UAE - SGM Lighting and TechnoPro have agreed a new distribution deal that takes the relationship which the two companies have enjoyed for many years to a new level. SGM's CEO Peter Johansen and TechnoPro founder and chief executive Nabil Bourgeili confirmed an agreement to extend the brand's territorial representation far beyond the UAE, during the PALME Middle East show in Dubai this month.

Under the new ownership of Danish entrepreneur Johansen, the former Italian lighting company is now focusing exclusively on LED fixtures. In fact the launch of next generation LED effects into the Middle East market formed a dynamic component of TechnoPro's massive 1000sq.m display at PALME - making them easily the largest single exhibitor at the show.

Johansen comments: "We are delighted to be partnering again with Nabil, as TechnoPro looks to move further into LED technology and the

UK - The power of visual design in performance is at the centre of a new exhibition created by Edge Hill University students. An innovative selection of work will be unveiled on campus to mark the first ever graduate degree exhibition for those on the BA (Hons) Design for Performance and BA (Hons) Visual Theatre courses.

Launching on 20 May, the work has been designed by the students to showcase how their ideas can shape the creative outcome of theatre and other environmental surroundings.

Imaginative creations on display will include life drawings, costumes and various stage designs which reflect the skills students have developed on their degrees. The exhibition is also a way for students to showcase their talents to potential employers.

Lauren McGowan, who is in her third year on the Design for Performance programme and has led on the project, said, "It is the first

Qatar - During the recent Watch and Jewellery Exhibition in Doha, a gala dinner was held at the Sheraton Hotel, where the evening's entertainment included dramatic performances by aerial artists, dancers and musicians. Essential to the performance were two concentric rings, 8m and 10m in diameter, designed to look like cogs from a watch. Flown above the stage, the 'cogs' appeared to float in mid-air, moving and gyrating in time to the music.

With the original equipment delayed in transit, production manager Romain Rossel of MCI Geneva was put in touch with Unusual Rigging and Engineering, who were able to step in and provide the precise control required for the performance.

Project manager for Unusual Rigging & Engineering Leon Ingram explains, "The rings were suspended from a 10m high ground support system, the movement being provided by 11 hoists. With only days to come

Romania - The impressive Timisoara National Theatre in Romania stands within the Palace of Culture, an arts centre conceived in the Viennese style by architects Hellmerand Felmer, and was opened in 1875 at the height of the Belle Époque. The horseshoe auditorium conforms to the traditional three balcony format, and the stage these days welcomes classical theatre, musical drama, childrens' theatre, and some challenging contemporary works. It has most recently welcomed a small German intrusion, not that this was challenging, but was apparently one that has been on its wish list for some time.

"The main problem of the venue in reference to the acoustics is related to the length of the balconies," said the National Theatre's technical manager. He has a point, the auditorium seats 600 people and is relatively shallow; the balconies are deep and steep. "This make

UK - Icons of British electronic music Leftfield, with the help of Red Bull Studios London, recently curated a special show at London's Brixton O2 Academy in aid of War Child. Leftfield, with a line-up of friends and special guests, provided an impressive show for fans while raising much-needed funds for War Child.

For the event, Prolyte Group supplied two branded versions of its performance platform: LiteConsole. Front fascia panels featuring the distinctive Red Bull and War Child logos were also supplied. During the show, the LiteConsoles were internally lit for maximum visual impact.

Chris Taplin of Shooting Star Productions, responsible for the smooth running of the entire event, stated simply: "We love your LiteConsoles."

Cato Music's Daniel Humphreys, who supplied equipment for the event, added: "For many years we've been searching for a simplified desig

Finland - During the darkest days of winter, Helsinki brightens the nights in an event called Lux Helsinki. This year's event featured a series of architectural lighting installations and fine art performances around town designed to enchant the eye and illuminate the soul.

Lighting consoles from High End Systems, a Barco company, were in command of one of Helsinki's most visible landmarks - the Olympic Stadium Tower - which was transformed into a light installation called the Variant Spectrum.

Lighting designer Jukka Huitila of Sun Effects created the spectrum of colour using LED lighting fixtures and a 12W laser positioned on 22 balconies of the tower. Programmer Sami Rautaneva chose a Wholehog 3 console and a DP8000 to programme and run the LED fixtures, set up in two universes. A Road Hog Full Boar helped with the first day's focusing and setup procedures, and also

UK - Bristol-based event production company SXS was recently commissioned by the Royal Borough of Greenwich to provide sound and full technical production for the royal unveiling of the Cutty Sark in Greenwich. This followed a £50m restoration project as a result of fire damage to the 143-year-old clipper back in 2007.

SXS were tasked with constructing (and dressing) a dais stage, while the PA was provided by the company's new Martin Audio W8LM line array system supplied by dealers, LMC Audio.

The production company deployed a total of 12 W8LM Mini Line Array enclosures in two hangs, with two W8LMD Downfills at the base of each hang. This was driven by Lab Gruppen FP series amps and controlled using XTA DSPs.

Attended by both the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, the launch took place at the Cutty Sark Gardens and the event included a 90-strong symphony orchestra and a

UK - GDS and Gloucestershire-based Chinnick Theatre Services (CTS) recently commissioned a complete re-fit of the Bacon Theatre's house light system.

The Bacon Theatre sits in the grounds of Dean Close School in Cheltenham. Built in 1991 it owes its name to Mr Christopher Bacon, former headmaster of the independent School. Mr Bacon fundraised tirelessly to build the Bacon Theatre which is used as a resource by Dean Close School pupils as well as hosting the best of professional touring theatre, live music, dance, film and accommodating local talented youth, community groups and charities.

The GDS engineering team visited the site with CTS in the summer of 2011 and designed the 566-seat theatre a retrofit house lighting solution, incorporating its ArcSystem LED auditorium lighting fixtures. The theatre had in place an ageing track light system which was proving increasingly dif

USA - Andrew Lloyd Webber and Time Rice's Evita has returned to Broadway for the first time in 30 years, in a new production directed by Michael Grandage, choreographed by Rob Ashford, designed by Christopher Oram with lighting by Tony- and Olivier-award winning lighting designer Neil Austin - who received both Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle nominations for the show's lighting.

To keep track of that lighting as it was created and then what for what looks certain to be a long, successful run, Austin and his team turned to FocusTrack to document the lighting rig, and to SpotTrack to document the show's four followspots.

The rig itself is made up pre-dominantly of tungsten moving lights, including ETC Revolutions, Martin TW1s, Vari-Lite VL5Bs and DHA Pitching Digital Light Curtains, with some discharge punch then provided by VL1000AS fixtures and PRG's new Best Boy 40

South Africa - Allen & Heath's GS-R24 Firewire recording mixer has been installed in the main recording studio at the Campus of Performing arts (COPA) in Johannesburg, as a teaching console and to manage music students' projects.

"I needed a mixer to satisfy my students' obsession for all things digital, and to teach them the value of what they call 'old school'. Enter the GS-R24, new kid on the block and what I believe to be the future of modern recording consoles," explains COPA's head of production, Neill Pash.

"Everything the modern day producer and musician needs has been included in this little gem: musical fully parametric EQ, two great-sounding onboard valve pre-amps which also serve as instrument DI's, with onboard MIDI control of your DAW including transport and plug-ins, automated flying faders (GSR24-M) and the flexibility to route your DAW effects o

Sweden - The annual Melodifestivalen, takes over Stockholm's largest performance venue to decide who will represent the nation at Eurovision. This year, rental company Starlight filled the Ericsson Globe Arena with Nexo Geo T and S8 line arrays.

Starlight, a regular supplier for the Melodifestivalen, provided Nexo sound reinforcement for the four semi-final events as well as the grand finale in the 16,300-capacity Globe. This year saw singer Loreen triumph over the other nine acts, as the jury and public votes sent her on her way to represent Sweden in Baku, Azerbaijan, at the end of May.

Starlight's system design for the Stockholm Globe centred around a main PA using 60x Geo T4805 and 14x Geo T2815 down-fill cabinets, mainly comprising front and side-arrays of 15-18 modules each. Nexo CD18 subs were flown left and right, in lines of six, with additional units at ground level.

Arts Funding - Public support for government funding of the arts has fallen significantly during the recession, according to research published by Arts Council England.

ACE's Stakeholder Focus Research reveals that 44% of the general public support government subsidy of the arts, down from 52% when the research was last carried out in 2009. Only 12% strongly support it - down from 16% in 2009 - while 19% of the population oppose it - up from 14% in 2009 - and 7% strongly oppose it, up from 5%.

The results also reveal the public generally believes subsidy should be used to widen access to arts events, with the least popular aim of public funding being "supporting artists and arts organisations to take risks and try new things out". Elsewhere, the research shows that within the industry, there is widespread support for ACE, with 71% of the arts sector and partners repo

USA - Richard Pilbrow, founder of Theatre Project Consultants (TPC) and one of the world's leading theatre design consultants, will give the keynote address at the North American Theatre Engineering and Architecture Conference (NATEAC) in New York City on July 22.

The conference, scheduled for Sunday and Monday, July 22 and 23, 2012, promotes communication between the architects, engineers, consultants, and manufacturers responsible for designing and building new theatres and renovating existing performance facilities in North America.

Pilbrow will speak at the conference's opening session on July 22 at 9:30 a.m. at the New York Hilton Hotel, 1335 Avenue of the Americas. The session is open only to registered attendees. To register for the conference, visit www.nateac.org/register.htm.

Early in his career, Pilbrow was selected by Laurence Olivier to be the lighting designer

UK / France - Entec continued its supply of full production to a string of high profile shows for major international superstars with Japanese rockers L'Arc-en-Ciel.

Entec provided lighting, rigging, sound equipment, and crew, plus site and local co-ordination services for shows at Le Zenith in Paris and Indigo at the O2 Arena in London, and arranged pyrotechnics, video, trucking and buses.

L'Arc-en-Ciel, formed in 1991, have sold over 13m albums and 16m singles and are completing a monumental world tour celebrating 20 years at the very top of Japanese pop / rock.

Entec's project manager Noreen O'Riordan received the call from the band's production director Richard Ames. His relationship with the company dates back many years, and Entec handled full production and co-ordination for him on two massive X-Japan shows last year.

As well as supplying sound, lighting and rigging

USA - Professional Wireless Systems (PWS), a Masque Sound Company and specialists in supplying and supporting wireless systems for live and broadcast events, has been providing wireless solutions and gear onsite at the Billboard Latin Music Awards for the past 13 years. This year, during the ceremony at the BankUnited Center in Miami, the PWS team, including Brooks Schroeder and James Stoffo, created a custom wireless communications package for the show, with the company's frequency coordination team working backstage to ensure all wireless operations went off without a hitch.

"This year's package included all of the wireless microphones, in-ear monitors and IFBs for the technical production and musical elements, as well as the wireless communication for the production crew for both the main show and pre-awards red carpet show," says Brooks Schroeder, project ma

USA - Chauvet SlimPAR Pro Tri wash lights uplight the obstacle courses used in the filming of G4's and NBC's American Ninja Warrior. The television show, billed as the "world's most difficult and action-packed obstacle course competition series", gives everyday men and women from across the country the opportunity to compete for glory, the 'American Ninja Warrior' title and a cash prize.

Lighting designer Adam Biggs and lighting director Ed Motts use 225 Chauvet SlimPAR Pro Tri wash lights, supplied by Felix Lighting, during the Southwest Region finals, held on the historic Venice Beach boardwalk.

The obstacle course is a study of truss sculptures, uplit by the low-profile fixtures, set among an arduous course of ramps, platforms, beams and more, all atop pools of water supporting the competition's one rule: 'don't get wet'

"SlimPAR Pro Tri is ideal for

UK - After providing a JBL solution over two floors at Will Ricker's burgeoning Shoreditch haunt, The Great Eastern Dining Room, Colin Pattenden's CP Sound has now equipped Ricker Restaurants' latest enterprise, La Bodega Negra Mexican restaurant in London's Soho district.

The two-in-one operation boasts a cafe/taqueria on the ground floor and restaurant lounge down in the basement, each served by its own separate entrance; in keeping with Soho's heritage, it presents a sleazy sex shop fascia at its Old Compton Street entrance.

In total, CP Sound has used more than 20 JBL Control 25 loudspeakers, with the entire venue system powered by 12 Crown XLS DriveCore 1000, 1500 and 2000 amplifiers and processed with three dbx DriveRack PA+ devices, all supplied by Sound Technology.

Pattenden has used JBL's JBL Control series on numerous occasions in the past, specifying them for thei

UK - One of London's top rehearsal studios has upgraded its flagship Studio A with end-to-end RCF TT+ active loudspeakers.

Charlie Barrett, who has run Terminal Studios for the past 28 of its 33 years, has been heavily committed to providing leading edge PA systems for its premier clientele, since moving the business to Bermondsey in 1990. Last month he introduced line array technology, commissioning six RCF TTL33-A active enclosures - three elements a side - and two ground-stacked TTS28-A subs to maintain their competitive edge.

It was in the early 90s that Barrett started to periodically renew the technical infrastructure but recognised recently that his trusty 12-year-old system had reached end of life.

"I have always been a bit of a gear nerd and having a good PA that would keep us ahead of the game has always been our USP."

A couple of years ago he made his

The Netherlands - Royal Philips Electronics has announced the 200th licensee to sign up to its LED luminaire and retrofit bulb licensing program. Paulmann Light GmbH has gained access to Philips' portfolio of patented LED technologies and solutions offered in the licensing program. The announcement marks a significant milestone in the Philips LED luminaire licensing program, enabling and fostering the industry's growth in its transition from conventional lamps to energy efficient LED-based lighting solutions.

Arian Duijvestijn, senior vice-president of Philips Intellectual Property & Standards said: "As the market leader in LED lighting technology, we are opening up the market for LED lighting to companies and customers around the world through our LED luminaire licensing program. We are delighted to welcome Paulmann as our 200th licensee. This is a landmark moment for the

India - Alcons Audio has opened a direct office presence in India, offering customers full factory support. The Dutch manufacturer will be operating out of Mumbai and Bangalore initially, with expansion planned to other cities in the near future.

"Alcons is installing systems around the world and it was high time we entered an important market like India," says co-founder and managing director Tom Back. "Having successfully established our American presence, India is the next step. It is an important growth market - like Brazil, China, US and Europe - and since we didn't have a distribution presence here we have set up a direct office."

"A quality brand like Alcons requires direct factory support so that we can give reliable and sustainable technical advice and customer support," says Alcons Audio India MD John-Paul Douma. "It is a commitment

Australia - Australia's Got Talent is an Australian reality television talent show based on the Got Talent series format that originated in the United Kingdom with Simon Cowell. The Australian production is produced by Freemantle Media for the 7 network and has become one of the leading rating variety shows.

Showtech Australia is working on the sixth season of AGT which is filmed at the Dockland Studios in Melbourne.

For this season Showtech is providing the automation system for the entire series. This consists of differing winches and other equipment from the hire stock held in Showtech's Melbourne base and controlled by a Stage Technologies console running eChameleon software. The winches will be used for flying aerial effects, specialist performances and stunts.

Australia's Got Talent is a challenging show for the production team. The nature of the s

Germany - Persian singer Googosh preformed a rare live concert in Hamburg recently. Soundart GmbH & Co. from Bochum deployed an Aero 50 Line Array system by D.A.S. Audio for the event at Hamburg's O? World arena.

Lars Schnier, D.A.S. Audio system engineer in Germany, opted for a left/right configuration of 10 Aero 50 units on each side of the stage as the main PA system, plus eight Aero 12A systems as PA out-fill. The system was supplemented by 15 LX-218A powered subwoofers in cardioid formation with the aim of limiting the low end to just the stage. The self-powered Aero 50 system was operated using 16 Lab.gruppen FP 10000Q amplifiers and four Lake LM 26 processors, which actively powered Aero 12A systems via two D.A.S. DSP-4080 system controllers.

Lars Schnier commented, "Thanks to the very useful planning tool offered by D.A.S. Audio, we were able to determine all of t

UK - A.C Entertainment Technologies (AC-ET)'s audio division will be hosting two dedicated open day events in conjunction with Yamaha to showcase the manufacturer's highly anticipated new Yamaha CL series of digital mixing consoles, which were recently unveiled for the first time at the Prolight & Sound exhibition in Frankfurt.

The open days will be held on Tuesday 29 May in Leeds and Thursday 28 June in High Wycombe, at AC-ET's demo facilities.

AC-ET is amongst the first of a selection of high-end UK Yamaha dealers to take stock of these brand new cutting-edge consoles, recently receiving delivery of the CL5 flagship model.

The Open Days will each consist of three identical sessions, scheduled for 11am, 1pm and 3pm - designed to give maximum flexibility for interested parties to fit into their busy schedules.

The programme for each session will include showing the CL Seri

Poland - PGE Arena Gdansk - one of the most modern sports stadiums in Europe - is preparing for the upcoming UEFA Euro 2012 Football Championships. The stadium was equipped by TRIAS S.A. with technical and multimedia solutions. The company was responsible for design and integration of technical systems within the scope of fixed audiovisual, lighting, safety systems, IT installations as well as management systems.

TRIAS S.A. is the official technology partner of the stadium and the general contractor of the tele-technical systems. For the next five years TRIAS will also supervise the correct functioning of the installed electronic systems.

During Euro 2012 PGE Arena Gdansk will host three group games as well as a quarter final. Designed in a manner to resemble the colour of Baltic amber, the arena can seat up to 42 000 spectators.

TRIAS equipped the stadium with four diode sc

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