre in the round, and I wanted sound to shift through six speakers, arranged behind the audience, to dramatize a "chase" sequence. It seemed like it should be completely possible, but I couldn't get it to work. Their tech team took a look at my plots, agreed that it should be possible - and that it wouldn't work was due to a bug - and then shipped me a pre-release version with the fix, all within, like, two days.

I've seldom loved a software product or company more.

If I were still in this game, however, I'd take a close look at Cuelist. It might solve the problem I had with my touring show, where local techs had to track three different places - script + my QLab deck + their lighting deck - to run the show. With very limited rehearsal that was usually too much for them to keep up with, and cues inevitably got dropped.

It'd all depend on how easily Cuelist connects to different lighting boards, and how efficiently house crew could add their light cues into that interface. Cudos to them, though, for coming up with a new UI that looks like it could be really great.

Good to see QLab. I’m curious why MaxMSP didn’t make it on there. In college we used it for ‘These Shining Lives’ to create a harmonic, barely perceivable drone over the actors voice fed from the mic. It was sick!

DLight is missing in the lighting section