Lighting

Chris Curran Joins TMB UK

Details: 14 March 2016

TMB has announced the hiring of the company’s first ever Australian employee, in a move which, they say, "will live in infamy." As part of TMB’s continuing worldwide expansion, Chris Curran has joined the sales team at TMB UK. Curran has an extensive background in professional lighting and rental operations down under, with four years as operations manager for Chameleon Touring Systems, and two-years as rental manager for Graftons Lighting. He has also had a long-standing relationship as a customer of TMB. While on walkabout in London, he stumbled into Paul Hartley, TMB’s European general manager, in a pub, and the next day woke up with a hangover and a job! In the words of Tony Davies from Chameleon: "Sometimes, to move backwards, you have to take a step forwards."

"TMB has always been rampantly anti-Australian, even before last year’s

Club ship AIDAvita at sea with two grandMAs on board

Details: 14 March 2016

The AIDAVita provides those event oriented cruise ship vacation-goers the best of two worlds, offering an active club vacation combined with all the amenities of a traditional four star cruise ship. And speaking of amenities, the easy operating capability was also the main reason why two grandMA lighting control systems are among the top items in the cruise ship’s equipment specification list.

The ship’s on-board theatre has a seating capacity of 650. Every evening the theatre offers 12 shows and professional entertainment running every hour. Hilton Jones was responsible for the theatre lighting design and grandMA provided the control. Altogether, console operator Joe Gruber programmed over 1,800 cues, 80 sequences, and 120 macros. The grandMA - supplied by Amptown Hamburg - runs 46 moving lights, 132 channels for conventional lighting and 54 non-dim circuits.

This was th

LDR lights the Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao

Details: 14 March 2016

Italian luminaire manufacturer LDR has provided, via its Spanish dealer Prolighting, 100 units of its brand new Rima 500 floodlight, in white finish, for the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. The lighting is being used to highlight two major exhibitions at the museum. The first is titled ‘Paris: Capital of the Arts, 1900-1968’, and traces the major developments in painting and sculpture which took place in Paris throughout the first seven decades of the twentieth century. The second is ‘Pictures of the Surface of the Earth’, a collection of photographs by the German artist and film director Wim Wenders, who began taking photographs back in 1983. From the start, he has brought his unique sensibility to focus on the villages and landscapes of the United States and Havana, the forests and temples of Japan, the coast of Galilee and the endless roads of the deserted Austral

Light Relief - support for June!

Details: 14 March 2016

Light Relief is delighted to have received a number of donations last month thanks to Forester Health, the STLD and BKSTS. Krystyna Gibbons of Forester Health took Matthew Griffiths, managing director of PLASA, completely by surprise at the Association's AGM on June 14, presenting him with a cheque as the company's first contribution to Light Relief.

As part of the Forester Health Cash Plan offered to PLASA members, which was launched at PLASA 2001, £1 is donated to Light Relief for every new member of the scheme. The scheme, which is being continued at this year's show, offers members a range of cash refunds for basic healthcare needs not funded by the NHS, such as dental treatment, eyesight tests, physiotherapy and reflexology. It also provides much-needed financial help in the event of hospitalisation, an accident or the birth of a child. Whereas private medical insurance is basic

The stylish and powerful Wholehog III was previewed at LDI in Orlando last year. (photo: PLASA Media)

Flying Pig Systems' Wholehog III now shipping

Details: 14 March 2016

The much-anticipated Flying Pig Systems Wholehog III console is now shipping with version 1.0 software. The first five US Wholehog III consoles and DP2000 DMX processing units were passed through High End Systems' Austin Quality Control before being shipped to their various beta test locations nationwide. This delivery follows the placement of several beta consoles throughout the UK and Europe. HES’ Brad Schiller is managing the beta launch in the US, while Lee House is handling it in the UK.

The response from the beta test program led to the release of Wholehog III software version 1.0. As Robert Mokry, Wholehog III product launch manager, told us: "The beta test program yielded great results. The idea behind V1.0 software is to release a reliable build that offers the core features users must have to do a show, with features such as XYZ positioning and Hog II show import s

Albany Theatre Reborn

Details: 14 March 2016

The renowned Albany Theatre in Deptford, south-east London, has recently undergone a complete technical refurbishment.

Opened on its present site in 1982, The Albany established a formidable reputation for itself in the 1980s as a thriving community theatre with the backing of some big names. But as the years passed, lack of funding took its toll and the theatre fell into disrepair, its equipment failed or was removed, and eventually, in 2000, it succumbed to darkness.

Since then, an energetic campaign to bring it back to life has seen the birth of a three-phase refurbishment programme, most of which is now complete. Thus, the Albany opened its doors again in March, boasting a fully refurbished interior, revamped flying grid and brand new sound, lighting, comms and patching systems with names such as Meyer Sound, XTA Electronics, MC2, Yamaha, ETC and Strand in the rig.

The team re

Skyhigh FX demonstrates on Salisbury Plain

Details: 14 March 2016

Working closely with Army co-ordinators, Skyhigh was recently asked to simulate enemy fire at close quarters to the thousands of spectators, providing heavy artillery explosions as little as 50 metres from the public. The British Army’s showcase event for 2002 - ‘ARMY 2002’ - was the most action-packed event of the year, with the only ‘All Arms’ firepower demonstration ever mounted for the public.

With almost every weapon in the British Army’s inventory taking part, tanks, artillery and infantry, supported by attack helicopters, transport aircraft and fast jet bombers, the audience saw, and very definitely heard, one of the largest demonstrations of military might ever seen in Europe. The ‘Live Fire’ demonstration took on the scenario of three enemy encampments located 6, 7 and 8km away with units from the Royal Artillery, Army Air Corp a

Sophie Ellis Bextor

Details: 14 March 2016

Now here’s a thing: the ‘It’ girl Sophie Ellis Bextor, diva of the dancefloor with her Julie Andrews voice and lounge lush livery, sidles off stage at the end of song six and we’re treated to a guitar solo.

And not just any solo, this was raunchy, rocky, postured and powerful. Frankly, this caught the crowd completely unawares, even though there had been a clue it was coming: the opening number Sparkle was similarly endowed with a power pop melody and a thickly textured rhythm section, more Sweet’s Suicide than Siren of Style. What to think?

The audience didn’t seem to mind: here we had a mixture of sub-teens, mainly self-conscious girls still wearing LED flashing antenna from the S Club gig a fortnight earlier (these disappeared very quickly once the grown up audience arrived and they realised how uncool this made them look); a fair contingency o

Promotion at Andolite

Details: 14 March 2016

Andolite, the manufacturer of internally wired lighting bars, standard and custom panels and power distribution units, is pleased to announce the appointment of Paul Ayling as Operations Director. Ayling has been with Andolite for 14 years and has considerable experience in the company's products and manufacturing process.

(Lee Baldock)

Wybron has six of the best

Details: 14 March 2016

Wybron will be showing six products, including the award winning Eclipse II iris douser and Moiré gobo rotator.

Eclipse II is a DMX-controlled system that does mechanically what can’t be done electronically - it mechanically dims HMI and other ‘non-dimmable’ lights. The Eclipse II Iris douses the light while the power stays on using fins in an aperture-like configuration to provide dimming with no loss of light. The award-winning Moiré is Wybron’s first dual gobo rotator, enabling users to rotate and change two B-sized glass or metal gobos. Controlled by a simple toggle switch, the two gobos are operated independently and can be rotated together, in opposite directions or with one static and the other moving.

Wybron’s CXI colour changer uses two colour scrolls, made up of graduated frames of cyan, yellow and magenta, to create virtually every colour o

Designer Lighting

Details: 14 March 2016

The Designer Outlet @ The Lowry is the new £90million waterside shopping and leisure ‘destination’ in Salford Quays. It’s the latest spur of a regeneration programme that has seen the former Docks - once Britain’s third busiest port - transform itself into a three-mile waterfront for leisure, business and residential use.

Note the word ‘destination’, because it’s entirely appropriate for the modern retail experience. And the Designer Outlet - a project undertaken by Orbit Developments (Manchester) Ltd - is as much a destination as it’s possible to be, as witness its recent opening marked by the imaginative use of exterior colour changers.

Both the exterior and interior lighting scheme for the project was devised by Into Lighting Design’s Northern Studio in Nottingham, and supplied and installed by A.C. Lighting.

The exterior

Light Relief

Details: 14 March 2016

Literally bringing light relief to PLASA visitors and exhibitors alike will be a massage area on the mezzanine level adjacent to the main escalator from the lobby where it is hoped both upper body and foot massages will be on offer. The space is being provided by PLASA itself, with the additional costs being taken on by sponsorship. All proceeds on the day will go directly to the Light Relief charity to help further its work in the industry, providing support to lighting designers when they have personal difficulties.

What's more, US glass-gobo manufacturer, Apollo, has offered to make any number and size of gobos featuring the Light Relief logo, the idea being that as many exhibitors as possible will use them in their on-stand demos.

Color Kinetics introduces ColorPlay 1.8

Details: 14 March 2016

Color Kinetics has launched ColorPlay 1.8, the next generation of its ground-breaking lightshowauthoring software for use with its range of intelligent LED illumination fixtures. Since its original launch in 2000, ColorPlay has gained a loyal following and reputation as an intuitive, user-friendly method of creating dynamic light shows for Color Kinetics intelligent LED illumination products, say CKI. With menus written in plain English, ColorPlay uses a graphical timeline-based show management system and includes a wide array of lighting effects and functions. ColorPlay outputs DMX512 data, enabling the creation of smooth, fluid lighting effects.

New features on ColorPlay 1.8 include:
- Show Simulation feature incorporated on the Mapping screen so designers can get a feel for how the show will look in its intended layout, without having to physically be there;
- Seek Slider in

ETC goes for Smart move

Details: 14 March 2016

ETC will be featuring three of its latest products at PLASA - the new SmartPack; MultiPAR, making its first UK appearance and Emphasis, which was extremely well received at the recent ABTT show in June.

Bringing the Sensor-dimming level of technology to portable dimmer packs, SmartPack is a thyristor-based, professional-quality dimmer that can go anywhere. Very compact (19-inch 2U rack mount), SmartPack is available with either six 15A dimmers or 12 10A dimmers and is ideal for smaller studios and theatres, touring companies, small road shows and band gigs.

The Source Four MultiPAR combines the unsurpassed optics and energy-savings of the acclaimed Source Four PAR (EA) with the functionality and flexibility of the classic batten. It is available in 3-, 4- or 12-lamp strips, as well as a 3x3 version with in-line switches. For lighting venues with unique needs, ETC also offers the Sou

White Lights from White Light for ROH

Details: 14 March 2016

White Light lived up to its name - literally - recently, with White Light Sales and The Moving Light Company supplying white StudioSpot moving lights to the Royal Opera House.

The Moving Light Company have been closely involved with the Royal Opera House since its refurbishment, supplying automated lighting equipment ranging from the first City Theatrical Autoyokes in the UK to custom tungsten and HMI moving fresnels created from Light Technik yokes. The Moving Light Company also provide service and support for all of the House's automated lighting equipment.

With the Opera House now extending its use of automated lighting equipment beyond the theatre itself, the ROH's David Harvey turned to The Moving Light Company again. This time, the request was for moving lights to be used as part of the architectural lighting system for the Floral Hall, next door to the Opera House. The complic

David Oberman joins PRG as senior vice-president

Details: 14 March 2016

David Oberman has joined PRG as senior vice-president of business development and will be based out of the Fourth Phase office in Burbank, California. Oberman was formerly the COO and president of the Obie Company, an industry leader in concert lighting, for 28 years. He made his mark as a pioneer in the use of theatrical lighting and rigging techniques, which led the company to win the contracts for major events such as the Olympic Games, the Papal Visits and the Grand Prix.

In his new role, Oberman will join the senior management team, and will focus on developing strategic relationships and exploring new markets for all the companies within the PRG Group. "We're very excited about David coming on board," says Jere Harris, Chairman and CEO of Production Resource Group. "His experience and reputation in our industry is a complementary addition to PRG."

(Ruth Ross

The MP 700 Zoom from Italian manufacturer Coef.

COEF Launches MP 700 Wash

Details: 14 March 2016

Hard on the heels of the successful MP 700 Zoom, the latest product from Coef is the new MP 700 Wash - a spot of minimal weight offering a high light output, CMY colour mixing and a comprehensive range of functions. And all this in a fixture measuring just 56cm high, 37cm wide and 45cm deep, and weighing in at just 28.5kg. But there is more to the MP 700 than its technical specifications alone, for this lightweight fixture is also notable for its modern stylish design.

Stand C32

Juliat: spreading spots around the UK

Details: 14 March 2016

Since becoming the sole UK distributor for the Robert Juliat range of lighting equipment just over a year ago, While Light Sales has met considerable demand for these high-quality products - with over 100 lanterns being supplied in the last few months alone.

The bulk of these have gone to the National Theatre, where lighting project manager Mike Atkinson and Lyttelton Theatre head of lighting Paul McLeish specified 76 Juliat 710SX 2000W 10/25 degree zoom profiles as part of the reworking of the lighting rig made necessary by the Lyttelton Theatre's change of format for the National's current Transformation season. The 710SXs have replaced many of the theatre's older Strand Cadenza lanterns, and have already been put to use in shows including The PowerBook, A Prayer for Owen Meany and The Adventures of the Stoneheads.

Elsewhere the baby Foxie 700W MSD followspot has proved popular wit

Lighting designer Ken Billington (right) with Alexander Rubin.

Chicago in Moscow

Details: 14 March 2016

Kino Proekt Engineering is set to become ETC's first Authorised Service Centre (ASC) in Russia. Already a customer of ETC, Kino Proekt is installing three racks of 96-channel Sensor dimmers, an Obsession II control console and ETCNet2 DMX Nodes in Moscow's Variete Theatre, ready for the touring Broadway musical Chicago, which opens there in September.

Kino Proekt's Alexander Rubin timed his first ASC Technician training visit to ETC in London so that he could also see the London production of Chicago and meet with the show's lighting designer Ken Billington to discuss the lighting rig for the Moscow production. Ken (pictured with Alexander, left, on the set of Chicago at the Adelphi Theatre) has lit every production of Chicago since it opened on Broadway in 1996, and his compelling design won him both a Tony and a Drama Desk award in 1997.

When Chicago lea

LDPS New Zealand goes live

Details: 14 March 2016

Leading technical design consultancy LDPS has opened an office in New Zealand, to service clients in Australasia, the Pacific Rim and the Far East. The move follows four years of LDPS operation in Ireland and the UK, which will continue to be directed from the Cork office. LDPS’s Grant Collie told us: "I’ve had incredibly positive feedback on the New Zealand office and on the business we will be doing in these territories. I’m already working on several projects."

LDPS NZ will concentrate on the company’s core business as a performance venue technical consultancy. The team specialises in all aspects of design including sound, lighting, multi and mixed media facilities, audio-visual and stage technology. Working in the Southern Hemisphere will also give LDPS the opportunity to expand it's service to sports facilities, in particular the design of public

DHA Lighting gets interactive

Details: 14 March 2016

The theme of DHA’s stand at the PLASA Show this year will be very different to previous years and will be designed to show off the company’s products to best effect. New for PLASA will be a CD-ROM version of the moving effects catalogue, bringing to life what has, up until now, only been offered in paper format. The new CD will be very visual, highly animated and interactive, showing the endless number of effects that can be achieved with different gobo combinations.

Stand F14

CDA welcomes Bill Bell

Details: 14 March 2016

Coemar De Sisti Australia has appointed Bill Bell to the position of national sales executive. Bell will provide a great deal of industry experience to the company’s sales team and will promote the entire range of products and services to clients, with particular focus on projects.

(Lee Baldock)

PLASA Initiatives: gobos and massage for Light Relief

Details: 14 March 2016

Light Relief, the industry charity that supports lighting designers with personal difficulties, has announced two major initiatives to raise awareness during the PLASA 2002 show this September - one aimed at exhibitors and the other for visitors.

The first - ‘Gobos for Light Relief’ - is encouraging as many PLASA exhibitors as possible to use Light Relief coloured glass gobos as part of their on-stand demonstrations. "Visitors will be confronted by a large projection of the logo at the front of the hall as they arrive", explained Tony Gottelier, co-founder of Light Relief. "The idea is that by encouraging exhibitors to participate, visitors will see the same image repeated all over the exhibition - we need to raise awareness of Light Relief and this is set to make a huge impact."

The idea is sponsored by Apollo Design Technology, the Indiana-based manu

Avolites leads lighting control at Glastonbury

Details: 14 March 2016

Avolites' products once again proved their great versatility and popularity in festival situations at Glastonbury 2002. With 13 Avo consoles specified for 11 different arenas at the world famous event, Avolites did its bit to ensure that 130,000 people and many leading performers from around the world had a fantastic festival. Avolites’ Steve Warren, Koy Neminathan, Nick Forro and Ben Miles were happy to spend five unwashed days providing technical support and having a good time! On the Pyramid (main) Stage, Neg Earth lights was the main lighting contractor, and the overall lighting was designed and overseen by Phil Freeman. He used two Avolites Diamond 3's to control the substantial production lighting rig, used to illuminate the likes of Coldplay, Faithless, the Stereophonics, The Charlatans, Rod Stewart and Roger Waters. Fixtures included Martin MAC 2000s, High End Studio Spots,

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