The Netherlands - Vorstin is a popular music and entertainment venue in Hilversum, a lively Netherlands ‘media city’ in the centre of the country. Vorstin’s striking gleaming steel exterior is visually interesting, and its two entertainment halls – with 850 and 275 capacities respectively – stage four or five shows plus one or two private or business events per week – a fast-moving environment with plenty of variety.
The venue has recently made a large investment in new Robe moving lights, with the purchase of 20 x Paintes, 20 x LEDBeam 350s, 24 x LEDBeam 150s, eight LEDBeam 350 FWs and 16 x Tetra1 LED moving battens for their big hall, together with eight Robe Spiiders that were part of a previous Robe investment eight years ago and some other new luminaires. The new fixtures are rigged in the Big Hall on four motorised trusses and an upstage fly bar.
The Small Hall, which hosts bands, comedy as well as local school musicals, end of year productions and live radio shows every Saturday afternoon, now has 10 x Paintes, 12 x LEDBeam 150s and eight LEDBeam 350 FW’s – the latter are with a Fresnel-wash style beam for smoother edges and better colour homogenisation. The control console in the small hall is an Avolites TigerTouch II.
The venue is run via a foundation on behalf of the city and is a hub of the local community.
Chief LX Alice Boeschoten explained that this lighting upgrade was originally planned before COVID and delayed due to the pandemic. While they considered several brands and products, the experience of the previous Robe fixtures was instrumental in informing choices for this investment.
Many of the artists playing Vorstin will bring their own lighting designers, while others will be lit by Alice and her team. She gets to light at least one a week every time requiring a different genre, style and creative approach.
