Thomas R. Skelton (September 24, 1927 – August 9, 1994) was an American

lighting designer In theatre, a lighting designer (or LD) works with the director, choreographer, set designer, costume designer, and sound designer to create the lighting, atmosphere, and time of day for the production in response to the text while keeping ...

. In a career spanning more than four decades, he was best known for his lighting designs for

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

and

Broadway theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

productions.

Biography

Born in North Bridgeton,

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...

, Skelton graduated from Middlebury College, Theatre Department. He pursued an interest in modern dance after moving to New York, studying dance with Martha Graham and

José Limón José Arcadio Limón (January 12, 1908 – December 2, 1972) was a dancer and choreographer from Mexico and who developed what is now known as 'Limón technique'. In the 1940s, he founded the José Limón Dance Company (now the Limón Dan ...

. His lighting career started as an apprentice to

Jean Rosenthal Jean Rosenthal (born Eugenia Rosenthal; March 16, 1912May 1, 1969) is considered a pioneer in the field of theatrical lighting design. She was born in New York City to Romanian-Jewish immigrants. northern.edu, retrieved May 20, 2009Fippin, CaroBio ...

at the

American Dance Festival The American Dance Festival (ADF) under the direction of Executive Director Jodee Nimerichter hosts its main summer dance courses including Summer Dance Intensive, Pre-Professional Dance Intensive, and the Dance Professional Workshops. It also ho ...

. He worked for

Robert Joffrey Robert Joffrey (December 24, 1930 – March 25, 1988) was an American dancer, teacher, producer, choreographer, and co-founder of the Joffrey Ballet, known for his highly imaginative modern ballets. He was born Anver Bey Abdullah Jaffa Khan in Se ...

's new dance company as a lighting designer and stage manager. By the 1950s he was published regularly in ''

Dance Magazine ''Dance Magazine'' is an American trade publication for dance published by the Macfadden Communications Group. It was first published in June 1927 as ''The American Dancer''. ''Dance Magazine'' has multiple sister publications, including '' Point ...

'' with his lighting methods. He taught at both

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

and New York Studio and Forum of Stage Design. Most of his work was within the world of dance, particularly

. He designed lighting for, among others, the American Ballet Theatre, The Joffrey Ballet, the

New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company' ...

and the Ohio Ballet, for which he was Associate Director. His method was published as 'The Handbook for Dance Stagecraft' between October 1955 and December 1956 in ''Dance Magazine''.Credits and biography
filmreference.com, accessed May 26, 2009 He also designed lighting for some 63

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

productions, beginning with ''

Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mamma's Hung You in the Closet and I'm Feelin' So Sad ''Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mamma's Hung You in the Closet and I'm Feelin' So Sad: A Pseudoclassical Tragifarce in a Bastard French Tradition'' was the first play written by Arthur Kopit. Background Kopit was on a postgraduate scholarship from Harvard ...

'' in 1963 until his last production in 1993, '' Shakespeare For My Father''. He also designed lighting for numerous productions at, among others, the

Circle in the Square The Circle in the Square Theatre is a Broadway theater at 235 West 50th Street, in the basement of Paramount Plaza, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It is one of two Broadway theaters that use a thrust stage that extends ...

Yale Repertory Theatre Yale Repertory Theatre at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut was founded by Robert Brustein, dean of Yale School of Drama, in 1966, with the goal of facilitating a meaningful collaboration between theatre professionals and talented stude ...

, and the American Shakespeare Festival. Skelton received three

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

nominations. According to the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'': "Mr. Skelton was equally at home in two very different art forms. His lighting brought extra texture and body and jewel-like color to dance stages in an era when dance lighting usually emphasized airy, open space. His theater designs often added a feeling of light and air to a stage picture while strengthening the dramatic quality of a production."Dunning, Jennifer
"Thomas Skelton, Lighting Designer, Is Dead at 66"
''The New York Times'', August 10, 1994

Work

;Broadway (selected) * '' Coco'' (1968) * ''Indians'' (1970) Tony Award Best Lighting Design (Nominee) * ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also bo ...

'' (1976) * ''

The King and I ''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the chil ...

'' (1977) * '' Gigi'' (1973) * ''

Purlie ''Purlie'' is a musical with a book by Ossie Davis, Philip Rose, and Peter Udell, lyrics by Udell and music by Gary Geld. It is based on Davis's 1961 play ''Purlie Victorious'', which was later made into the 1963 film '' Gone Are the Days!'' and ...

'' (1970) * '' Shenandoah'' (1974) * '' All God's Chillun Got Wings'' (1975) Tony Award Best Lighting Design (Nominee) * '' A Matter of Gravity'' (1976) * ''Legend'' (1976) Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design nominee * ''

Death of a Salesman ''Death of a Salesman'' is a 1949 stage play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a montage ...

'' (

George C Scott George Campbell Scott (October 18, 1927 – September 22, 1999) was an American actor, director, and producer who had a celebrated career on both stage and screen. With a gruff demeanor and commanding presence, Scott became known for his port ...

) (1975) * ''

'' (Michael Rudman) (1984) * ''

Oklahoma! ''Oklahoma!'' is the first musical written by the duo of Rodgers and Hammerstein. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, ''Green Grow the Lilacs''. Set in farm country outside the town of Claremore, Indian Territory, in 1906, it tell ...

'' (1979) * ''

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythi ...

'' (1979) * ''

Brigadoon ''Brigadoon'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, and music by Frederick Loewe. The song " Almost Like Being in Love", from the musical, has become a standard. It features two American tourists who stumble upon Brigadoon, ...

'' (1980) * '' Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music'' (1981) Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design nominee * ''

The Iceman Cometh ''The Iceman Cometh'' is a play written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1939. First published in 1946, the play premiered on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on October 9, 1946, directed by Eddie Dowling, where it ran for 136 perf ...

'' (1985) Tony Award Best Lighting Design nominee * '' Shakespeare For My Father'' (1993) ;Ballet *

Jerome Robbins Jerome Robbins (born Jerome Wilson Rabinowitz; October 11, 1918 – July 29, 1998) was an American dancer, choreographer, film director, theatre director and producer who worked in classical ballet, on stage, film, and television. Among his nu ...

' ''Dances at a Gathering'' *

's ''Astarte'' * Heinz Poll's ''Scenes From Childhood'' *

's ''The Moor's Pavane'' * Paul Taylor's ''Aureole'' * Martha Graham's ''Rite of Spring'' * Kurt Jooss' ''The Green Table'' * Gerald Arpino's ''Kettantanz'' * Leonide Massine's ''Parade''

References

Sources

* Thomas R. Skelton. "Handbook of Dance Stagecraft." Dance Magazine. October 1955 to December 1956
Lighting the Dance

External links

*
Complete lighting paperwork, light plot, hookup, shop order, focus charts, magic sheets for ''Fall River Legend'', American Ballet Theatre, 1991 at the Metropolitan Opera House, at the New York Public Library Theatrical Lighting Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skelton, Thomas R American lighting designers 1927 births 1994 deaths