The tour features a show-stopping stage design by Stufish (Mark Fisher) based on the shape of a conch shell, with a spectacular, gently asymmetric 55m wide, 3000sq.m Barco MiTrix screen forming its backdrop. At the rear of the screen are seven curved metal 'ribs' of varying heights up to 28m.
Thirty-three of the 50 Robe fixtures are attached to these seven ribs, with the balance of 17 ColorSpot 2500E ATs sited on the floor, upstage of the band's performance platform, and providing a powerful back-lighting source.
The towers were a starting point for Woodroffe's initial lighting design. The idea was that they would encompass the stage architecture, and that lights mounted on special pods rode up and down the ribs to change the scale of the space.
Fisher developed these ribs (complete with tracking light pods) into the sculpted elements framing the screen's sweeping curvature. Woodroffe and Fisher once again found themselves collaborating very closely to develop these creative concepts, in the process amalgamating the live show, lighting and video effects a seamless fusion of visual elements.
(Jim Evans)
