USA - Theatrical sound reinforcement and installation company Masque Sound has announced the launch of its Production Services division (MPS). The newly created division provides equipment rentals and production services for live and recorded events for clients outside of Masque Sound’s Broadway theatre productions business. MPS serves shorter term events such as concerts, TV shows, corporate presentations, galas and a range of special events.
The idea of creating MPS began when Masque Sounds’ Matt Dale and AJ Nittoli were providing production services and equipment for a Meyer Sound demonstration in South Carolina. In between system tunings, the duo discussed the possibility of Masque Sound providing services like these as a separate business entity. The concept took off

Columbia - Teatro ABC de Bogota has added Claypaky Axcor Spot and Beam 300 fixtures to its rig to light musical and theatrical performances. Audio Concept de Colombia, S.A., Claypaky’s exclusive distributor in the region, advised on the purchase and provided technical support and service following the installation.
Teatro ABC opened in 2016 in northern Bogota as a multi-faceted cultural space; an extensive remodel in 2018 extended seating to almost 1,000 people and upgraded the technology deployed for a wide range of productions.
Lighting designer Dario Rodriguez, whose credits include working with Madonna, Metallica, U2’s 360 Tour and Cirque du Soleil, believed that Claypaky fixtures would optimise the flexible lighting design the venue requires.
“We went for a brand that could give us local support and new technology,” he says. “Claypaky’s Axcor li

The Netherlands - Dutch popstar, Marco Borsato, recently returned to Rotterdam’s De Kuip stadium for the first time in 15 years to host a five-date concert series featuring an ambitious lighting and video programme. The 50,000-capacity stadium was fitted with a massive 85 x 15m rear wall screen as the backdrop to Borsato’s band and featured an innovative display of lighting and augmented-reality (AR) video images.
Commissioned by Musica è and Mojo Concerts, Faber Audiovisuals supplied the LED screens, play-out, camera, and video facilities, with Visual Solutions and Malfmedia developing the AR and 3D video design, and disguise programming. Faber selected more than 1,000 square metres of ROE CB5 LED screens, four kilometres of ROE LED strips, and 21 cameras, with the strips managed by just seven Brompton Technology Tessera M2 LED processors.
“4000 strips is argu

UK - With today’s temperatures hitting around 104F in some areas of the UK - making it the hottest July day on record - St Ives-based Le Mark Group has come up with an inventive way for its production and warehouse operatives to keep cool: Utility kilts.
Stuart Gibbons, Le Mark’s MD comments: “It’s tough for our production team in this heat. I had seen utility kilts being worn by riggers and technicians in Las Vegas, Dubai and Scotland (of course), but thick woollen tartan can be hot. I was happy to offer these ‘supper cool’ and very well ventilated tough cotton utility kilts to all those operatives that wanted them - free of charge, of course!”
Gibbons continues: “Anything we can do to make life a little more comfortable for our production team, we are happy to offer.”
(LSi Online)

France - The Romanian Embassy was installed in the Palais de Béhague in Paris in 1939. Within its walls is a theatre, built in 1898, called the Byzantine Room, because of its largely Byzantine style decoration. This room can accommodate a variety of different events such as conferences, shows, parades, musical performances or theatre.
When Luca Luculescu the current ambassador, decided to give a second life to this abandoned theatre, he discussed options with Sébastien Collin, co-founder of DID Technology. The goal was to revive the theatre whilst modernising the facilities and developing a versatile solution that could adapt to any type of event that was organised.
For the stage element, eight Prolights Eclipse Fresnel units were selected in variable white along with eight Eclipse HD RGBA / Lime / Royal Blue.
The floor lighting concept incorporated eight Proli
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ETC Halcyon Silent

High End Systems Halcyon Silent builds on ETC’s legacy of fanless automated fixtures by incorporating features from the highly sought-after Halcyon family. Halcyon Silent perfectly balances silent operation with brilliant output of 18,400 lumens and high-impact features. 

For more information visit us at www.etcconnect.com

UK - A.C. Entertainment Technologies (AC-ET) has provided Scottish Opera with a new surtitling system, utilising AlphaPIX2 by Prolights LED video panels.
Founded in 1962, Scottish Opera is Scotland’s national opera company and largest performing arts organisation. With a diverse annual season of productions embracing opera’s unique blend of music, singing and theatre, it is committed to making the art form available to the widest possible audience.
As well as performing its productions in mainstage and other venues across the country, Scottish Opera’s home is the Theatre Royal Glasgow, which last year celebrated its 150th year. Recently the Theatre Royal’s surtitling system was in need of an upgrade after 11 years of service.
Alex Reedijk, general director of Scottish Opera approached AC-ET to discuss alternatives. Chris Beardwell, technical sales execut

USA - Bandit Lites has announced the appointment of long-time Bandit Roth Edwards to the new position of director of operations. Roth has been at Bandit for 20 years and was most recently director of special operations.
Edwards came to Bandit from Grand Island, Nebraska with a keen understanding of the lighting business, a desire to learn more, and a passion second to none. From that point, Edwards quickly ascended the management ladder at Bandit and now sits in a lead role.
“You could never find a smarter, more dedicated person to have on your team or in the trench with you,” said Bandit chair Michael T. Strickland. “Roth has a relentless quest for knowledge and wants to get it right every time. There is no task he will not tackle, and he will always succeed. To add to that, his vast understanding of lighting technology and computer technology is simply stunni
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Create new traditions – Cameo P6 - High Output Full-Spectrum Ellipsoidal

Cameo's P6 is a future-proof LED profiler with a powerful 600 W RGBACL engine and 16,000 lumens. It’s an energy-efficient replacement for 2.5 kW halogen profile lights in theatres and venues. With excellent light quality and natural colour rendering, it fits perfectly in theatres, musicals, TV studios, congresses, and live events.

With an LED life of 50,000 hours and low power use, the P6 cuts energy costs and supports the EU’s ‘Green Deal’ goals for climate neutrality by 2050. It also meets updated eco-design rules for lighting.

www.cameolight.com/p6profile

USA - The team at WorldStage prides themselves in being “technology specialists at heart” and they have the track record to prove it, being among the earliest adapters of a long series of breakthroughs like moving LED fixtures. This summer, the innovative company took another step toward the future, when it added 50 Chauvet Professional Maverick MK3 Profile fixtures to its inventory.
“This is a new technology fixture,” said Terry Jackson, vice president, director of lighting at WorldStage. “We have been searching for a large LED fixture to upgrade some of the older 3K range units we own, and this is it. This will definitely replace several fixtures in our inventory, so we can continue to grow and deliver a better experience to our customers.
“We have already used these fixtures on the DRL/Formula E Kick-Off Party, and we have them ready for additional high

UK - As the contract for the Hyde Park festival site comes up for renewal, all involved in the production of Barclaycard presents British Summer Time can reflect on seven glorious years at a location that had previously been considered unworkable and unviable.
That promoters AEG Live have proven otherwise is due in no small part to the role of their technical contractors, including Capital Sound - whose deployment of the Martin Audio MLA multicellular loudspeaker array technology had proven under test conditions its ability to meet required propagation thresholds, both inside the bowl and beyond the perimeter.
Monitored by acoustics consultants Vanguardia, as it has been every year, MLA - optimised using Martin Audio’s proprietary advanced DISPLAY software - was equal to a wide range of performance over the two weekends - extending from Barbra Streisand, Celine Dion

Singapore - AVL Direct has been appointed for rental sales channels for dBTechnologies, part of the RCF Group, while Loud Technologies Asia continues with installation channels and service centre support.
Long-term dBTechnologies partner Loud Technologies Asia continues to service the installation and SI channels and officially takes on the service centre role for Singapore, while AVL Direct under the helm of Colin Oliveiro has been appointed to service the rental sales channels.
VIO, DVA and other touring boxes require very specialised expertise and a company familiar with the unique needs of the touring market and AVL Direct ticks all the boxes, says the company.
“We are happy to partner with a manufacturer that values long term relationships and considers the perception of the customers in the long term,” says Colin Quek, managing director for Loud Technol

USA - The Who are currently between legs of their 2019 Moving On! Tour, which finds them joined by a local orchestra in each city to present different takes on classics and deep cuts from their extensive catalogue. The Who are carrying a sizeable Adamson E-Series system provided by Cleveland, OH’s Eighth Day Sound.
Chris ‘Chopper’ Morrison, who shares FOH duties with The Who’s long-time engineer, Robert Collins, says that while this is the band’s first full outing to carry an Adamson system, the choice was informed by previous experiences with the E-Series on one-off and festival dates.
“We’ve done a few festivals in Europe the last few years and took note that, if it was an Adamson E-Series rig, it always sounded great. We never had to fiddle with the EQ or anything too much and Robert was always really happy,” the engineer reports. “I knew it would

UAE - German wireless LED lighting specialist Astera has appointed NMK Electronics to distribute its products in the GCC region. The company was founded in 1987 to focus on the professional audio, video and lighting industry. From modest beginnings in Sharjah, UEA, it has grown into a leading distributor of professional AV products and musical instruments throughout the Middle East and is now headquartered in Dubai.
Astera’s range of entertainment and architainment LED lighting has been used to illuminate numerous high profile and world-class events.
“Having simple and powerful control of complex lighting programmes and effects coupled with the portability of Astera means that lighting designers can focus on being creative without worrying about potential limitations like cables and rigging,” stated Darren Caithness, lighting business manager - NMK Electronics. <

Belgium – The highly anticipated Eric Prydz EPIC 6.0 Holosphere debuted at Belgium’s Tomorrowland Festival last weekend, with Eric performing inside a giant video-mapped, 3D transparent LED sphere.
The production was the latest in Prydz’s EPIC (Eric Prydz In Concert) series of visual spectaculars, realised by dream team, long term collaborators Liam Tomaszewski (Punkette), Ross Chapple (RCLD), Mark Calvert and Dave Green (RES) and Bryn Williams (Light Initiative) with the eight-metre-high Holosphere forming the centrepiece of the new design.
“EPIC 6.0 has been two years in the making, starting with conceptual sketches, through to putting together exactly the right team with the skills, know-how and passion to get the project off the ground, and now successfully delivering the show at Tomorrowland,” says Calvert, who has been working with Eric Prydz on the EPI

UK - Lighting and video rental specialist Colour Sound Experiment supplied stage and architectural lighting and LED screen to the 2019 Hampton Court Palace Festival, staged in the Tudor Courtyard of Hampton Court Palace in Richmond, Surrey.
A star-studded line-up for the 2019 season included Kylie Minogue, Nile Rodgers & Chic, Tears for Fears, The Jacksons, Jools Holland and many more.
The event was enjoyed by thousands who flocked to this unique venue to enjoy summer evenings picketing in the gardens and grounds before taking their seats for the evening concerts which ran over a three-week period in June.
Ensuring that everything ran like clockwork onstage was Jonny Gaskell, production manager and production lighting designer, who has worked for the festival for the last seven years. Jonny provides a production design for the stage and lights selected archi

USA - High End Systems has introduced the TurboRay automated luminaire. Offering “a classic retro look with its radial diffusers, TurboRay brings a distinctive appearance to any lighting design”.
High End Systems general manager Becky Koester comments, “We are thrilled to have TurboRay as the first entry back into fixture manufacturing in our Austin, Texas headquarters. The positive reactions we’ve had from lighting designers around the world has been staggering, and we’re very excited to bring this fixture to market.”
Automated lighting product manager Matt Stoner adds, “TurboRay is an awesome new look built on a classic style. Beyond its’ classic and volumetric face look, the fixture employs a powerful LED system with multiple types of colour control. TurboRay gives users a wealth of tools to make any stage more exciting.”
(Jim Evans)

USA - Like a scene from Star Wars or Blade Runner set in the middle of Brooklyn, Jupiter Disco is a refuge for intergalactic bounty hunters, replicants, and thirsty, trend-setting New Yorkers. Celebrated mixologists Maks Pazuniak and Al Sotack opened Jupiter Disco with inspiration drawn from their mutual love of dystopian science fiction.
Danny Taylor, from House Under Magic, designed the sound system for Jupiter Disco, relying on his long history with Danley Sound Labs’ technologies to give the bar impactful, detailed sound with a “grills-off” aesthetic that fits the theme.
“This is Maks and Al’s passion project in a scene filled with taste-makers who are very enthusiastic, but also very critical,” explained Taylor. “Sure, they had to put money into it to pull it off, but the real key to Jupiter Disco’s success is their genuine passion. T

Switzerland - Each August for the past 73 years, the Romanesque Piazza Grande is transformed into the world’s largest open air movie theatre. Flanked by detailed buildings, the piazza provides an enchanting setting for screenings at the Locarno International Film Festival, an event that draws the likes of Harrison Ford, Ethan Hawke and other Hollywood A-listers to this ancient town on the Italian-Swiss border.
Earlier in the summer, this venerable site, which traces its origins back to Roman times, undergoes another transformation, as it is turned into an urban nightclub for the Connection Festival. For two days in June, the sounds or rap, pop, and electronic music resonate off the pastel walls of its buildings, accompanied by intensely bright light from over 40 Chauvet Professional Maverick fixtures, supplied and set up by Fumasoli Audio & Lights Rental.
Enrico

South Africa - As live production stages get bigger, heavier and more complicated with equipment suspended above the audience, safety is imperative. Ilan Bahar from Eilon Ron StageMaster recently visited South Africa, and in conjunction with local distributor DWR Distribution, presented load cell demonstrations to a variety of rental companies in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban.
Eilon, a family business, was established over 40 years ago and their safety monitoring systems are used in diverse applications including entertainment stages, aerospace with sales to NASA, wind turbines and shipment weighing to mention a few.
“The Eilon Ron StageMaster concept is very simple,” said Ilan Bahar. “When you hang equipment above people, you have to know the load of every point because there are limitations, such as the limitations of a roof. You have to make sure that yo

Poland - The mercury hit record highs in Warsaw, while theatre-goers visiting the Stanisław Witkiewicz Studio Theatre were treated to a performance of Cameron Mackintosh’s Les Misérables staged by the Śródmiejski Teatr Muzyczny.
The company - made up from school pupils aspiring to be acting / performance professionals - produces an annual musical which was lit by LD Michal Piskorski who has also lit the previous two such productions, 2017’s Footloose and the Monty Python’s Spamalot. He worked closely with programmer Krzysztof Gantner from the show’s technical sponsor, Prolight, on the spectacle which was directed by Antoniusz Dietzius who also designed the set.
Six Robe T1 Profile moving lights were utilised, provided by Warsaw-based lighting and technical sales specialist Prolight. Also, part of this ‘specials’ package were five R

Malaysia - Malaysiato’s new Fo Guang Shan Hsing Ma Buddhist Temple recently opened in its southernmost city of Johor Bahru. At its core is a soaring Main Shrine Hall, capable of accommodating more than 1,000 people.
The Fo Guang Shan Chinese International Buddhist monastic order is well-known for its use of world-class technology in its temples across the world, including New Zealand, Canada and the UK, and the new Johor Bahru branch is no exception. Its size, shape and materials presented acoustic challenges, leading the technology team to a permanently installed d&b audiotechnik loudspeaker and amplification solution.
Kuala Lumpur-based Chan Lee Sound and Light was first on the scene to identify a system that would fit the bill. Having served as Fo Guang Shan’s rental contractor for a number of years, Chan Lee Sound has used d&b systems on several of the

Germany - Lawo has announced the expansion of its executive management board. Effective since 15 July 2019, Jamie Dunn serves as Lawo’s chief commercial officer. Phil Myers is appointed chief technology officer. Both are joining CFO and director of the executive board Claudia Nowak, COO Ulrich Schnabl, CSCO Christian Lukic and CEO Philipp Lawo, who is still on medical leave.
“This development reflects the continuous execution of our growth strategy and is a natural step in the evolution of our company’s structure. Building strong partnerships based on staying close and accessible has been a core value of the company since its foundation. My new role recognizes the importance to maintain our customer focus as we continue to grow”, says Jamie Dunn who until recently was serving as global head of sales, a responsibility he still maintains.
“Lawo has continually

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