Germany - When Bernhard Paul and André Heller founded Circus Roncalli in 1975, they certainly did not expect to reach such great success. Their first tour began with a world premiere in Bonn on 18 May 1976. Over the years, Circus Roncalli has always been committed to maintaining the classical circus tradition, and its numerous successful tours in Germany and abroad are proof of the exceptional quality of its shows.

The circus was hosted yet again this season by the Musical Theatre Bremen for the event Roncalli meets Classic. During the show, the acts are accompanied by the sound of the Norddeutsche Hanse-Philharmonie (North German Hanseatic Philharmonic). The audience enjoyed a show consisting of several performances revolving around a common theme - fire and ice. They involved top artists and a sophisticated lighting design.

As in previous years, the equipment w

The Netherlands - Following Elation Europe's popular PRO Theme Day seminars in October of last year, Elation Professional is inviting technicians and all interested service professionals to PRO Service Days to be held 6 May (beginner) and 7 May (advanced) at Elation's European headquarters in Kerkrade, Holland.

As Elation continues to expand its market presence across Europe, the company has put in place the service infrastructure needed to support the higher demand for its products. The company says: "Elation is committed to educating service technicians and other lighting professionals in optimal methods of servicing and maintaining Elation products, an initiative the company is supporting with the upcoming PRO Service Days."

May's PRO Service Days will focus on providing in-depth technical knowledge of Elation's Platinum Wash and Spot moving light series. The full

Sweden - One of the last examples of neo-classical architecture in Sweden, The Stockholm Concert Hall was designed by Ivar Tengbom and completed in 1926. Sited near Hotorget Square, the building's monumental facade cuts an impressive figure with its 10 huge Corinthian columns. Its interior is similarly impressive, decorated in part by the work of renowned artists Isaac Grunewald and Edwald Dahlskog.

The Konserthuset comprises three separate halls, the largest of which seats 1770 people. In 1971 the venue was renovated by Tengbom's son Anders with a focus on improving its acoustics. Home to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Concert Hall is the principal venue for orchestral music in Sweden as well as being perhaps most famous for hosting the annual Nobel Prize Ceremony.

The principle issue to be resolved in the Main Hall at the Konserthuset was the need to quite literally l

USA - Sixty Robe Robin Pointes and five Robe Robin DLS Profile fixtures 'rode the rig' at the 2014 Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas throughout the month of March. Locally based LD Systems provided products, technical management and production for the entire Reliant Park and fairgrounds, using new Robe products for nightly performances by star entertainers.

Performers included Brad Paisley, Eli Young Band, Reba McEntire, Usher, Chris Young, Selena Gomez, REO Speedwagon, Jason Aldean, Jake Owen, Maroon 5, Keith Urban, Hunter Hayes, Luke Bryan, Florida Georgia Line, Blake Shelton, Easton Corbin, The Band Perry and Zac Brown Band.

For 20 consecutive nights, the LD Systems lighting team of lighting designer/programmer John Dickson, programmer Nathan Brittain and crew chief Jim Brace worked with a number of guest lighting designers to cap off each

UK - OneRepublic's headlining Native Tour wrapped in the UK 24 March after spending last year circling the globe and breaking new ground as the first tour to utilize Clay Paky's A.leda B-EYE K20 innovative, LED-based moving lights. A complement of Clay Paky Sharpys was also on hand.

The American pop rock band toured Europe, North America, Asia, Australia and New Zealand last year in support of its third studio album, Native. OneRepublic's tour has continued in 2014 with more dates in Europe and the UK.

On this final leg of the tour lighting designer Chris Lisle has carried over a diamond-shaped theme from last year, which features trusses, video screens and even some of the same fixtures. "The show has some big visual moments, so I had to come up with a design to meet that need," he says. "The band likes cutting edge, so using the latest technology

Sweden - Rave reviews greeted the Scandinavian premiere of the musical Rebecca at Malmö Opera in spring 2014. Based on the book by Daphne Du Maurier and Hitchcock's famous thriller, the stage version features a backdrop of sweeping landscapes, crackling fire, wild seas, shattering vases and spinning moons - all created with a four-projector setup under the command of Dataton Watchout multi-display software.

Rebecca: The Musical by Levay and Kunze is heavily influenced by the film version of the original book, with swift cuts to new scenes and sets. To maintain that feel and pace, lighting and set designer Bengt Gomér worked with Malmö Opera's AV coordinator, Joakim Täck, and production company Visual Relief to create a dynamic digital set using Dataton Watchout. The 6m by 17m stage is filled with stills, effects and video footage for the entire performanc

USA - Having worked with the Arnold Sports Festival as its exclusive provider of lighting and staging systems for over 20 years, Live! Technologies, LLC recently took the show to a new level with an array of lighting elements from Martin Professional.

The Live! Technologies team, including Michael Farrell, business development and marketing executive, and Michael Hesmond, lighting programmer, deployed a rig of over 100 Martin lights including 12 Viper Performances, 12 Viper Profiles, six MAC III Performances, 36 MAC Auras, 22 MAC 101s, 12 RUSH MH3 Beams, four Atomic 3000 DMX strobes, 60 EC-10 video panels and one P3-200 Video Processor/Scaler.

The Arnold Sports Festival 2014 took place in Columbus, Ohio in early March, and featured over 800 exhibitors showcasing the latest sports equipment, apparel and nutritional products. The main stage was the centre for non-stop entertainm

USA - LED tape may not get the attention that high beam moving heads or flashy LED backdrops enjoy, but it certainly has its place on live sets as a visually important - and highly cost effective - decorative element. Take Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Jon Secada's show at the Wynn Resort's Encore Theatre in Las Vegas as an example where the Cuban-born singer performed with full backup on a stage composed of seven different levels and custom staircases.

Production/lighting designer Demfis Fyssicopulos used hefty amounts of Elation Flex LED Tape to outline the multi-tiered stage and accentuate the flowing form of the set, lining every curve of the stage and staircase in strips of color that matched the shades coming from the rig and LED backdrop. Besides highlighting the set in dynamic color, the LED border added both height and depth perspective to the stage.

Elation

UK - Congratulations to the winners of the Lighting, Sound and Set Design categories at this year's Olivier Awards, which were presented at The Royal Opera House last night. The White Light Award for Best Lighting was won jointly by two lighting design teams - Paul Pyant and Jon Driscoll for Charlie & the Chocolate Factory at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, and Tim Lutkin and Finn Ross for Chimerica at the Almeida Theatre and the Harold Pinter Theatre.

The Best Sound Design Award also saw two winners - Carolyn Downing for Chimerica and Gareth Owen (on his third Olivier nomination) for Merrily We Roll Along at the Harold Pinter Theatre.

For the XL Video Award for Best Set Design, Es Devlin collected her second Olivier Award, for Chimerica.

Congratulations also to lighting designer Michael Hulls who was awarded for Outstanding Achievement in Da

UK - Maidstone-based production and dry hire specialists, Phonophobia, have made a further investment in the Harman Professional brand portfolio - spearheaded by a Soundcraft Vi1 mixing console.

This is in addition to the slew of Soundcraft products already in inventory. The purchase of an Si Compact 32 was quickly followed by another (to keep up with demand). Then came a Compact Stage Box, a 16-channel Si Compact and a Mini Stage Box.

"These Soundcraft systems have literally been flying out the door," says Phonophobia owner, Mark Chant.

He has now added a 64-input Vi rack to accommodate the increasing capacity requirements, and at the same time is in the process of replacing his wireless mic stock with AKG's frequency agile and securely encrypted DMS700 digital system.

Mark has been running Phonophobia for around 15 years, developing two large warehouses of hire

Voices Off - Kylie Minogue has quit The Voice after one series. The singer joined the BBC talent show last year, replacing Jessie J, and was credited with boosting viewing figures during the first few episodes. However, she said touring commitments meant she would be unable to return for a second series. "Due to timing of my tour I won't be back next season for The Voice UK," she wrote on Twitter. "Thanks to all who supported!"

Common People - The Pulp hit Common People has been voted the top Britpop anthem by listeners of BBC Radio 6 Music, beating Oasis, Blur and Suede to take the title. DJ Steve Lamacq revealed the top 30 as part of a week-long celebration to mark the 20th birthday of Britpop. More than 30,000 people voted, with The Verve's Bittersweet Symphony second and Oasis tracks Don't Look Back in Anger and Wonde

UK - It's that time of the year again - the 7th Knight of Illumination (KOI) Awards has launched and already the entries are flying in. 2014 will see yet another celebration of talented international lighting and digital content designers that have worked in the UK in the sectors of TV, Theatre and Concert Touring and Events.

Not only that, the guest list is open to all who might wish to attend, ensuring that KOI continues to establish itself as a pan industry event. Durham Marenghi, an award-winning lighting designer in his own right and coordinator for the Knight of Illumination Awards, explains: "In just seven years KOI has established itself as a much coveted lighting and video industry award, respected for truly celebrating the art and creativity of lighting, video and show design. In fact so successful has the event been that it was recently referred to in the Guardia

UK - Chauvet Professional is supporting PLASA Focus, Leeds (29 - 30 April, 2014, The Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds), for the third year with platinum sponsorship. The brand is exhibiting on stand N-B12 and will be showcasing the UK debut of the Chauvet Professional Rogue series, as well the latest additions to the Chauvet Professional Nexus series of LED video panels.

The Rogue series features two power output levels of moving head spot fixtures and moving beam luminaires. The four models will take centre stage in Leeds demonstrating their packed feature-set. "Labelled as 'Weapons of Mass Creation' in the Rogue Army, the luminaires are bright and armed to defend the honour of tight budgetary requirements," the company says..

"One of the things that makes Rogue unique is that it offers such outstanding performance and so many features for its price," said Mi

UK - One of the East Midlands largest suppliers of lighting, sound and multi-media for live events, stage shows and corporate functions has announced an important new senior level appointment and the opening of a London office.

LUX Technical Ltd, based in Hinckley, Leicestershire, has recruited Jamie Mangan from the Cameron Mackintosh organisation in London to be its Live Production Director. Jamie is responsible for helping grow and support the LUX Technical client base in London, particularly theatres, trade shows and large companies holding award ceremonies and new product launches.

Jamie has eight years' experience in the production and project management of live shows, most recently for Sir Cameron Mackintosh, who is most famous for producing hit West End Musicals such as Les Miserables and The Phantom of the Opera. Prior to that, Jamie was in involved with the National Y

The Netherlands - Despite only being launched at ProLight+Sound last month, the rapid shipping time of Yamaha's new QL series digital mixing consoles means that they are already at work on productions. One of the first was in the Netherlands, where a high school production of Hairspray was lucky enough to enjoy all the benefits of QL technology.

Kater Audio Techniek is a small production company, based in the Dutch towns of Hillegom and Nieuw-Vennip, which does live sound for mainly theatrical productions. Run by founder and audio engineer Gijs Kater with a group of dedicated freelancers, the company's fleet of Yamaha LS9s is always out on the road.

A confirmed fan of the LS9, Gijs was present at the ProLight+Sound launch of the QL series. This was, he says, followed by a sleepless night as he studied every detail of the new consoles. The next day he returned to the Yam

UK - EarPeace is changing the way people consider their hearing health and the dangers of noise induced hearing loss and raising money for The Amy Winehouse Foundation.

New for 2014, EarPeace have produced exclusive AWF branded EarPeace earplugs and will promote the long-term hearing health of fans via these custom earplugs. 50% of all profit from sales will be donated to the Amy Winehouse Foundation, which supports and runs various projects that aim to support the personal development of disadvantaged young people through music.

"Amy was an exceptional talent and the Foundation has worked hard to not only keep her music and spirit alive, but to also help young people. We are honoured to be supporting such a worthy cause and look forward to educating fans on the importance of protecting their hearing,"

Russia - The Tobolsk Yershov Theatre is thought to be the oldest theatre in Siberia, with performances dating back to the 16th Century. Today, the theatre is one of Russia's most technologically advanced venues, having just undergone a massive reconstruction project that doubled the building's size, added a second stage and upgraded its stage equipment. As part of the theatre's renovation, ETC dealer Imlight installed a lighting system with ETC fixtures, entertainment controls and architectural controls.

The theatre's large hall was expanded and made more flexible thanks to stage machinery that can transform the space into different configurations to fit each event, from big name theatrical performances to puppet shows. Imlight installed nearly 400 theatrical fixtures - including ETC Source Four spotlights, Source Four PARs, Source Four PARNels, Source Four Fresnels and Source F

UK - The Midas XL48 has quickly become the go-to, add-on microphone preamp for Wigwam Acoustics. The company is the first UK rental facility to offer the eight-channel microphone preamp within its rental stock. Wigwam, part of the SSE Audio Group, is one of the world's leading sound companies for rentals, sales and installations - and also a long-time Midas/Klark Teknik user.

"Since we bought it, our Midas XL48 has constantly been in use" says Alex Hadjigeorgiou, Wigwam's resident digital specialist. "McFly, Steps and Ronan Keating have all toured with it, and it's my favorite way of adding eight extra channels to any mixing console, partly because I don't have to "sell" the idea to the engineer. They all respect Midas preamps, especially the XL4 preamps."

"Hadj", as he's known to his friends, recommends and uses the XL48: "If the m

Australia - Kipling's Garage Bar on Sydney's Upper North Shore is a space converted from the shell of a 1920s garage into an industrial chic venue.

Audio for the venue was taken care of by DJW Projects with manager Dave Coxon admitting the job was built on a shoestring.

"However, it shows the reliability of the JBL speakers as the entire system was constructed from pre-loved parts," he commented. "All of the speakers were pre-loved JBL Control 30 speakers with JBL Contractor subs - proof that JBL will last forever. The system is proof that when you buy high quality speakers and look after them they will have at least a 10 year lifetime - even longer if you care for them."

Owner Helen Thompson is delighted with the JBL install by DJW Projects remarking that the sound system really adds to the space, indoors and outdoors.

"It creates an intimate venu

Iceland - As a culmination of two years of touring the world, Icelandic band Sigur Ros completed the last leg with Skan PA using the latest addition to their equipment roster. Always a company that likes to take the empirical approach to new technology, Skan has been running the slide rule over their new D80 amplifiers from d&b audiotechnik.

Skan's system technician for the tour, Tom Tunney, explains their findings, "We took a d&b system out for Sigur Ros late last year. A short run, maybe three weeks, the system was based on J-Series with some Q-Series for fill. We drove the whole PA with D80s.

"The most immediate thing we noticed was an indirect benefit of the active power correction, when we applied the 'pull' on the service with no gain reduction anywhere on the signal path it just sounded clearer. The power saving was also significant; with sixteen J-TOPs a side

UK - As Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway reached its series finale on Saturday 5 April, Unusual Rigging was once again brought on board to ensure that the last Ant v Dec challenge of the season was the most spectacular yet.

Having already worked on the seemingly death defying Men on a Ledge challenge earlier in the series, Unusual's Robin Elias and the ITV production team knew they were going to have to pull out all the stops to ensure the last challenge - The Decider - would be the best yet.

In what was described as the most demanding and ambitious challenge Ant & Dec have faced, the Geordie duo were confronted with a controlled free-fall down the ITV Tower building's lift shafts, stopping at various floors on the way down to complete tasks associated with some of the channel's top shows.

Speaking of the brief presented to Unusual, Robin said, "The ITV produc

UK - Event production and hire company, Epic Production Services, have recently invested in Martin Audio W8LM and WS218X, supplied by LMC Audio London.

Matt Rogers, director of Swindon-based Epic Production Services, did his research before investing in the system, which was purchased from LMC's extensive used equipment stock. Having already used and become familiar with Martin Audio products, he wanted to ensure that W8LM would offer the same level of audio quality. He was not disappointed.

"From the start it became evident that you could hear every detail of the mix through the W8LM system and at no point did I find I was compromised in what I wanted to achieve," says Rogers. "Vocals sit naturally on top with Martin Audio's very crisp and clear high end, whilst the WS218x's offer a massive bottom-end kick."

Last year, X Factor runner-up, Jahmene

UK - Following the tenth series of the hit ITV show The X Factor, the final eight contestants got ready for the X Factor Live Tour, which started in UK arenas in February 2014.

Whilst they prepared themselves for their first real taste of popstar life, the team at Production North were making preparations for rehearsals at LS-Live in Wakefield.

The Leeds-based concert tour and event production company is a long-term client of LS-Live's and has used the facility for the X Factor Live Tour rehearsals for many consecutive years.

Said LS-Live's Bullet, "We've had a longstanding relationship with Ian Whitehead at Production North and he knows that we will do our best to accommodate anything they need on site."

Production North booked the 17,664 sq ft arena rehearsal space from 8-13 February, in addition to five of the en-suite bedrooms on the top

Spain / UK - XL Video has recently supplied LED and plasma screens and control for two separate events for Taiwanese global technology brand HTC - the first was for their exhibition stand at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, followed shortly after by the high profile London launch of the One M8 flagship smartphone at Olympia.

HTC at the 2014 Mobile World Congress, Barcelona took place at the Gran Fira expo centre, with XL working for global brand experience agency SSG Create. XL's Project Manager was Rich Pow.

HTC were revealing their 2014 mid-range portfolio, making their presence felt with one of the larger booth spaces of the show.

XL supplied and ground-supported a prominent 6 metre wide by 3.4 metre high 16:9 aspect ratio 6mm high definition LED screen which was incorporated into the building structure.

Content for the screen was supplied by HTC and played back

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