USA - Lighting designer Whitney Hoversten is shaping the visual spectacle of Bruno Mars’ shows using Elation Proteus series lighting. From his eight-year residency at Park MGM in Las Vegas to selling out stadiums worldwide, Hoversten has employed the IP-rated Proteus lighting to enhance and complement the global superstar’s performances.
This year began with seven sold-out shows at the Tokyo Dome in Japan, followed by performances in Mexico, Asia, the grand opening of LA’s new Intuit Dome, and regular dates at his Las Vegas residency. He played in Brazil this fall with a record-setting number of shows and will wrap up the year back in Vegas.
Hoversten has been along for the ride for nearly eight years and his position has evolved. Today, he wears many hats including production designer and describes this year’s journey as less of a tour and more of a series of always evolving one-off shows. He notes that the current setup has grown from the 24K Magic World Tour, one of the most successful tours of all time.
Though Mars' popularity has soared since his album debut in 2010, it’s only in recent years that he has filled stadiums. Following one-off stadium shows at Allianz Stadium in Sydney in late 2022 and a series of sold-out performances in Japan, Hoversten says the momentum truly skyrocketed, and stadiums quickly became the new ‘norm’. However, with a packed schedule, the designer had to adapt the design on the fly, utilising existing infrastructure and programming.
As more stadium shows were added to the schedule, it became clear that he needed to elevate the show’s lighting design to a true stadium scale. In late 2023, production manager Joel Forman and Hoversten decided it was time to put an intentional stadium show design together.
“It was very clear that we needed to modernise the design, from the overall shape of things up to the fixtures we were using,” Hoversten stated. “As we played more outdoor stadiums, IP rating became critical, especially for our upcoming shows in Brazil. I found the Proteus Rayzor 760 to be the perfect fit for this next phase of the show’s evolution.”
The limited time frame meant that Hoversten was tasked with designing a show that would use existing assets and infrastructure rather than custom-fabricated pieces.
“Given the nature of the shows, and it not being a formal tour, we knew we were not going to have the luxury of 100+ shows to offset the cost of any specialty custom elements,” Hoversten remarked. “The gear and design had to fit on a plane to accommodate flying almost everywhere, so logistics played a critical role in the design.” Fuse Technical Group is the lighting vendor for Mars’ shows and the designer says they were extremely helpful and accommodating throughout the design process.
The design evolution involved a massive wall of 344 Proteus Rayzor 760 fixtures that debuted at a series of performances at the Tokyo Dome earlier this year. The wall surrounds Mars and his band, with additional lights installed across six overhead trusses. Hoversten says the design stems from direct input from Mars, who is highly particular about the aesthetics and wants to ensure that every show has its big moments. Social media’s influence also played a role, as the performer wanted a backdrop that would look good across all digital platforms from any vantage point in the stadium.
In phase two of the redesign, Hoversten introduced 112 Proteus Hybrid Max fixtures across the wall and overhead trusses.
“We really show the range of what it can do,” Hoversten says. “Tight beams, gobo looks, animation, prism - it’s a Swiss-army-knife of a light.” In a few songs, the fixture’s continuous pan feature adds a new dynamic and feel to the show. “It’s a big look that really gets people’s attention.”
