UK - When Dutch singer-songwriter Guus Meeuwis performed at London's prestigious Royal Albert Hall in May, on the same stage as stars such as Frank Sinatra, The Beatles, Adele, and Eric Clapton, the concert drew approximately 5,000 Dutch fans.

As if the venue weren't spectacular enough, 28 Sunpanels were set up around the band to project visuals and to create a blinder effect. These custom-made visuals served as the background for the band and enhanced the musical experience by adapting to the changing beat and style. The large panels, which featured quick-action couplings, were quick and easy to assemble.

Lighting designer for the show was Marco Driessen of The Art of Light (NL). Production/Rental was handled by Modestus Management (NL), Ampco-Flashlight Rental - Utrecht (NL).

UK - Robert Juliat is delighted that its new LED cyclorama batten, DALIS, has been awarded the PLASA Award for Innovation at PLASA Show 2015.

DALIS is an asymmetrical 300W LED cyclorama light, consisting of 48 LED sources arranged in a double row. Each LED works in conjunction with a mini asymmetric reflector, or 'spoon', to deliver a perfectly smooth spread of light across any surface. Eight colours of LED are used in DALIS' construction - red, green, blue, royal blue, amber, cyan, warm white (2200K) and cool white (6500K) - which mix to create a huge variety of pastel and saturated colours, with perfect balance. Silent, fanless operation makes DALIS ideal for both theatre and television use.

The panel of PLASA Award for Innovation judges said, "The colour rendering from this product is beautiful. The fixture is well designed and elegant with a very good uniform beam pat

UK - ETC is celebrating winning the only Gold PLASA Award for Innovation at last week's PLASA Show. The Eos software version 2.3 provides unprecedented colour control options for LED fixtures, including abstract colour spaces and fade tools, allowing users to adapt their workflows in this constantly evolving art form. Giving the Gold award, the judges described the software, which also provides access to the OSC protocol for the first time, as "a game-changer."

The control desk itself was busy on the stand throughout the three day show, with Product Manager Anne Valentino giving hands-on demonstrations.

On the stand

Also popular on the ETC stand was the new ColorSource Spot fixture, and the new ColorSource Relay and Transmitter. ColorSource Spot follows the launch of the hugely popular ColorSource PAR, which marries RGB emitters with lime, completing gaps in

UK - Three successful days in early October saw the PLASA Show bring its three-year stay at London's ExCeL to a close, with the promise of a revamped and reinvigorated event at Olympia for 2016.

New for this year, the innovative zoned layout of PLASA Show 2015 was clearly a success, allowing show visitors to easily find the exhibitors they wanted to visit. In turn, this meant exhibitors enjoyed the attention of high quality visitors throughout the show.

"We were extremely busy all day. We changed the way our stand looks for this year and it's worked fantastically," said Koy Neminathan, Sales Director for Avolites and Avolites Media after the first day.

As in previous years, PLASA Show Platinum sponsor Robe occupied a large area and Robe CEO Josef Valchar pronounced himself very pleased.

"We had a really positive reaction to the stand, with people truly thril

UK - Bristol-based lighting and visual specialists Fineline continued their busy summer / autumn event season supplying lighting, LED screens and rigging to Boomerang Hickstead, a new two day music event staged at the All England Jumping Course and Showground at Hickstead, west Sussex, UK.

With a r line up including Jesse J, the Vamps, Soul II Soul, Simple Minds, the Proclaimers and a host of other popular artists, Fineline worked closely with TAO Productions and event technical production manager Andy Cotton.

Fineline's Rob Sangwell commented, "It's always exciting to support and be part of a new event, and we did everything possible to meet headliner requirements and also ensure a great looking lightshow for the many other artists on the bill."

The stage was a 16m Supernova supplied by Serious from which Fineline's crew sub-hung their trussing.

Guest lighting d

UK - CPL provided technical production - including live camera feeds / edit, lighting, audio and AV - for the inaugural AGA Festival, working for live communication and event specialists Eclipse Communications.

Staged in the Ondaatje Theatre lecture hall at the Royal Geographical Society in Kensington, central London, this new concept enabled AGA enthusiasts to embrace and experience activities related to the brand of cast iron cooking ranges. The action included cooking demos, presentations, guest speakers, the history of AGA and numerous other activities.

CPL's project manager Lee Gruszeckyj worked closely with his counterpart from Eclipse, Dave Bowring and comments, "Being a totally new event, there were plenty of challenges and also a very high expectation of the production which had to be in line with AGA's premium brand image. The one day timeline was tight, but CPL

UK - In the heart of the West-End of London, where the theatre district meets the start of Chinatown, a complex W-DMX system has been installed by Wireless Solution's UK distributor - White Light.

The brief came in by a UK-based lighting consultant. The company was approached by a property management company who is responsible for refurbishing the flats in the Asian district. The request consisted of giving life to Shaftesbury's buildings during night-time, making the district come to life and attract theatre goers and business people in the area.

The project consisted of lighting 11 buildings along 200m, in what is probably one of the most crowded Wi-Fi areas of the city. The use of Wireless was essential to get data across to different blocks of buildings, and to future proof the installation. There will be three phases of this project, the first being lighting the exterior

USA - Philips Entertainment has announced the introduction of two new Showline LED luminaires with the release of the SL Beam 300FX and the SL Punchlite 220. Available through the Philips Vari-Lite and Philips Strand Lighting Dealer Network, the small and lightweight LED luminaires were designed to bolster the breadth of the Philips Entertainment line of lighting solutions, and will be on display at LDI 2015 in Booth 1516.

"We are very excited to be announcing the release of the Showline SL BEAM 300FX and the SL Punchlite 220," said Julie Smith, Philips Entertainment general manager of the Americas. "With the SL Beam 300FX, we have received a tremendously positive response from our dealer network on both its performance capabilities and its acceptance into multiple lighting markets. In the SL Punchlite 220, we now have the IP65 rated LED luminaire that our clients

Republic of the Congo - Robe's BMFL Blade fixture continues to be a popular choice for designers of large scale ceremonies and events needing some serious power and effect - the latest being the opening ceremony of the 2015 All Africa Games in Brazzerville, Republic of the Congo (République du Congo).

French based creative event production designers Concept K were brought on-board by the With Up agency and commissioned to create the event's lighting and visual design - which also included eye-catching projections onto the field-of-play at the 60,000 capacity Stade Municipal de Kintele venue.

The overall event production company was Richard Attias & Associates. Jérome Pasteur was the chief project manager for With Up and the OC show was directed by Fanny Moreau.

As soon as the job was confirmed, Concept K started thinking about the best lights to realize their d

USA - Royal Oak Music Theatre in Royal Oak, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, is a historic cinema turned performance venue that has stood as a testament to the diversity of entertainment, as well as the resilience of the area, since 1928. After partnering with promotional entertainment company AEG Live in 2007, Royal Oak Music Theatre (ROMT) has become one of the Detroit area's preeminent venues, hosting a steady stream of live performances from Alabama Shakes to Skrillex, the band Perry to Social Distortion, as well as a wide variety of other events.

ROMT recently sought to upgrade its lighting system in order to make it more attractive to a variety of clients and chose to go with Elation LED fixtures for the progressive benefits they provide like greater reliability, less maintenance and increased energy efficiency, all of which translates into a lower cost of ownership.

Brad

USA - Country Music Association Male Vocalist of the Year Jason Aldean has taken an incredible journey in his decade-old career. It's an odyssey that has seen him go from having his pickup truck repossessed (an experience he recounts in his song Crazy Town), to climbing to the top of the Nashville scene with 14 Number One singles and the record for the most first day downloads of a country song on Spotify.

Keith Hoagland, lighting designer and director for Aldean's Burn It Down tour, understands this feeling quite well. Hoagland had his rig all set for the tour when he was introduced to the Rogue RH1 Hybrid from Chauvet Professional.

Hoagland changed his rig and added 90 Rogue RH1 Hybrids supplied by Bandit Lites. He flew the moving fixtures around his entire aerial system, which was made up of diagonally arranged truss over both sides of the stage as well as centre sta

On The Campaign Trail - Aerosmith's Steven Tyler has asked Donald Trump to stop using his band's song Dream On on the campaign trail. The singer's lawyers have sent a cease-and-desist letter, saying the use of the song "gives a false impression" he endorses Mr Trump's presidential bid. The politician has been playing the power ballad all summer, even air-drumming to it at a rally in Las Vegas. Tyler, who is a registered Republican, says it is not a "personal" issue but one of permission and copyright.

It is the third time a musician has confronted Trump about using their songs to promote his presidential bid. When the businessman announced his candidacy, his campaign played Neil Young's Rockin' in the Free World - a song that contains the lyrics "He's just a rich old man / He never cared for anyone". Young, a well-known liberal, demand

UK - Aurora Lighting Hire has returned to the studio with LD Chris Rigby for premier BBC music show, Later... with Jools Holland.

Recorded in front of a live audience at the Maidstone Studios, Later is serious about its music and key consideration is given to the lighting throughout all aspects of the production.

With the studio audience instructed to wear dark clothing so not to detract from the performance, the brief for the show is to allow the music to speak for itself and for the lighting to subtly complement, rather than overpower the musical content.

To achieve the range of looks required to accompany the eclectic mix of artists and musical styles, Aurora has provided LD Chris Rigby with a range of automated heads and a selection of LEDs that allow the versatility to illuminate both the 'floating' set pieces and the stage floor, whether it be large scale

UK - With its glass pyramid structure having welcomed everyone from Muse to Coldplay through the years, the Portsmouth Pyramids has been an regular stop on the UK touring band circuit. Its proud musical pedigree notwithstanding, however, the Pyramids leads something of a double life today. When it isn't rocking as a concert venue on weekends, it's serving as a leisure centre during the week.

This multi-functionality makes the facility more valuable to its community, but it also creates a challenge when lighting concerts. Local company GLS Lighting has met this challenge with some help from Chauvet Professional's Rogue Series of moving fixtures.

"It isn't practical to have a fixed concert house rig here, because the building functions as a leisure centre on weekdays," said Ian Turner of GLS Lighting, who was tasked with providing the venue with a new concert lighting

USA - Czech Republic-based lighting manufacturer Robe Lighting has appointed Adam Camp as regional sales manager of the western United States, effective 28 September, 2015.

Due to customer demand and increased popularity, Robe Lighting continues to expand its reach in the U.S. under CEO Bob Schacherl. This is one of several strategic steps the company has taken to provide Robe's clients excellent sales support and coincides with the opening of a new technical support office in Burbank, CA.

"I am very pleased and honoured to take over Western U.S. Sales alongside such a great team of well-respected industry professionals. In recent years I have watched Robe bring many new and innovative advances to our industry," said Camp.

"In my opinion we have the widest array of professional lighting product and some of the most advanced LED technologies. This is all due to

UK - The versatile new FLX lighting console won a 2015 PLASA Innovation Award to the delight of all at Eaton's performance lighting control business.

The much coveted Innovation Awards were presented at the three day entertainment technology expo staged at London's ExCeL Centre earlier this week.

Zero 88 series general manager David Catterall commented, "A huge amount of work has gone into ensuring that FLX would deliver new standards in lighting control using a touch screen interface and other time-saving features, and winning the Award is great recognition of the effort and ingenuity engaged at all levels by the team who have brought this product to the market.

Launched earlier in the year, FLX has been an instant success for Zero 88 in a number of sectors from rental companies to theatres, churches to multi-purpose venues.

The Innovation Awards were judged by a num

Finland - Lighting and set designer Mikki Kunttu has used an array of Clay Paky Mythos and A.leda B-EYE K20 fixtures to create a truly stunning lighting design for a production of symphonic poem Kullervo at the Finnish National Opera.

Composed by Finnish national composer Jean Sibelius and first performed in Helsinki in 1892, the opera is based on the character of Kullervo in the epic poem Kalevala. A dance element choreographed by Tero Saarinen and performed by the Finnish National Ballet was added to this 2015 production, which celebrated 150 years since the birth of Sibelius. Kunttu specified 52 x Mythos and 48 x B-EYEs from Bright Finland for key lighting in the piece.

"The brightness of the Mythos fixtures was undoubtedly the most important quality in the visual picture of the production," says Kunttu. "They delivered the final incredible punc

The Netherlands - Highlite International BV has extended its distributor network into Asia and the USA over recent months. Graham Eales joins the company from Philips Entertainment to head up Highlite Asia, while Malcolm Burlow moves on, after six years as sales director for Highlite International UK and Ireland, to set up and run Highlite International USA.

Graham and Malcolm share over 40 years of experience within the Sound and Lighting industry. Graham Eales, based in Hong Kong, will be expanding Highlite's Business into New Zealand, Australia and Asia. Graham will oversee product quality control with Highlite's manufacturing suppliers in Asia next to his commercial activities. Patrick Herveille (vice-president of Highlite International) said: "It's very important for us to have a base in Asia, so we can liaise closer and quicker with our Asian suppliers. We also found

UK - WhatsOnStage offers a database of some 5,500 plus performances along with reviews, interviews, gossip, blogs and exclusive video content. Alongside this, each year the organisation hosts the WhatsOnStage Awards - in which the audience are the judges across all categories. With its origins in theatre, complete productions solution specialist White Light is once again sponsoring the event.

WL has previously sponsored the Awards Concert, where the available accolades include Best Actor in a Musical, Best Actress in a Musical, Best New Play and Best Lighting Design, which is sponsored by WL and whose previous recipients include Mark Henderson, Adam Silverman and Hugh Vanstone.

Hannah Longman, commercial manager at WhatsOnStage, comments, "We are extremely fortunate to have companies such as WL sponsor the Awards. It is through their support that such an eve

Spain - One of Barcelona's flagship night time hotspots, Razzmatazz, continues to innovate in order to stay among the region's top entertainment venues. A recent installation of Elation Professional Cuepix Panel LED matrices has added to the venue's visual possibilities, whether for a live music performance or a night of clubbing.

A myriad of artists have stepped onto the Razzmatazz stage over the years, including big names like Coldplay and Kanye West. Razzmatazz uses its 3700m2 of space and five distinct spaces in a variety of ways however. On weekends for example it transforms into a nightclub and its various rooms can be used to host parties, fashion shows, galas or virtually any event. The five separate spaces - Razz Club, the Loft, Pop Bar, Lolita and the Rex Room - can also function as one with the advantage of creating different ambiences at the same event.

The 4,000-c

USA - Syncrolite is pleased to announce the introduction of its newest product family member: the SyncroMITE Beam which offers "a new twist with revolutionary brightness in a compact integrated moving light that offers the advantages of a Xenon source in a traditional moving light sized package".

The SyncroMITE Beam outputs 97 CRI and narrow beams (3° native) in a convenient package ready to tour, install or hire into any application. The SyncroMITE Beam provides an extremely high center beam intensity (CBI) through a massive eleven inch output aperture. Other features include two color wheels designed to produce fully saturated single and mixed colors, a Gobo wheel, flag shutter for dousing and strobe effects, zoom lenses, beam diffusion, on-board auto-sensing power supply and much more.

The SyncroMITE Beam will make its first public appearance at LDI2015 at the

USA - Robe underlines the importance of the American market by announcing a major new product launch at the 2015 LDI expo in Las Vegas - the BMFL Wash and BMFL Wash XF (Extra Features).

There will also be a host of other exciting new products making their US debut at Booth 2521 at the Las Vegas Convention Centre 23 - 25 October.

BMFL Wash and BMFL Wash XF are the latest fixtures to be added to Robe's 'game-changing' BMFL range of luminaires. These are powerful workhorse wash lights, packed with innovative and creative features, says the company.

A large 200mm diameter front fresnel lens provides a high quality traditional wash output ranging from a punchy and tight 4.5° to a super-smooth 55°.

Custom interchangeable frost filters offer three grades - light, medium and heavy - giving an extremely subtle and natural 'soft touch'.

Both CMY and CTO colour mixing filte

USA - Described by Billboard as "trance music's most influential curator," Armin van Buuren has taken this branch of electronic music to new heights. The Dutch-born DJ's State of Trance podcast attracts over 25m listeners a week and is broadcast on 40-plus FM radio stations around the world.

As captivating as these broadcasts are, however, they're only preludes to the truly transformative trance experience of a van Buuren concert. This was clearly evident in late September at the House of Blues in Boston, where the Grammy-nominated artist served up a mesmerizing mix of music wrapped around an immersive lightshow. At the heart of it all was a towering video wall made of MVP Ta8 Curve SMD LED tiles from Chauvet Professional.

Image Production Services used 136 MVP Ta8 tiles, which have an 8.33 mm pixel pitch, to create the striking display. The majority of

USA - Fall Out Boy just wrapped The Boys of Zummer Tour co-headlining with Wiz Khalifa, and once again Clay Paky fixtures were along for the exciting cross-country ride. A.C.T Lighting, Inc. is the exclusive distributor of Clay Paky products in North America.

Robb Jibson of So Midwest, Inc. continued his relationship with the pop punk band, this time as production designer for the US amphitheatre tour. Fall Out Boy released its sixth studio album, American Beauty/American Psycho this year; it swiftly became the band's third #1 album.

An enthusiastic proponent of Clay Paky fixtures, Jibson specified 68 Mythos for the tour. Upstaging was the lighting vendor.

"I'm a fan of Clay Paky; they seem to really do things right," he declares. "I had demo'd Mythos but hadn't had a chance to use them just yet. The light is versatile enough I knew if we spec'd them we

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