Ken Billington (born October 29, 1946) is an American lighting designer. He began his career in New York City working as an assistant to Tharon Musser.
Early life
Billington was born in White Plains, New York, the son of Kenneth Arthur (an automobile dealer) and Ruth Billington.
Radio City Music Hall, Las Vegas Productions and Other Works
Billington was the principal lighting designer for Radio City Music Hall from 1979 to 2004, where he created the lighting for the world-famous Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes and the Easter Radio City Spring Spectacular. While there, he also created the lighting for the stage adaptation of the 1937 animated musical film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
Billington has worked extensively in Las Vegas lighting nightclub acts for headliners Ann-Margret, Shirley MacLaine, Liberace, Juliet Prowse, Chita Rivera, The McGuire Sisters and more. He has designed for the long-running Las Vegas Spectaculars Jubilee! at Bally's Las Vegas, Siegfried & Roy in Beyond Belief at the New Frontier Hotel and Casino as well as Splash at the Riviera (hotel and casino).
Billington's lighting is featured in the extravaganza Fantasmic! at Disneyland, Shamu Night shows at the Seaworld Parks and multiple shows at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. His architectural designs can be seen in restaurants and clubs from Manhattan to Asia including Tavern on the Green and 54 Below Ken also designed the lighting plot and original design on multiple shows for Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede.
Other projects include lighting the 1975/76 season for the American Shakespeare Festival at Stratford, Connecticut as well as projects such as Turandot at the Vienna State Opera.
Achievements
Billington has been nominated for the Tony Award for Best Lighting Design nine times and in 1997 won for the revival of Chicago, which also garnered him the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design. He won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Lighting Design in 2008 for the Broadway revival of Sunday in the Park with George. Additionally, he has been awarded the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award and Boston Drama Critics Award: acknowledged for notable contributions to theatre lighting.
Ken has received many other awards for his work including the Ace Award (CableACE Award) for Television Lighting and the Lumen Award (Illuminating Engineering Society) for Architectural Lighting.
In November 2015, Billington was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame.
Awards and nominations
Year Title Award Category Result 1974 The VisitTony Award Best Lighting Design 1978 WorkingTony Award Best Lighting Design 1979 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet StreetTony Award Best Lighting Design Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design 1983 FoxfireTony Award Best Lighting Design Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design 1984 End of the WorldTony Award Best Lighting Design 1985 Grind Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design 1997 ChicagoTony Award Best Lighting Design Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design Outer Critics Circle Award Best Lighting Design 2006 The Drowsy ChaperoneTony Award Best Lighting Design in a Musical 2008 Sunday in the Park with GeorgeTony Award Best Lighting Design in a Musical Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Lighting Design 2010 Sondheim on SondheimOuter Critics Circle Award Outstanding Lighting Design 2011 The Scottsboro BoysTony Award Best Lighting Design in a Musical 2013Chaplin Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Lighting Design 2022New York, New York Tony Award Best Lighting Design in a Musical Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design
References
External links
Biography American Theatre Wing The Lighting Archive complete lighting paperwork for Sweeney Todd