USA - For years now, Lightswitch has relied on Elation’s IP65 Proteus line to add dynamic flair to Enchanted: Forest of Light at Descanso Gardens in Southern California. For the recently completed 2021 iteration, the visual design group upgraded to Proteus Maximus and Proteus Lucius luminaires to add power and reimagine portions of the popular winter night time experience. Tailor-made to enhance the historic botanical garden’s geography and flora, Enchanted: Forest of Light is an immersive, one-mile walk through colourful and dazzling lighting displays accompanied by sound and music. Lightswitch has been responsible for lighting design and creative direction since the attraction debuted in 2016. Other garden light shows such as Illumination at the Morton Arboretum in Illinois, also a Lightswitch project, were able to pivot to a drive-thru exper
USA - Tickets for the first iHeartRadio ALTer EGO concert of 2022 at The Forum in Los Angeles were snapped up by eager fans within 20 minutes of going on sale - a thrilling response for producers Diversified Production Services, Firehouse Productions, and All Access Staging and Productions but one that also necessitated some adjustments to the stage design. “On hearing that tickets sold out so quickly, we immediately realised that we were going to have to expand the production experience to a much wider audience, as there would be even more seating areas opened for extra ticket sales,” says Patrick Dierson of The Activity, which created the lighting rig for the Capital One sponsored concert, featuring artists like Coldplay, All Time Low, Imagine Dragons, Måneskin, and more. To accommodate the larger crowd, the design team began angling each of the productio
Italy - Three years after releasing the successful EclPanel TWC and EclPanel TWC Jr, Prolights has released two new soft light fixtures, the EclPanel TWC Jr 4x1 and the EclPanel TWC Mini 2x1. The new units have the same features as their bigger brothers, with an RGB+WW source, a CCT range from 2,200K to 15,000K (in film mode), colour modes like HSI, RGBW, gels, source emulation and XY coordinates, and equipped with W-DMX and CRMX. Furthermore, the newly added panels have an Ethernet connection for Art-Net and s/CAN, a 24-36VDC input for connecting to external batteries and an alternative 48VDC input for an external power supply. In terms of size, the EclPanel TWC Jr 4x1 has the same length as its flagship version, but half the width, making it a suitable fixture for low-ceiling environments, whilst the Mini version is one-quarter of the size of the flagship fixture.
The Netherlands - Showtec has introduced six new items within their line of Pixel products. The Pixel Panel 1024 is a 64x16 RGB LED-matrix panel, the Pixeltube 32 and Pixeltube 16 are RGB LED tubes with black frosted covers, and the Pixel Bubble 75 set is an RGB-LED-ball matrix with five strings, which can be extended up to 6 metres each with Pixel Bubble Extension Strings. The Pixel Dot is a single 3-W RGB LED, intended for but not limited to fixed ceiling installation. All of them offer individual pixel control, meaning you can adjust each ‘pixel’ independently – even within the Pixel Panel 1024. The Pixel Panel 1024 offers an impressive amount of individually controllable RGB LEDs: 1024 in a matrix of 64 by 16. For this, you need 3076 channels of Art-Net. With 30 presets, stand-alone operation is also an option, as are eight-channel control through DMX, Art-Net, and
USA - Walnut Hill Community Church located in Connecticut, provides a combination of both in-person and online weekend services to their five-campus congregation. The central campus in Bethel, CT, has invested in top level production values and technology, which includes the purchase of a grandMA3 compact XT lighting console which is running with grandMA3 software. Creative lighting senior intern Jonathan Martin, who designs, programmes, and operates lighting for most of Bethel’s worship service events, helped guide the team’s decision to purchase a grandMA3, backed by Walnut Hill’s production director, Christopher Ellington. Jonathan explained how lighting was high on the agenda when the decision came to up the production stakes. “We kept coming back to grandMA3, which had the perfect combination of price point and hardware feature set,” he explained, whils
UK - The Royal Albert Hall continues to mark its 150th anniversary through special events to the end of 2023. The venue, which hosts over 390 shows a year including classical, rock and pop concerts, ballet, opera, awards ceremonies, charity performances and banquets, many of which are televised, is now fully equipped with four MDG ATMe haze generators, supplied by TSL. The RAH lighting team initially invested in two of the ATMe generators in July 2019 before adding another two in November of the same year. The ATMe haze generators are in almost constant use with two free-standing machines located on stage and two permanently installed in custom flight cases on the stage edges at circle level. “Good haze is particularly important at the Royal Albert Hall,” explains RAH lighting designer, Richard Rhys Thomas. “When lighting a concert there is no scenery, and
UK - Lighting and rigging equipment and services specialists, TSL, has a diverse portfolio of clients across the live events industry. With an impressive remit that encompasses music, theatre, corporate, sporting and e-sport events, the need for reliable, versatile lighting fixtures to handle this varied field of activity is paramount. “Last year, when we looked to evaluate and increase our range of outdoor profiles, we were intent on investing in LED fixtures which were robust and flexible enough to cope with the many demands we put upon our equipment,” explains TSL director, Loz Wilcox. “We were looking for a fixture which could support our clients on their exterior lighting projects. We tried out options from several manufacturers and chose Perseo above all others for a number of reasons. It’s a great feature-packed fixture, with all the things you’d expect from
New Zealand - Venues Ōtautahi manages five busy venues in Christchurch, including the city’s premier sporting, convention, and entertainment hubs, among them Christchurch Town Hall of the Performing Arts which has recently invested in Robe Esprite moving lights. James Tull, a senior technician working across all five venues explained that the Town Hall was originally built in the 1970s and then rebuilt after the 2011 earthquake in which it sustained extensive damage. The building reopened in 2019 with a 2,222 capacity main auditorium and an 800-seat theatre space and was registered as a category 1 heritage building in 2020. With all the reconstruction came the need to update and upgrade the lighting and sound, so James and his team started looking at options for modern lights that ticked all their boxes, were more sustainable, and that would make changeovers between
France - Organisers of Showlight have announced that plans are underway to reinstate Showlight 2023 which, after a two-year postponement due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is now scheduled to take place between 20-23 May 2023. The venue for this much-loved lighting quadrennial will be the Théâtre Municipal in Fontainebleau, near Paris, France, the original destination for the postponed 2021 event. “The Showlight committee is now planning for the next live Showlight in May 2023 and we hope this time nothing will de-rail it!” says Showlight chairman, John Allen. “We are delighted to have the continued support of our main sponsor, Robert Juliat, along with many of the sponsors who were already supporting Showlight 2021. Fontainebleau’s local administration has, once again, made the Théâtre Municipal available for us - right in the centre of the town - and, as a result, t
USA - When the state of Illinois eased its stringent lockdown rules, and Chicago’s busy outdoor events schedule resumed, one person who was primed and prepped was Matthew Brotz, who runs locally based LEC Event Technology. Knowing that Chicago is capable of experiencing four seasons in a day, he realised that not only his large inventory of GLP product would need weather protection, but also moving heads from other vendors. GLP had the solution. “Thankfully Matt contacted us in plenty of time,” declares GLP US president, Mark Ravenhill. “After discussing the comprehensive range of options that we offer, he settled on a combination of our Rain Covers, with different cover lengths, and a large quantity of Air Domes. Despite the current problems with the global freight system, we made it in time for all of his festival dates.” LEC’s festival season reope
USA - The Music Centre at Strathmore, Washington DC, is a modern glass-and-steel multidisciplinary arts space. Well-appointed with excellent acoustics, it is like many other performance venues in American suburbs. But last month, this fairly typical space became, in the words of one critic, “a heavenly place to be”. That happened when Sarah Brightman walked onto its stage as part of her A Christmas Symphony tour. The classical/crossover soprano brought her magic to Strathmore and 16 other venues across the US during the tour, mixing an array of music from Puccini to John Lennon into her two-hour (plus an intermission) show. Supporting her was lighting and show design by Nathan Taylor. The timecoded lightshow was programmed by Plymouth, UK-based LD Jason Hyne using the suite at NEG Earth, and run during the US tour by Austin, Texas-based LD Ruby Leigh of Allume Li
The Netherlands - Follow-Me has announced two new members of its team - Victor Petitjean and Sander van der Meij. Victor Petitjean is a French software developer, living in the Netherlands for five years. “I’m excited to finally discover the secrets behind the scene and to do my best to make show lighting even better,” he says. Follow-Me founder and lead product developer, Erik Berends states: “Victor’s strong background in computer graphics matches perfectly with Follow-Me's ambition for upcoming product releases, we are excited to have him onboard.” Based in the Netherlands, Sander van der Meij has been in the entertainment industry for almost 20 years as a lighting technician, rigger, dimmer tech, system tech and more recently as crew chief and project manager. Product manager Tim van Dijk, who will be working closely with Sander in the Foll
The Netherlands - The Olympic Qualification Tournament in curling took place in the Netherlands in December and the ice has never looked better thanks to MHB AV and Elation’s tunable Kl Panel LED soft lights. Held at the Elfstedenhal sports complex in the town of Leeuwarden, a professionally illuminated surface of the highest standard was a must for the Olympic qualifying event. The Olympic Qualification Tournament was the first international curling tournament to be hosted by the Netherlands. Teams from across the world competed in the two-week event in the hopes of advancing to the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, which starts on 4 February. Months prior to the event, MHB AV had contacted Bert Schmeits, key account manager Benelux at Elation, and as a result invested in the full-colour-spectrum and colour temperature-adjustable KL light panels. Schmeits reports tha
Norway - The first Robe Fortes in Norway were delivered to Den National Scene (the National Theatre) in Bergen, one of the country’s oldest permanent theatres, where they joined Robe Esprites that were another recent investment. Opened in 1909, Den National Scene was initially built with a single stage, but currently hosts performances in three different spaces, which have just re-started with full capacity public shows post pandemic. Head of lighting Geir Hovland explained that these latest moving light investments are part of an ongoing process to ensure the theatre is equipped with the best and most appropriate technology to facilitate its busy - and highly acclaimed - repertory schedule. The positive relationship with Robe - via distributor Norsk Sceneteknikk - began in 2017 when 25 x Robe’s DL7S Profile and 15 x DL7F Wash fixtures were purchased for
USA - At the 183-year-old Connection Pointe Christian Church outside Indianapolis, a refurbished lighting rig and a fresh approach to design have brought a new level of immersion and engagement to services. Last year, the multi-generational church replaced most of its lamp-based fixtures with a new all-LED system featuring many of Chauvet Professional’s latest and most advanced product, including the Maverick Force S Spot. The new LED rig was only one of the changes, however, that would redefine lighting at Connection Pointe. Along with the upgraded fixtures, the church also got a brand new LD, one with experience lighting houses of worship as well as entertainment venues. Alexander Lehman joined the church’s team and became part of a new design philosophy that emphasized building engagement with set pieces. “I took on the LD role here in Indianapolis tow
USA - In early April 2022, Main Light will be opening a new facility in Nashville this spring. This will expand Main Light’s operations to a third location, joining Main Light East in Wilmington and Main Light West in Las Vegas. The new 70,000sq.ft. Main Light South shop will be located at 12630 Old Hickory Blvd, Antioch, TN. Locally, Main Light South will be led by rental account manager Cathie Berbena Lloyd (pictured, right) and operations manager, Jim Gregory (left). “We found that choosing Nashville makes it much more efficient to support our clients in the area,” explains Main Light general manager, Randy Mullican. “There was a lack of a dry hire options in this market, so it just made sense to open here, where we already have a number of clients. Now with moving into the right space for our facility here, along with the knowledgeable and experienced peop
Europe - zactrack International has welcomed Alistair Smyth, a long-time veteran of the industry, as the company’s new brand manager. After earning a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from Kingston University London, he has worked for Vari-Lite, High End Systems, Christie Lites, A.C. Entertainment Technologies and Flashlight. Most recently, he was a technical sales advisor at Elation, where he was responsible for product demonstrations, sales support and technical communication. Reflecting on his new role, Smyth says: “I am proud to join the Lightpower family of companies and be a member of the zactrack International team. I look forward to meeting our valued distributors, customers and users. The zactrack products are amazing and we believe they will revolutionize tracking in many areas of our industry. As part of the team here, we can work together to h
The Netherlands - The city of Utrecht is the fourth largest in the Netherlands and attracts a significant number of international and domestic visitors each year. One of the most recent additions to its range of entertainment destinations is the new Holland Casino; a striking building adorned in gold. Designed by OZ Architects, the brief was to create a diamond-shaped building, adorned in gold, that was also completely covered in light. As well as illuminating the entire building and using the façade to display content, it was also important that the building met the criteria for the BREAAM sustainability certification. Keeping light pollution to a minimum was crucial. System integrator Livingprojects worked closely with lighting designer Siegrid Siederius on behalf of Arup to deliver the vision of Holland Casino. The façade is structured with individual panels, and
UK - Viewers were treated to a musical extravaganza hosted by British musician Olly Alexander in the form of BBC One’s The Big New Years & Years Eve Party. Filmed at London’s Riverside Studios, the two-part concert included guest performances from Kylie Minogue and the Pet Shop Boys. The show included a pause for the countdown to midnight and footage of London’s Big Ben ringing in the new year before the action headed back to the show as Olly and friends continued the party. The party featured a captivating lighting design from Gurdip Mahal, featuring more than 40 universes of fixtures. To provide main and tracking backup control of the elaborate lighting rig, programmers Ross Williams and Rob Bradley selected a pair of High End Systems Hog 4-18 consoles, supplemented by two Full Boar 4 consoles and two new HPU Hybrid Processor units. The main lightin
Belgium - The grace and fluidity of dancers’ movements were enhanced by an equally elegant lightshow designed by Koen De Clerck for Cogétama, a special choreographed ballet work created and produced by Glen Lambrecht Productions, commissioned by the Municipality of Aalter. It was staged at the City Hall Auditorium of Aalter and played 12 completely sold-out performances. Koen used an all-Robe moving lighting rig to give him the flexibility and dynamics needed to light the detail, depth, and nuance of the piece, which revolved around the famous Cogétama cigar and the factory which produced it and how it affected and influenced the communities living and working around the areas of Aalter and Knesselare for over 100 years. The legacy of the cigar factory has left an indelible imprint on local culture and history. Glen Lambrecht, a professional ballet dancer w
USA - Lighting director Nick Chang who has been on the road with the Kane Brown tour for the last four months, returned to his hometown of Nashville to oversee lighting for services and other events at Church of the City. On staff at the church since March of 2021, Nick was called on to light Church of the City’s 2021 Christmas services and specified a rig of Elation Artiste Mondrian and Artiste Monet LED moving heads, as well as Platinum Seven wash fixtures, all rented through Elite Multimedia. Nick has been contracting with Church of the City since 2020 and handled a Christmas project for them that year. This year, the church held five Christmas services in their 3000-seat auditorium at their main campus in Franklin, Tennessee, just south of Nashville. Nick co-designed lighting for the services with Church of the City production manager Jori Johnson. Nick also han
Australia - Elevate Sydney, a festival held 1-5 January, unveiled the largest drone display in the Southern Hemisphere. The Elevate SkyShow, lit up Sydney Harbour for the first time with 500 drones. Featuring technology, art and a First Nations narrative, the inaugural Elevate SkyShow blended art and technology to create ‘a new form of night-time entertainment’. The 500 Intel drones performed in between the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge to a powerful and moving soundtrack. AGB Events was commissioned by the NSW Government through tourism organisation Destination NSW to create and produce the event. This summer festival was designed to activate Sydney’s CBD and AGB’s SkyShow provided an epic conclusion at the end of every night for thousands lining the Sydney Harbour foreshore. AGB Events assembled a team of leading creatives to desig
Germany - HOF is expanding its company management team with immediate effect. Dennis Klostermann and Isabel Inclan, two experienced employees are joining the management. Together with Björn Heinzmann, managing director and shareholder at HOF since 2003, they will lead the company as a trio. Björn Heinzmann will continue to manage the areas of technology and finance. Dennis Klostermann, who has been with HOF since 2006 and was previously key account manager, will be responsible for sales and product development. Isabel Inclan was previously in charge of marketing and will now represent the marketing and human resources departments. Hans-Wilhelm Flegel, who founded HOF 25 years ago, is retiring from management and operations, but will remain with the company in an advisory role. "I am pleased that a new generation is now taking over the company management at HOF. I a
UK - Astera PixelBrick wireless battery-powered LED lighting fixtures proved the right solution for a major section of Bolesworth Christmas, a trial experience staged at Bolesworth Castle, a Grade II listed country house near Tattenhall, Cheshire. Lighting designer Nick Jevons was asked to add lighting magic for the new event concept at this site after being invited onboard by event producer Matt Bates. He discussed the initial ideas that were already germinating with Bolesworth’s live events team plus some of the locations they had in mind, and together with his own input, eight of these were developed as highlights for the 1.5-mile-long trail. Nick immediately started imagining many different visual treatments that would delight and engage visitors. A major section of the trail was a large 400 x 300m lawn space in front of the Castle which needed dr
