![]() There are theatre companies named after the ghost light in places such as Seattle, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Florida and Oklahoma City. It's not just on Broadway that the ghost light is important. He pauses before adding, "Usually people don't know who she is until they find out later on, and then they say, 'Oh my goodness!'" "When she's been sighted, that's what she's done: blown a kiss to people that have seen her," says Amendola. ![]() Thomas hang at every entrance and exit to the theatre, and the cast and crew typically wish the late showgirl a good night when they leave by blowing her a kiss. Even though it's lacking a lone bare bulb in the middle of the stage, the New Amsterdam Theatre still works hard to appease its resident ghost, former Ziegfeld showgirl Olive Thomas. We have to pretty much leave the lights on."Īccording to Amendola, OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) requires some lights in the New Amsterdam remain on at all times, "so our ghost lights are actually up in the grid and shine down on the stage," according to Amendola. "Because we are a different classification of building, we have to do more than just a ghost light. "We have a ghost, but we don't have a ghost light on the stage," says Dana Amendola, Disney Theatrical's VP of operations. The New Amsterdam, another of Broadway's most haunted theatres, doesn't use a ghost light - at least, not a traditional one. "You've got the edge of the stage leading to the orchestra pit, and if there weren't any lights and someone were to get in accidentally, it would be really easy to just walk off the edge of the stage and fall. "Mostly it's safety, just because they turn everything off at night," says Kim Russell, the stage manager for Legally Blonde. Either way, that light ensures that no one takes an accidental tumble off the stage. Some argue that its function is to chase away mischievous spirits others insist it lights the way for the ghosts that are said to inhabit virtually every theatre, keeping them happy and contented. But the ghost light is one superstition that's also proven itself a modern theatre necessity.Ī ghost light is a single bulb left burning whenever a theatre is dark. ![]() ![]() Wishing actors a broken leg (don't ever tell them "good luck"), avoiding whistling backstage (it used to confuse the stagehands), and being careful not to say Mac.-I mean, "The Scottish Play" (it's cursed, you know) are just a sampling of the multitude of time-honored theatre traditions. ![]()
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