I attended the single showing of “I Need To Know My Father”, a play written and directed by Marcia Brown, at the Brampton Rose Theatre, last Friday Sept 2nd. Not only did Marcia write & direct it, she also played one of the main characters.
“I Need To Know My Father is best described as a dramedy. Set in what could be ‘anywhere’ in Jamaica, the story is of a young girl, the product of a shunned union, who through clever questioning and some unexpected happenstance, discovers the identity of her father and lifts the shame/curse that attended the women in her family before her. It has been touted as the best play produced by MBP, who is celebrating 11 years of producing plays in Canada.”
One of my challenges in shooting the event, was in remembering that I WAS shooting and trying not to laugh too much! The story is a serious and very relevant, but Marcia did a good job of veiling it in humour. Hopefully, there will be more dates added to it’s run, as it is a great play for the whole family to come out and enjoy.
all images © Ardean Peters
Ardean Peters: Toronto Photographer | People & Light 
You totally rock these kinds of venues! Spill the beans on your gear & technique if you can ~ which lenses? Was the stage lighting enough for you to work with?
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Thanks 🙂 This venue was a surprise in that there wasn’t an aisle all the way around the perimeter, as had encountered in the other {older} theatre I shot in. So my choice was either to shoot from the audience or the balcony’s. I think now, I would have preferred to shoot from the audience, but I chose not to, because I thought I would be a nuisance. If I ever get a chance to go back to this theatre, I’d see if I could shoot from the sound booth, which was in the middle of the audience.
I used mainly the 5D2 with the 70-200 f4 non-IS lens. I found that I could stop action reliably at 1/125th, shooting at f4 and ISO 1000-1600 and from 126mm to 200mm, with the majority being at 200mm. I also use the 50D on some scenes where I was caught on the opposite side of the theatre {the stage was set up split in half, with two ‘set’s.}, when the scene changed. I also went to the back centre balcony and used the 50D there for more reach.
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Great series of images! I took my camera to a play this past spring, and was setting up super excited… and then they made an announcement about photography being prohibited. 😦
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Really? I can’t remember if general photography was prohibited at this event. I was there as the event photographer. I quite like it – very non-stressful shooting, but I’d love to shadow a pro – see what/where they typically shoot from. How they don’t {or maybe they do} get in the way/view of the audience.
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