In the theater, light is language. It speaks to both audience and actor, guiding their roles in the shared experience.
To the audience:
When all the lights are on, it is a cue to find your seat, to settle into place, to prepare for what is to come.
When only the stage lights are on, it is a cue to focus, to give your attention to the story unfolding before you.
When all the lights go out, it is a cue to rise and leave—to carry the story with you, or let it go.
To the actor:
When all the lights are on, it is a cue to wait behind the curtain, unseen but ready—a moment of stillness before action.
When only the stage lights are on, it is a cue to step forward, to claim the space, to give life to the story that must be told.
When all the lights go out, it is a cue to exit the stage—your part complete, the story now left to memory and reflection.
In life, as in the theater, light guides us. It signals when to prepare, when to perform, and when to release what has passed.
– Osasu Oviawe