The main venue was located in three buildings at the Millennium Dome, Greenwich, plus associated marquees. Being designed with a 'village' atmosphere in mind, the Crystal lighting balloons were chosen by lighting designer Jenny Kagan to provide illumination for the links between the site's different areas. She deployed seven 2k halogen and two 1.2k HMI Crystals, all 1.6m in diameter. Although she hadn't used Airstar fixtures before, she said that Crystals proved to be the ideal solution: "Aesthetically, I wanted to combine practical lighting with a celebratory look," she commented. "Using lighting balloons meant we didn't have to use construction industry-type discharge lights, which were the only alternative and would have looked awful. But there were also very practical reasons - the Crystals were ideal for use with the power and rigging positions available." The ease with which the Crystal can be set up and used also brought benefits. Having been given a brief instruction session by Airstar marketing manager Mehran Mehraban, Crisis volunteers were then able to manage the balloons until they were removed from site at the end of event's conclusion.
The 2004 Crisis Open Christmas was deemed a huge success, with over 1,000 homeless people given a warm welcome and nearly 4,500 people volunteering to help.(Lee Baldock)
