Lighting

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15 August 2024

Slovenia - The Lent Festival in Maribor (21-29 June) is the largest open-air festival in Slovenia and, each year, attracts tens of thousands of visitors to the former European Capital of Culture. National and international artists from all musical genres perform on the large and small stages, which are strewn about the city centre.

In order to cover the stylistic diversity in terms of event technology, the organisers - together with the numerous local service providers - once again relied on a wide range of Cameo lights and a Maila array system from LD Systems.

Top stars of the Slovenian and national music scene, including Magnifico and the vocal group Perpetuum Jazzile, performed on the Main Stage in the centre of Maribor. Lighting designer Matevz Giganovič relied on an almost identical setup to the previous year: Opus X Profile, Opus H5 IP65 beam-

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14 August 2024

France - Those who watched the Paris Olympics on Eurosport had their experience enriched by some extraordinary behind-the-scenes breakthroughs at the Warner Bros network’s studios.

Recently remodelled, the three Eurosport studios in Boulogne that broadcast coverage of the Paris Olympics employ the latest in TV technology. Designed and installed by Arkrys, working with Georges Krystkowiak (director of photography) and Baptiste Arnaud-Benaïs (gaffer), along with the TD of Eurosport France, Florent Marquer, the fully automated studios aired coverage throughout the Olympic sites with 10 commentary positions embedded in a virtual setting.

Controlling the lighting setups at the studios were the ChamSys MQ250M Stadium console, along with two GeNetix 10Scene Gateways and two 10Scene Wall Plates. The performance of the ChamSys products made the transition

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14 August 2024

USA - When veteran lighting designer Tom Kenny was called on to light a reimagined NHL Draft at the Las Vegas Sphere - the first live TV broadcast from the venue - he chose multi-dynamic Pulse Panel FX lights from Elation to back the all-important look.  

Evolving from a traditional convention-style draft to a 21st century show at arguably the most talked about venue in the US, the NHL dazzled players and fans 28-29 June with a visually striking broadcast.

“The NHL Draft at the Sphere was just amazing and out of this world,” Kenny enthused. “This was really a historical show and we needed a modern look for this new way to hold a draft. I knew I wanted something that was epic and futuristic looking in that main television shot, and even though you’re up against the biggest backlight in the world with its amazing content, the Pulse looked bea

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14 August 2024

UAE - Perfect Ovation is a family-run company with a busy Dubai dry hire facility and a full production operation in Oman supplying lighting, sound, and LED screens to a diverse mix of shows and events. The company is headed by entrepreneur and music lover Baltazar Fernandez who comes from Goa.

Since 2019, Perfect Ovation in Dubai has been investing in Robe moving lights with the latest purchases being 160 fixtures - 40 x iFORTES, 40 x Tetra2s and 80 x LEDBeam 350s plus four RoboSpot systems, all delivered by Robe Middle East.

These were added to their existing inventory which already included 80 x Robe MegaPointes and 80 x Spiider LED wash beams.

Baltazar and his team chose the Robe route as they were confident that the products are well made, and offer great quality solutions, but apart from anything else, their brand choice was driven by i

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14 August 2024

USA - Vectorworks is preparing to release the 2025 version of its product line. Vectorworks 2025 focuses on ‘redefining 3D interactivity and visualisation, providing innovative methods for users to enhance the way they visualise their models, design intent, and data within the working environment’.

"At Vectorworks, we're dedicated to creating usability wins for our customers, ensuring that our software doesn't dictate the limits of what's possible,” said Vectorworks CEO Dr. Biplab Sarkar. “Our latest version is a testament to this commitment, providing powerful tools that seamlessly integrate into your workflow, allowing you to focus firmly on your ideas without obstacles."

This latest release focuses on intuitive visualisation and interactivity, with tools that empower designers to bring their visions to life with ease.

Key features

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13 August 2024

UK/Paris - A UK-based lighting and events company has defied the odds to become Europe’s leading sporting broadcast lighting business as an Official Supporter of Broadcast Lighting and Rigging for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, despite challenges faced from Brexit and the pandemic. 

SLX provided its services to light up 29 outer Paris venues, including the specially built Aquatics Centre throughout the duration of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Such is the scope of this project, SLX has had a dedicated team of 30 people working on the ground in Paris for the last 12 months. It has also opened a 25,000sq.ft space, equivalent to the size of two Olympic swimming pools, to store and supply the multiple venues with lighting, equipment, rigging and cabling to ensure competitors, spectators and media have the best visibility no matter the t

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13 August 2024

UK - PLASA Show has announced the first confirmed sessions in a bumper programme of seminars, masterclasses and panels taking place throughout the show at Olympia London from 1-3 September. 

Being held in three sector-specific theatres with dedicated content streams covering lighting and production, AV and audio, and business and industry initiative, the industry-leading programme is once again sponsored by Vectorworks.

Sessions will include audio and comms specialist James Henry-Breward (‘Brew’) outlining the systems and kit deployed this year’s Wimbledon tennis championship; and Dan Crompton from Tate Galleries discussing advancements in AV technology and its impact on museums and galleries.

Other expert contributors will include visual artist Frankie Boyle who will discuss how lighting affects human behaviour; and Jon Burton present

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13 August 2024

South Africa - DWR Distribution hosted its first mini exhibition at its offices in Johannesburg on 29 and 30 July. The goal of the event was to provide an opportunity for industry professionals, system integrators, and students to meet with international suppliers, see the latest technology, and most importantly, network.

Exhibitors included: Barco, Chainmaster, DiGiCo, Doughty, DSpecialists, Fenix Stage, L-Acoustics, Layher, MA Lighting, Neutrik Group, Prolyte, Quest Engineering, RCF, Robe Lighting, Sennheiser Electronic SA, Sharp NEC, Theatrixx, RAM Mountaineering, Special Industrial Suppliers, and Visual Productions.

A new warehouse at DWR, recently secured as the new home for the DWR Workshop and Manufacturing departments, was quickly transformed into a venue to host the expo. Visitors could attend daily workshops, see demonstrations and discover

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13 August 2024

Malta - Located in Malta’s nightlife capital, the Paceville district of St. Julian’s, The Playground is a well-established nightclub that specialises in techno and other genres of underground electronic dance music. The club has recently undergone a complete renovation of its audio and lighting system, carried out by local integration specialists FutureTech Pro. Designed to perfectly complement both venue layout and music policy, the new lighting system features ADJ’s Focus Beam LED automated luminaires, pixel-mapped Pixie Strip LED battens, and multi-functional Jolt Panel FX LED strobe/blinder/wash fixtures.

Located alongside the larger Sky Club, which also features an extensive inventory of ADJ fixtures installed by FutureTech Pro a few years ago, The Playground is an intimate venue that has been established in St. Julian’s for dec

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13 August 2024

South Africa - Within a stone’s throw of the Formula One Grand Prix circuit after which it was named, Ayrton’s laser-sourced IP65-rated Kyalami fixture was celebrated with a big South African launch party on 3 July at the Johannesburg premises of Planetworld, Ayrton’s South African distribution partner.

Over 80 guests attended from across the country, having flown in from as far afield as Cape Town and Durban, all of whom were gifted with Ayrton beanies and scarves to keep out the chill of a South African winter’s night. Representatives from rental and staging companies, houses of worship and lighting designers all gathered to discover more about Ayrton’s new fixture in a convivial and informal evening, which was themed to honour F1 racing driver, Ayrton Senna, the constant source of inspiration for Ayrton’s founder Yvan Péard.

Ayrton’

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13 August 2024

Germany - The Friedrichstadt-Palast has been a leading hub for cultural and artistic excellence in the heart of Berlin, with a history that dates back to 1919. One of the largest and most prominent theatres in the capital, its latest production Falling | In Love is a fantasy tale filled with colour, exuberant costumes and an ensemble of 100 artists. Visual design and technology studio, Bright! played a pivotal role in enabling lighting and audio technology befitting such a grand production.

“The Friedrichstadt-Palast team were searching for a tracking solution that could manage both the sound and light tracking needs for their newest Grand Show Falling | In Love,” recalls Philip Neyses, head of the technical department at Bright! “This was the first time the theatre had considered a tracking solution.”

The key requirement wa

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13 August 2024

UK - When Yes Events’ Tom Chennells became the first customer for the TT+ Audio GTX line array back in the spring, it was precisely with shows such as the Waddesdon Manor summer concerts that he had in mind.

The Victorian venue - a French Renaissance-style château in Buckinghamshire - provided the perfect backdrop for four nights of concerts featuring various tribute acts. Yes Events provided not only the premium sound, but the complete technical infrastructure, including lighting, video, all rigging and staging, barriers, as well as booking the acts, in what was a total turnkey operation.

TT+ Audio is from the home of Italian loudspeaker giant RCF, with whom Chennells has enjoyed a long relationship.

When GTX, the flagship of the new brand, was demoed earlier in the year he recognised that the smaller GTX 10 would be the perfect replaceme

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12 August 2024

UK - Visitors to this year’s PLASA Show (1-3 September, Olympia London) can once again get up close to vintage technology used by iconic recording artists and theatre productions, courtesy of lighting designer and LSi journalist Rob Halliday, and Chris Hewitt of CH Vintage Audio.

In a special area of the show named after the popular, long-running LSi column, archive equipment will be showcased via a display of vintage consoles and fixtures. Additionally, a range of guest experts set to join Halliday and Hewitt on-stand throughout the event to share memories of tech-gone-by.

Kit set to be displayed includes:

• The custom Cadac mixing console created for Starlight Express in 1984, which pioneered the computer-controlled VCA mixing approach followed by all theatre shows since.
• The Strand Galaxy lighting console, which i

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12 August 2024

Hungary - In the Hungarian capital city of Budapest, the Széchenyi Chain Bridge has been given a new lease of life following extensive renovations and the introduction of a decorative lighting system controlled by solutions from Pharos Architectural Controls.

The bridge, which opened in 1849, crosses the Danube River and connects the western ‘Buda’ to the eastern ‘Pest’ parts of the city. The refurbishment works dealt with large areas of rust and deterioration, treating the painting and the railings. The structural elements of the bridge have also been replaced and repaired. Furthermore, the bridge will no longer allow for cars to pass over - instead, traffic is limited to taxis, buses, cyclists and pedestrians.

The improvement works have also seen the modernisation of the bridge’s lighting, with the replacement of 1,180 outdated luminaire

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12 August 2024

USA - 21 June marked a momentous day for fans of extreme metal music. On that evening Dimitri Minakakis returned to join The Dillinger Escape Plan for the first of three shows at the Brooklyn Paramount Theatre, held to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the band’s seminal Calculating Infinity album, a work hailed by critics as “capturing a major shift in extreme music sensibilities.”

Minakakis, a potent force in the multi-award-winning band’s early formative years, hadn’t performed with the group since 2001, other than a few guest appearances at shows, the most recent of which was in December of 2017.

Given his compelling guitar riffs and fierce, unmistakable vocals, Dimitri Minakakis’ homecoming made huge waves in metal circles. Also making a return on that unseasonably hot night in Brooklyn, though it was after a far shorter h

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12 August 2024

Australia - In 2023, Opera Australia (OA) brought Wagner’s groundbreaking production of the Ring Cycle to life at Brisbane’s Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC). Renowned as the pinnacle of opera, Wagner’s Ring Cycle spans 15 epic hours performed over four nights, featuring a collective of 83 musicians and 102 voices performing some of the most transformative music ever written.

The visionary behind this epic was Chinese creative theatre director Chen Shi-Zheng, who challenged traditional opera boundaries by introducing the world’s first digital 'Ring' into the performance. The production was a fusion of futuristic storytelling and cutting-edge technology, featuring giant LED panels that spun, tracked, and flew to create an immersive, mesmerising virtual world for the audience.

At the heart of this technological marvel

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09 August 2024

UK - International production practice Wonder Works has launched WowAxis, a custom design and fabrication service intended to enhance the efficiency of live event productions. Born out of a growing demand from Wonder Works' clients for bespoke design and fabrication work, WowAxis is dedicated to providing safe, innovative, and intuitive solutions for touring equipment and productions worldwide, the company says.

Led by industry experts Piers Shepperd, Jeremy Lloyd, and Dave Williams, the WowAxis team boasts over 75 years of combined experience in live events. Piers Shepperd, director of WowAxis, says: "WowAxis was created to address the evolving needs of our clients and the industry as a whole. We saw an opportunity to provide a one-stop solution for design, fabrication, and assembly, allowing us to deliver high-quality products that enhance the efficiency a

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09 August 2024

USA - Princess Cruises has upgraded the lighting rig in its 1000-seat Princess Theatre on the Crown, Emerald, and Ruby Princess ships. In a project completed in 2023, Princess Cruises fleet lighting supervisor Matt DeJong and the Princess Entertainment technical team selected Robe Lighting TE (Transferable Engine) fixtures, ushering in a new era of LED lighting technology to enhance the cruise line's entertainment offerings and sustainability credentials.

The Crown Class lighting revitalisation project included 69 Esprite Profile, 87 Spiider, 78 Painte Profile, 98 LEDBeam 150, and 48 ParFect 150 wash luminaires, which has reduced the Crown Class’ overall electrical consumption by an impressive 50%. This not only benefits the environment but also leads to reduced HVAC draw and overall fuel costs. Additionally, it significantly reduces operational and mainte

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09 August 2024

Europe - Sometimes, the best new ideas are those that make us most uncomfortable. Such was the case with brutalism, a school of graphic and architectural design that emerged in the 1950s.

Emphasising stark, bold form and function over ornamentation, brutalism represented a radical departure from traditional thinking. Although many criticized this new concept as “unromantic”, it ultimately caught on, reshaping our notions of design, and taking the human imagination to new places in the process.

This summer, some seven decades after brutalism first shook things up in the design world, highly regarded lighting and production designer Bryan Barancik has channelled its visceral power to create a gripping, deeply moving show for Lenny Kravitz on the four-time Grammy winner’s 27-city European tour, which began23 June in Hamburg at Sporthalle. 

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09 August 2024

USA - The Venice Performing Arts Center (VPAC) in Venice, Florida, has recently undergone a significant lighting upgrade with the installation of Elation Fuze PAR Z175 luminaires, facilitated by production and integration company Thunder City Pro. The venue, which previously relied on conventional Lekos and Fresnels for stage lighting, now offers an enhanced visual experience using state-of-the-art LED wash luminaires with dynamic colour mixing and motorised zoom.

“The goal was to incorporate colour mixing and moving lights to enhance the concert experience,” stated Justin Stancil, president of Thunder City, who notes that the upgrade also included Focus Spot 5Z moving heads from Elation sister company ADJ. “The new lighting system really allows for far more dynamic and exciting scenes for all of the concerts and theatrical shows they present.”

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09 August 2024

UK - Central London-based lighting and event technology and services specialist Halo now has one of the largest and most extensive stocks of Astera products in the UK. Halo's total count of well over 400 Astera luminaires includes Titan Tubes, Helios Tubes, Hyperion Tubes and many others.

Halo’s extensive Astera inventory also features AX2 PixelBar, AX3 Light Drops, AX5 PixelPARS, Hydra Panels, NYX Bulbs, PixelBricks and PlutoFresnels. All of which feeds a never-ending demand on a diversity of events and projects, explained Halo CEO Yann Guenancia.

Guenancia singles out Pixel Bricks for a specific mention, admitting that initially they were a little surprised at how popular these have become, and how “people never stop coming up with creative ways of using them!”

Large UK lighting rental and concert touring companies frequently come to

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08 August 2024

Morocco - Prolights’ Halu Pix illuminated the 24th edition of the Mawazine Festival, organised by the Maroc Cultures association. This event, spread across six different locations between Rabat and Salé, attracts over two and a half million spectators each year with performances by top-tier artists from the Arab, African, Moroccan, and international music scenes.

For the stage at the Mohammed V National Theatre in Rabat, Kilmi Musique - in collaboration with EcmaPro Systems, the Prolights distributor in Morocco - provided and installed the event's lighting setup, selecting Prolights' Halu Pix.

These LED matrix modules ensured an extraordinary visual experience with 3D volumetric graphics depicting the star of Morocco. This captivating visual effect was achieved through the pixel mapping function, allowing control of each individual LED source.

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08 August 2024

UK - Avolites’ D9 lighting console, and an Avolites AI Qgen media server running Avo’s proprietary Synergy protocol, were at the heart of lighting and video control for Arcadia Spectacular’s new live experience launching their Dragonfly conceptual art installation, which debuted at Glastonbury 2024.

Originated and designed by Arcadia’s Pip Rush (creative director) and Bert Cole (technical director), the 30m-long, 8.5m-high biomechanical dragonfly is built from an ex Royal Navy Sea King helicopter and was surrounded by a 50,000-capacity evolved geometric ‘energy field’ at the festival.

The sculpture ‘awakened’ every night of Glasto at 23:30, presenting Warraloo - a breathtaking nine-minute show developed by Arcadia in collaboration with the Whadjuk Noongar nation of Western Australia and based on the dragonfly’s pup

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08 August 2024

Colombia - Christie HS Series 1DLP laser projectors deliver a spectacular immersive experience to visitors of La Selva, an educational geodesic dome designed to foster appreciation and preservation of the Colombian rainforests. Located in the Parque Empresarial El Tesoro shopping mall in Medellín, this project is a collaborative effort between the mall and Lonko Labs.

To honour these vital ecosystems and raise awareness about their conservation, Parque Empresarial El Tesoro created La Selva, a sensory experience made possible through a realistic and immersive digital environment developed by Lonko Labs.

La Selva features a 13m (43ft) diameter and 8.5m (288ft) high dome with a negative pressure system. The exterior closely resembles a traditional maloca or jungle dwelling, while inside the dome, six 13,500lm Christie HS Series projectors are blended