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Wax candles, made primarily from beeswax, provided brighter and cleaner light than tallow and were a luxury lighting source in the medieval period.

The magic lantern was an early type of image projector using a light source, a lens, and an image on a glass slide; it was popular in the 17th to 19th centuries.

Gas lighting was introduced in the early 19th century, using gas flames to illuminate stages, and led to the development of limelight and gas table.

Limelight was created by heating a piece of lime with a flame, leading to a bright light, and was used in theatre during the mid-19th century.

Introduced in the 19th century, carbon arc lamps produced bright, intense light by arcing electricity between carbon rods and were used in follow spots and projectors.

Wall-mounted fixtures holding candles or oil lamps; provided atmospheric lighting in theatres and were common from the Renaissance until the 18th century.

A form of horror theatre that used magic lanterns and other optical illusions to create ghostly images; it flourished in the late 18th to early 19th centuries.

Mirrored devices used to reflect sunlight into the theatre, heliostats provided natural lighting for performances when electricity was not available.

Torches were sticks with combustible material at one end and were used for processions and outdoor night scenes in theatre since ancient times.

Tallow candles, made from animal fat, were cheaper but produced a dimmer light and more smoke; used prior to the widespread adoption of beeswax candles.

Metal or glass devices used to direct and intensify light from candles or oil lamps in the 17th and 18th centuries, making illumination more efficient in theatres.

Candles were the earliest sources of artificial light, made primarily from beeswax or tallow. They were widely used since ancient times until the 19th century.

Before artificial lighting, performances were often scheduled by day, utilizing natural sunlight, as seen in the construction of the Globe Theatre (16th century).

Chandeliers, ornate ceiling-mounted light fixtures with candles or gas lights, were a significant source of ambient light in theatres before the electric era.

These lamps, designed to protect the flame from winds, became popular in the 18th century, especially for use in outdoor performances or as stage effects.

Oil lamps used various plant oils and were common from antiquity until the 18th century. They were portable and used widely in theatre lighting.

Footlights are a row of lights across the front of a stage floor, traditionally using candles or gas lamps; commonly used in 17th to 19th-century theatre.

Tools used to extinguish candles safely without creating smoke and smoldering wicks, candle snuffers were an essential part of managing theatre lighting before electricity.

A spherical arrangement of candles or lamps, centrally hung in a theatre to emit light in all directions; an 18th-century precursor to the modern chandelier.