USA - In 1997, race car driver Geoff Bodine put the pedal to the metal and reached 197.479 miles per hour on the famed Atlanta Motor Speedway. No-one has ever equalled that speed on the big course since, but the action was probably even more blistering on the weekend of 22-24 September, as nearly 100,000 fans descended on the site for the Imagine Festival. Nowhere was the action hotter than on the Inferno stage, where Deadmau5, Flux Pavilion, The Floozies and other stars jammed under the intense output of Chauvet Professional Rogue fixtures supplied by 4Life Entertainment. Designed by Incendia, with consultation provided by 4Life Entertainment, the stage featured eight Rogue R2 Spot, 16 Rogue R2 Beam and 24 Rogue R1 Wash fixtures. Drawing on the output of these fixtures, the rig provided an eye-popping level of brightness that blended well with the incessant pyr
South Africa - MJ Event Gear supplied the full technical for the annual employee awards organised by building materials merchant Cashbuild. The annual Cashbuild Hall of Fame Awards were hosted at the Maslow Hotel in Sandton to recognise the top performers among its 4,700 employees based at stores in South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Botswana, Swaziland, Malawi and Zambia. Commissioned by Trace Elements, MJ Event Gear has provided the full technical for the event since 2010. MJ’s Theo Rood ensured the event, which catered for just over 200 guests, was stage manager for the awards. He relied on Robe moving lights, programmed by LD Gary Sam on a grandMA2 light, to create the fire and ice theme that lit the ballroom. Gary Sam said: “It’s always such a pleasure to work with the MJ team. Equipment-wise, the grandMA2 light worked well for me as I enjoy the MA pla
UK - Rental specialists Pinewood MBS Lighting worked alongside cinematographer Josie Williams on the award-winning film David and Bathsheba by directors Sammy Patterson and Dagmar Scheibenreif. Filmed at Pinewood Studios Underwater Stage as part of the 48hour Film Project, the film is a resplendent mix of storytelling and spectacular lighting and camerawork. Working with Robert Shears, Pinewood MBS provided supported and equipment to the shoot, including ARRIMax M18 and Dedo Octadome kits which the crew employed to good effect, particularly during the underwater sequences filmed by Dagmar Scheibenreif. Commenting on the support received by the production, director Sammy Patterson says: “Our heartfelt thanks go out to Pinewood MBS Lighting, Pinewood Studios and absolutely everyone who helped us and worked so hard to put this film together - we could not
Germany - When pop singer Nena celebrated her 40th stage anniversary, the radio and TV host Thomas Gottschalk led a constant stream of top international stars coming and going to honour the occasion. Peter Maffay, Gianna Nannini, Wolfgang Niedecken von Bap and Dieter Meier of YELLO were among the illustrious guests along with other well-wishers like Sasha, Samy Deluxe, Frida Gold or The Boss Hoss. Even Dave Stewart insisted on passing by for a duet. Impressively staged, the event was set in the round in Hamburg’s Mehr! Theatre. For the occasion lighting designer, Manuel da Costa, was commissioned by Herr! Media, a production company which specialises in music production. Manuel and Nena have known each other and worked together for many years. For example, the lighting designer and the musician collaborated closely on the format The Voice Of Germany. “But ov
Asia - Chauvet has announced that Hanslee Lim will be spearheading its sales division in Asia. Lim comes to Chauvet after directing Asian market sales for Robe and SGM. “We are extremely happy to have someone with Hanslee’s impressive track record and commitment to excellence on our team,” said Stéphane Gressier, international sales director of Chauvet. “Hanslee has an extraordinary depth of knowledge about lighting in general and more specifically about lighting in the Asian market. Most importantly though, he has a well-deserved reputation for understanding the needs of customers and putting them first. This makes him very compatible with the Chauvet way of doing business.” In his new role, Lim will be responsible for directing sales throughout the Asian market for all Chauvet brands including ChauvetProfessional, Chauvet DJ, Iluminarc architectural lighti
USA - ADB has landed at the LDI show in Las Vegas alongisde Claypaky and the Osram Group, who acquired the brand in 2016. Through in-depth market insight and advanced technological know-how, it aims to optimise the brand’s products after having updated production all over the world. “ADB had already pioneered some of the key technologies used in theatre & studio lighting, such as digital dimmers, memory control systems, condenser optics for theatre spotlights and it was strongly established as a leading manufacturer”, says Simone Capeleto, ADB CEO. “The range of services and products types that ADB now offers is one of the most complete on the market: ADB is mastering software and hardware development, as well as product engineering and production of all key components of a stage lighting system, i.e. luminaires, dimmers, control desks, networks and motoris
USA - ADJ Lighting is debuting two new product ranges as well as showcasing other recent additions to its portfolio of lighting, video and effects equipment at LDI 2017. The company is launching a new video panel range, the Design Series. This system comprises four modular panels of different shapes - DS4 (square), DS4T (triangle), DS4QC (quarter circle) and DS4HC (rectangle) - that can be combined into almost any shape and size of video screens. The new MOD Series is ADJ’s latest range of professional LED pars. The range comprises four models, each featuring the same casing design, but with a different LED configuration: MOD QW100 (7 x 15W RGBW LEDs), MOD QA60 (4 x 15W RGBA LEDs), MOD HEX100 (7 x 15W RGBWA+UV LEDs) and MOD TW100 (7 x 15W CW/WW/WW/Amber 4-IN-1 variable colour temperature white LEDs – a LED chip made exclusively for ADJ). The modular design m
UK - Rental company Impact Production Services (IPS) has reported “unprecedented demand” for the ProLights StudioCOB Plus LED par. The company says the LED par has been “hugely popular across a wide range of events ranging from outdoor live music concerts to film premieres and corporate functions in high end hotels”. IPS’ Tom Warden commented: “They have been consistently popular with customers since we started adding them to our hire stock – we keep ordering more and still can't keep up with the demand for them.” IPS purchased its stock from ProLights’ UK dealer A.C. Entertainment Technologies Ltd (AC-ET), including the StudioCOB Plus Full Colour and StudioCOB Plus Daylight White models. Steven Moseley, from IPS’ lighting department, said: “There has been an ever increasing demand from our clients for an LED fixture with a single beam
USA - SGM will launch the G-Spot Turbo at LDI to mark the start of a new series of IP65-rated LED moving heads that will eventually include a Spot, a Profile, a Wash, and a narrow Wash-Beam. The G- Spot Turbo is based on an optimised additive colour mixing to match the highest demands of colour rendering and total output. The IP65 rating and the integrated patented dehumidifier in the fixtures ensures perfect inner cleanness and no accumulation of externally induced particles and liquids on internal optics and light sources, such as smoke fluid, dust, dirt, airborne pollution and humidity on internal optics, gobos, or the light source unit. The patented SGM dehumidification, not only removes humidity, but also prevents oxidation and condensation, which can lead to corrosion. The G-Spot Turbo is a solution for those in need of a powerful LED moving head with good chro
USA - ETC’s booth at LDI 2017 will be awash in colour as the new ColorSource CYC luminaire makes its debut at the Las Vegas Convention Centre. From 17-19 November, visitors to booth #2773 can demo the new fixture – a compact, affordable five-colour LED cyclorama light that specialises in smooth washes and rich colour – and see its optics in action on the booth’s cyc. Among the other products making their first appearance at LDI are the Ion Xe and Ion Xe 20 consoles, which update the compact Eos family desk with backlit keyboards, increased output, and the option of built-in faders. LDI attendees can also see new varieties of the Irideon FPZ architectural luminaire. ETC will present talks and events throughout the show. On Friday morning, Jim Uphoff will introduce the ColorSource CYC to the hungry attendees of the New Technology Breakfast in Room N112. On Saturd
USA - When MTV’s TRL returned to the air on 2 October, after a nine-year hiatus, it represented a homecoming of sorts for Mike Grabowski of the Lighting Design Group. Having worked on the star-studded programme in the final years of its original run, Grabowski was familiar with the challenges of lighting a live show with a mix of artists and programming formats. He also knew first-hand how to work within the parameters of MTV’s Times Square studio. Based on this experience, Grabowski was focused on building his new TRL design around a moving fixture that could not only create a continuous stream of vibrant visuals, but also looked good on camera in its own right. He was looking for a light that fit this bill, when his phone started ringing. At the other end of the line were friends and associates with voice and text messages about the new Maverick MK Pyxis from Ch
Germany - It has been 500 years since Martin Luther sparked the Reformation and the German city of Worms, which played a central role in the movement, has been marking the event throughout the year. From 27 October to 1 November, a Ecumenical Bridge of Light was cast between the city’s St. Peter’s Cathedral and the Luther Church using Elation Professional Proteus Hybrid moving heads. Lighting designer Thomas Gerdon was contacted by the city to connect the lofty Catholic Cathedral with the Protestant Luther Church in a bridge of light intended to express the bond between Catholics and Protestants. “Even though they are separate religions, they are still connected by the Christian faith,” Gerdon says of the reason behind the project. “The bridge of light was meant to visualize this connection as a symbolic meeting of the two great faiths in partnership.”
Europe - Gary Numan is on tour promoting his his 21st album, Savage (Songs from A Broken World), with Luke Edwards of Cue Design working on his lighting design. Edwards has been Numan’s lighting and visual designer for the last four years keeping everything looking fresh and interesting onstage and for this tour, he specified 36 x Robe moving lights for the touring package with 18 x Spiider LED wash beams and 18 x of the new LEDBeam 150s. The artist initially gets involved in the style of the stage design when planning a tour, then leaves Luke to bring his own touches of lighting magic to the table. For this one they wanted to include a video element and make the show look as awesome as possible, all the time reinforcing the album themes based on the blending of Western and Eastern cultures in a post-apocalyptic world, arid and desertified by global warm
UK - Hawthorn is once again heading out on tour with 80s new wave group OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark). The company will be supplying lighting & crew to the band as they take their The Punishment of Luxury Tour around the UK and Europe. The band, which has sold over 40m records worldwide, is returning to the stage in support of their 13th studio album The Punishment of Luxury. Having kicked off at Liverpool Empire on 29 October, the tour will run through to 8 December, closing at the Les Docks, Lausanne, Switzerland. The concert touring division at Hawthorn is supplying lighting to specification for the performances, including Clay Paky Sharpy and Sharpy Wash, Robe BMFL Spot and Ayrton Magic Blade-R fixtures. Hawthorn is also providing rigging, drapes, dimmers and distro, as well as supplying two lighting crew for the performances. Mi
The Netherlands - LD André Beekmans from The Art of Light deployed 170 CLF Aorun beams during the 2017 edition of the Amsterdam Music Festival headlined by Armin van Buuren, Hardwell, David Guetta, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike. Together with design studio 250K, Beekmans designed a square stage in which the Aoruns were placed in different matrixes. Beekmans says: “I really like the double prism of the Aorun. Besides that, the colors are very useful. Guest LD’s were also very happy with the impact of the Aorun beam.” In the center of each square filled with Aoruns were placed four Ares fixtures, or 60 in total. All Ares fixtures were used without diffusors in order to get the punchy effect of the 21° beam angle. Beekmans frequently uses the Ares for their light output. “The CLF Ares is one of the best options on the market as it comes to output with sat
USA - A MagicDMX Basic USB-DMX interface giveaway and a new addition to the award-winning MagicQ Stadium series are among the highlights at LDI for ChamSys. The company will be giving interfaces to the first 100 visitors to its booth (1415) who have downloaded and installed MagicQ on their PCs, Macs or Linux systems. (Details of that offer can be found on www.chamsysusa.com/news_ldishow) Certain to draw a lot of attention at the ChamSys booth is the MagicQ Stadium Wing. The new product delivers “the highest level of show control in a compact package”, thanks to features like its 30 Playbacks, 4 Execute Encoders and a full HD multi touch display with adjustable viewing angle and gesture support. “We’re extremely excited about the MagicQ Stadium Wing,” said Phil Watson, ChamSys USA director. “It is going to open a lot of doors for lighting designers an
USA - Doughty Engineering’s new Space Saver Omega will make its US debut at this year’s LDI Show in Las Vegas. The original Space Saver was launched in the US at LDI last year and quickly became one of Doughty’s hit products. Mark Chorley, design engineer at Doughty said: "The original Space Saver was a really simple concept that we designed after considering how cumbersome a clamp can be to store and transport. The idea that it can be folded down and therefore easier to move from place to place, has really been a huge benefit to our customers. But we always see room for improvement and as such we've made a few tweaks to make the item even more user friendly.” He continued: “The Omega version of the Space Saver sees one of Doughty’s Omega clamps permanently fitted to a lumiere with a hinge that locks into place. In the closed position, the lumiere can be pu
UK - Lighting and visuals rental specialist Colour Sound Experiment delivered lighting and video equipment for Neil Marsh’s show design for popular alt.trance aficionados Above & Beyond at London’s O2 Arena. The one-off show was effectively a soft album launch for their new Common Ground work and comes ahead of an extensive 2018 tour which will kick off in the US. Neil took the base elements of the design for this show from their recent AGBT250 show at the Gorge Amphitheatre, near Seattle in Washington State. The band host a weekly two hour radio show - Group Therapy Radio – and celebrate every 50 radio shows with a large ‘ABGT’ live event staged in a different county each time. As a one-off, Neil’s philosophy was to take a lighting and video design concept that he knew worked very successfully and keep things straightforward given t
Europe - This summer’s Celine Dion LIVE 2017 tour, in support of her Encore un soir album, took the Canadian songstress on a 25-date tour of Europe in her first major tour for eight years. Dion’s lighting designer of 28 years, Yves Aucoin, put together a lighting design that featured 24 Ayrton MagicPanel-R fixtures. He says: “Celine takes her craft – and her audiences – seriously, and we spent a long time carefully listening to every song in her repertoire before choosing which she would perform and how they should look. Her collaboration with the design team comes in the early stages of a tour, after which point she concentrates on her performance and leaves us to our work on the visuals. She performs 26 songs in the show but selected 48 in total, switching between French and English from city to city. “On a tour of this scale, with venues t
South Africa - Callum Sutherland, the 18-year old founder of CSR Events, has invested in a dot2 XL-F console from DWR Distribution to compliment his six Robe LEDWash 300s fixtures. He plans to make this gear available for dry hire. Callum, who still studies at the St Stithians College in Johannesburg, has taken his hobby and grown it into a successful rental company. “Passion in this industry is a huge component and you have to really take care of everything from the equipment to the people because if you aren’t dedicated to making every factor of your production as good as possible you won’t grow as a business or person,” says Callum. He is said to remain committed to reinvesting "every last cent" back into CSR Events in the belief that this will place him in a better position in purchasing good quality equipment that can be hired out to the industry a
UK - Dartford-based laser system design specialists ER Productions have used £200,000 of funding from HSBC to finance high-end laser equipment and secure new concert and television contracts across the UK and internationally.As a result of the contract wins, the company is planning to take on new staff and is seeking bigger premises to accommodate the growing business. Sarah Milligan, HSBC’s area director in Kent, said: “Marc and his team have developed an award-winning company in just 10 years. Our support has helped fund their shows around the world and we look forward to supporting the purchase of new premises down the line.” Marc Webber, director of ER Productions said: “We have been with HSBC since we started the company back in 2007. HSBC helped us then with the loan we needed to start up and have continued to support us. In the last year we have investe
Denmark - Musikhuset Aarhus – also known as Aarhus Concert Hall – in Aarhus, Denmark, is the latest in a number of high profile theatre venues in Scandinavia to invest in Robe, with a substantial purchase of 78 x Spiider LED wash beam fixtures. These are primarily designated for use in their main hall where they will be “workhorse fixtures” explained head of lighting Ole Nielsen. Located right in the centre of Denmark’s second city, Musikhuset is a major music venue and features five principal auditoriums - a 1600-capacity Stor Sal (Main Hall); the 1200-seater Symfonisk Sal (Symphonic Hall); the Lille Sal (Small Hall) with capacity of 300, the Rytmisk Sal (Rhythmic Hall) a flexible space that can accommodate 500 seated or 1000 standing, and where most of the rock and electronic music shows are staged. The Kammermusiksalen hosts chamber music recitals. I
UK - The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) recently partnered with White Light to support the technical training of students over the course of the next year. As part of the partnership, the company will supply the equipment on internal productions, offer demonstration equipment for lectures and classes, introduce students to key industry members. The partnership will also benefit WL’s existing apprenticeship scheme, with RADA tutors running masterclasses and the WL apprentices embarking on a training opportunity at RADA in the summer. Neil Fraser, RADA’s director of technical training, comments: “Having worked with WL previously and knowing their own commitment to training the next generation of theatre practitioners, it seemed like a natural step to move into a partnership together. “This is a really exciting opportunity for both organisations
USA - Entertainment solutions company High Output decorated Boston’s City Hall Plaza using Elation Professional IP65-rated lighting for this year’s HUBweek festival. With over 200 speakers, 150 events and 130 artists, the annual civic event brought together creatives in technology, science and art to foster innovation in the area. Held on 12-15 October, HUBweek 2017 saw a different format than in previous years. Whereas a variety of sites around town have played host to past festivals, this year the festival was centrally located on Boston’s City Hall Plaza, dubbed The HUB. Designed in collaboration with design firm CBT, The HUB featured six geodesic domes, which housed talks, performances, and other interactive experiences, while a scattering of shipping containers were used to house events and art. High Output provided all production suppor
