Rigging / Staging

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14 March 2016

The Africa Day festival is a free annual event held in the Trafalgar Square and celebrates the contribution of London's African communities to the capital, including African arts, theatre, live music, food, stalls and crafts. The event was this year headlined by Manu Dibango, with a host of other artists including Bassekou Kouyate, Emmanuel Jal, Kanda Bongo Man and Gina Yashere.

Sunbaba provided seven custom-made full colour Ultramesh panels, with Keder and Eyelet finishing to brand the Star Events Group Morbit stage for the event, working with their extensive library of stage specifications to ensure the branded fitted perfectly for event organisers Bliss Events Management Ltd.

Technical director Trevor Booth explai

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14 March 2016

"The client's brief," says Private Drama Events director Adam Blackwood, "was for a glamorous, spectacular awards dinner with a knockout theatrical element, and the Science Museum was chosen to align the theme of space exploration with people who had done extraordinary things for the company's customers."

After a reception in the museum's Exploring Space gallery, guests made their way upstairs past a flashing runway and into a recreation of the Houston NASA Mission Control Centre, starring a life-sized

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14 March 2016

The National Skills Academy aims to significantly help to reduce skills gaps and shortages in backstage and off-stage skills. The NSA business plan, supported by PLASA and over 120 leading employers from theatre and live music, sets out in detail an ambitious vision to provide world-class training for the world's greatest stages. Working together with employers, freelancers, colleges and training-providers throughout the country, the NSA will deliver industry-endorsed training for young people and professionals. A proposed new state-of-the-art training facility in Thurrock, Thames Gateway, will pr

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14 March 2016

Lockwood has a proven track record within the industry; he started his career 18 years ago as a qualified welder/fabricator within James Thomas Engineering. He then progressed on to the export sales and project teams where he managed many concert, theatre and design projects from initial enquiry through to final completion. Moving on as a sales engineer, he then joined Tomcat UK for four years.

Lee Brooks, sales director comments: "It's not everyday that you get the opportunity to recruit someone with Patrick's track record and extensive experience. His ingrained knowledge of both engineering principles and our industry brings great value to Litestructures, and strengthens our technical team to allow us to continue improving both our products and our level

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14 March 2016

One of the key challenges that both Stage One and their client faced was that they were brought on board quite late. Final detailed drawings were only received just six weeks before the load date. "The construction of such an impressive, but quite complicated structure, in this short time scale was always going to be a challenge," said Steve Dolan, account director, Stage One.

He continued, "We resolved the time issues by completing some of the work required on-site and delivered a set of the highest quality."

The city of Belgrade lies at

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14 March 2016

5 Star will also be showing the popular Eurotrucker general purpose road trunk which itself has undergone a make-over.

Laptop computers feature extensively in the entertainment industry and with this in mind, the new Laptop Cases will also be shown. Available in two distinctly different versions, these carry cases offer "the ultimate in protection and transportability for today's high-tech equipment". A selection of other specialist and standard cases as well as foam inserts will also be displayed.<

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14 March 2016

The main funder of the operations of the Newseum is The Freedom Forum, a non-partisan foundation. Jim Updike, vice president of technology for the Freedom Forum and for the Newseum, points out, "doing the outside news broadcasts and programmes from here is an important part of our mission. We have done any number of television shows here from network newscasts all the way to our o

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14 March 2016

At the Beijing fair, the ChainMaster products on view included the newly improved controllers of the XYZ series as well as the BGV-C1 pro touch-panel control system with its expanded function set.

The XYZ Stage Controller governs movement along all three axes. It is equipped with a 12" flat screen and offers, depending upon the version selected, up to two separate joysticks. The integrated keyboard and mouse permit swift and efficient control and programming. In networks, it is possible to run multiple XYZ Stage Controllers in parall

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14 March 2016

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

Also available from Hall Stage North America fitted to 110V units, the DMX DGH comes in 10m and 20m travel options, with custom units available for drapes up to 100m wide.

Additionally, The SkyDeck modular tensioned wire grid system will be available in the UK from this summer. The system provides safe access to theatrical lighting, audio cables, loudspeakers, stage rigging and effects - in fact, anything you need to get to on a regular basis, says the company.

Installed in venues across the US, SkyDeck panels are built with a woven wire working surface in modula

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14 March 2016

Working under instructions from the Army, Police officers evacuated the area, whilst a 200m cordon was put in place, forming an exclusion zone around the bomb. This effectively resulted in the immediate closure of the entire Film Studios, affecting all current productions in 15 stages totalling 114,000sq.ft and resident on-site businesses plus 200 production offices.

One of the oldest tenants in 3 Mills Studios, Rigging Se

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14 March 2016

This annual show is designed to set new standards every year, with an impressive set of scenery and lights. The organizers of MUZ-TV 2008 appointed JSA as main supplier for all staging and rigging equipment, based on their experience from last year and the fact that JSA is recognised as leading professional rental company in Russia.

A team of trained riggers were responsible for the complex installation of over 180 hoists. Prolyft hoists with several loading capacities were used, in combination with Prolyte B100 truss for the main grid.

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

As the exclusive UK distributor for the Chroma-Q, Jands and Spotlight brands, A.C.'s lighting area will feature recent additions to each range. The Chroma-Q LED range includes the new Color Punch compact IP65 fixture, providing super bright results for both indoor and temporary outdoor applications, and the Color Split fixture with dual side by side RGBA LED cells. The Jands range includes the revolutionary Vista lighting console with graphic based user interface and the FPX/WMX portable/wall mounted, professional touring quality 12x2.4kW channel dimmers. The Spotlight range includes the Cyclorama Domino RGBA LED floodlight with

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14 March 2016

The total production consists of 120 rigging points of which 60 are flown from a main grid.

Confronted with a very tight touring schedule, resulting in short load in and load out times, head rigger Dave Rowe, decided that pre-rigging a part of the total production was the best solution. Together with Fabrice Danvou from Servi Scene, he designed the main grid to facilitate pre-rigging the show.

The main grid, named "the advanced rig", consist entirely of Prolyte S52SV and H30V trussing.Servi Scene has sub hired all the Prolyte materials from AED Belgium.

The production team, a combination of English and Australian technicians, are very impressed with both the easy coupling system and the strength of thes

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14 March 2016

Sourcing creative and innovative solutions for the theatres and production teams, Sunbaba's portfolio of materials are used for drapes, scenery and set designs across professional and amateur dramatics.

The new Block Out material allows its users to create two different images, one a printed image and the other a backlit silhouette. The material is first printed with the images that are to be rear blocked, then tested on a light box to ensure the image backlights perfectly, creating silhouette images when night falls.

Sunbaba's technical director, Trevor booth explains: "Block Out is a revolutionary solution that will be ideal to create theatre backdrops. We can use this technique and material to create 'night and day' effect wi

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14 March 2016

The steel and fabric structures were manufactured and installed by Base Structures with the intention of the three-dimensional wave shapes to link the car park with the original purpose of Cardiff Bay and its connection with the sea. Another visual link with the sea was the requirement for the night time appearance of the wave to be lit using a combination of blue and white lighting.

Particular consideration was taken by Light Bureau in the sp

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14 March 2016

The Forum has was added to AP's ever growing list of venues last September after an emergency call from the club's management, who needed to replace the incumbent security company.

"The Forum has undergone a recent facelift," explains Chris Hollands, one of AP's management team, who oversees a number of venues and events for the company. "We had been awarded the contract and were due to start once the re-fit was completed, but due to unforeseen circumstances, we were asked to step in much earlier than expected and at very short notice."

"In fact, we got a call one Saturday afternoon and we were in by the f

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14 March 2016

The sell out festival, which welcomed 60,000 visitors per day, boasted three stages, 39 bands and a variety of entertainment and refreshment facilities over the extensive site. For the first time this year, the event was not held on Whitsun weekend.

Mojo Barriers supplied 650m of barrier over the three stages, as well as 500m of bar barrier at the refreshment sites. On the main stage, Mojo Barriers deployed its Barrier Load Monitor System (BLMS) which adds extra safety to the system by continually monitoring the pressure which audiences are putting on the barriers, allowing teams to react quickly to crowd surges.

"Pink Pop is very well es

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14 March 2016

It took Stageco's 16-strong team just three days to build the 180 tonne stage, designed by the company's in-house R&D department to deliver an 'up close and personal experience' for every member of the audience.

The distinctive 26m x 26m Stageco 'Super roof' was the main stage, with a B-stage connected by a catwalk, enabling Dave Grohl to run the length of the stadium during the performance.The mixing tower was placed at the end of the catwalk, with a central delay tower, and two further delay / spot lighting towers flanking the B-stage.

Antonio Cruz, technical supervisor for Stageco explained, "The initial

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14 March 2016

Willcox has worked as a user of Stage Technologies' systems for numerous productions over recent years; first as a systems engineer at the Millennium Dome's Central Show in 2000, then as head of automation teams for Miss Saigon, Witches of Eastwick and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. He has also worked as an automation operator for a number of Cirque du Soleil's touring shows and as the senior automation technician for the Royal Shakespeare Company's Courtyard Theatre.

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

Fully portable, when in its circular format, the Dome's aesthetics make the space suitable for numerous uses, including as a nightclub, wedding venue, for conferences, banqueting, product launches and corporate events. It's also suited for use as a roof top structure, says the company.<>P>The structure is supported by trusses anchored directly into the ground and comes with full structural certification in all configurations.

The new wider arch opens the Dome venue's width to 25.7m (allowing for additional banqueting tables when used in that context) and increases the maximum roof height to 12m. A broader curve at the apex of the arch increases the rigging and hanging capacities

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14 March 2016

Maltbury Staging, led by Philip Sparkes and Jason Tucker, won the contract to design, manufacture and install the seating tier structures to both the main house and second space. The contract also included provision of fixed and demountable staging throughout the venue and further areas were added while the crew was on site.

The steep balconies demanded a highly customised structure, whereas the stalls were best served by a deck-based approach. Understanding these varying demands, Maltbury responded with a bespoke framework up top and decking tiers below.

Precision manufacture was combined with a flexible response to changing circumstances: the architects' draw

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14 March 2016

A highly regarded designer and manufacturer of high quality point source speaker systems, with numerous patents to his name, Andrews' landmark developments include the hugely successful Flashlight and Floodlight systems, and more recently the distinctive Funktion One Resolution Series.

Andrews headlines a growing programme of educational presentations at the show, which include a number of exciting new initiatives and partnerships. There will be a strong focus on industry technologies, with several sessions addressing existing and emerging audio, AV and lighting technologies and how to maximise their application in t

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14 March 2016

Covering 10,000sq.m - they were built in a row and all featured 7m cantilevered ends for their entrances. One was used as an exhibition hall (showcasing Saudi Aramco's story in historic images, detailed timelines and displays of the company's key operations), the second as a presentation area and the third was the King's Palace.

Under the patronage of King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and the leaders of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, Saudi Aramco kicked off its 75th Anniversary celebration with government officials, company executives, employees and invited guests gathering