I’ve been involved in the Theatre for quite a few years now. (Note the spelling. Theatre ending with an R-E signifies the stage, while Theater ending in E-R means the cinema. This isn’t a hard and fast rule, but it’s handy for differentiating between the two.) And let me tell you, that whole stereotype about actors being superstitious is totally true. Few of my acting companions will utter the name of Shakespeare’s MACBETH backstage, and if anyone ever does, determined to prove that he is a cynical unbeliever, you will see the rest of those in attendance shudder. (The play supposedly has a curse on it, and saying its name in a theatre is inviting major bad luck. Actors will refer to it as “the Scottish play.”)
A handy superstition is the GHOST LIGHT. In my experience, there are no real specifics as to what exactly must constitute a Ghost Light. It doesn’t have to be a certain kind of bulb, or a certain wattage or anything like that. In short, a Ghost Light is just a single light that is left on in an otherwise darkened theatre. To appease the sprits, to chase away the bad luck, or to keep a guy walking around on the stage from falling and breaking something, either himself or some needed prop—which IS preventing bad luck, isn’t it? I’ve never known of a theatre, no matter how far off Broadway it is, that doesn’t keep a Ghost Light burning. If I ventured into one, and I knew that I’d have to soon be appearing on that stage in any capacity, I’d light one. And I’d leave it on. A charming old superstition, or is there really something to it? No actor I know of is likely to test it to find out.
