Ghost light

Our ghost light during Temple Theatre's production of "Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Jersey Lily"For reasons both practical and sentimental, a lamp is placed center stage and left there to burn continuously whenever the house is dark during the run of a show.

It’s called the “ghost light”.

Temple Theatre’s ghost light will burn for three full days this week, Monday through Wednesday, as we wait out the first of two performance breaks scheduled before “Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Jersey Lily” closes April 6.

The typical ghost light is a length of steel pipe with a bare bulb at one end and a weighted base at the other. Ours is a period floor lamp. A nod to … what would it be? … light-heartedness? … and a private nod at that, since no member of the audience will ever see it.