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The first major advance in several centuries was the introduction of gas lighting. Near the end of the 18th century, the Scottish engineer William Murdock developed a practical method to distill gas from coal for illumination. The first successful adaptation of gas lighting for the stage was demonstrated in the Lyceum Theatre, London, in 1803 by a German, Frederick Winsor. The Chestnut Street...
in stage design: Western traditions )The introduction in the early 19th century of limelight, which was followed by gas lighting and arc lights, created the necessity for a more subtle use of cosmetics on the European and American stage. The actor’s palette consisted at this time of white chalk, carpenters’ blue chalk, papers impregnated with red colouring, and India ink. Some actors were known to make up their faces with...
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