As anyone who was at the 2014 edition of the famous festival can attest, the answer to this question was a resounding "yes!" With surprise appearances by Beyoncé and a parade of other stars, the festival was as fresh and bright as a summer's morning. The "bright" part was helped along by dynamic lightshows, like the one at the high-profile Outdoor Theatre anchored by 36 Nexus 4 X 4 panels from Chauvet Professional.
Todd Roberts and Brandon Dunning of Visions Lighting (Brea, CA) specced the Nexus panels for the Outdoor Theatre Stage rig, because they wanted to convey instant intensity and excitement to the audience. "Our goal was to 'light large,' in keeping with the nature of this event," said Roberts, whose company designed the Total Structures roof for the stage. "We positioned 36 Nexus 4 x 4 panels on downstage truss as large audience blinders - and it worked out well to command attention."
The brightness of the Nexus panels added impact to the surprise at the Outdoor Theatre when Jay Z, Usher, T.I., Pusha T and Busta Rhymes turned up to join Pharrell Williams on stage; and when Damian Marley and Lauryn Hill came out to support Nas. Other stars who performed under the intense output of the Nexus panels were Disclosure, The Knife, Lana Del Rey, Lorde, Capital Cities, 1975, Haim, The Replacements, and the Sleigh Bells.
As much fun as it is for the 90,000 fans per day who attend the festival, Coachella is not without its challenges for a lighting company, according to Roberts. "There are 40-mile-per-hour winds and 100 degree temperatures," he said. Aside from appreciating its intense output, Roberts praised the Nexus for its reliable performance and for being easy to set up and tear down despite the elements.
In addition to the 36 panels at the Outdoor Theatre, Visions positioned 60 other Nexus units at Coachella's spacious campgrounds, which host a variety of concerts and other activities. "We had four Nexus 4 x 4 panels set up on 15 oil derricks located in the campgrounds," said Roberts. "Each Nexus panel replaced four pars that we had on those derricks last year. Here, as on the stage, the panels were very reliable."
After having worked at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival for a number of years, Roberts still feels kid-in-a-candy-store excitement about this event. "I'm thankful to my staff and friends at Goldenvoice (the festival's creator and promoter) for another successful year at the Outdoor Theater," he said. "Even after all these years, viewing the 'Sea of Faces' in front of our stage continues to amaze us."
(Jim Evans)
