South Africa - Nick Britz of Johannesburg-based DWR Distribution will embark on a tour of the country this month to provide demonstrations MA Lighting's new onPC Command Wing.

During the 'Wing It' roadshow, from 10-20 April 2012, Nick will visit rental companies and theatres in Johannesburg (10 - 16 April), Durban (17-18 April) and Cape Town (19-20 April). "The MA onPC Wing is like having the power of a big MA in a briefcase," says Nick.

For more info on the tour, contact: technical@dwrdistribution.co.za

(Lee Baldock)

UK - Artistic Licence Engineering will be using PLASA Focus as a platform from which to launch a plethora of new products. Two new product ranges (Rack Pack and Zone Control) have been developed for release at the show alongside a new splitter and a modular advancement in the Multichrome Range.

The latest addition to Artistic Licence's Rack Pack range, dVnet is a digital video to network converter housed in a 19-inch rack case. It is aimed at retail and architectural applications where a media facade or any pixilated display is to be controlled by video without the complexity of a media server.

dVnet is all a light artist needs to convert their video creation - or any HDMI source - to light. Configuration is simplicity itself, with less than ten mouse clicks required to render video to a media wall.

dVnet can also playback video clips loaded onto its internal hard drive, eit

Singapore - Renkus-Heinz has announced a key addition to its APAC international application support team, Singaporean national Tan Kheng Keong (KK).

Technically trained and fluent in English, Chinese and Indonesian, KK joins the company from Renkus-Heinz's Singapore distributor, Electro-Acoustics Systems, where he was part of the technical team involved in the execution of several major projects including the new Singapore Supreme Court, National Institute of Education, Resorts World Sentosa, and Universal Studios Singapore. Before this he worked both as project and design engineer for an engineering company and an audio consultancy firm.

KK will be offering system design assistance, commissioning support and more, focusing on supporting the company's Asian/Pacific Rim customers.

He comments, "At EAS, my role was as an internal system consultant: design, commissioning a

USA - Flightcase and loudspeaker solutions specialist Penn-Elcom continued its support of the Breast Cancer Awareness fundraising initiative started by Janal Cases - a Case for the Cure - at the NAMM 2012 trade convention in Anaheim, southern California.

Janal cases - a long term and highly valued Penn Elcom customer - raised over $1150.00 with special signed T-shirts.

The Case For The Cure T-Shirts were signed on the Penn Elcom booth at NAMM by a selection of stars who were lined up by Janal Cases, including legendary funk bassist Bootsy Collins, Kelly Hansen of rockers Foreigner, drum addict Ya'el Biz, pop-rock band Hero's Last Mission and Canadian alternative actress and performer Molly Parker.

For a two hour slot on the second day of the exhibition, these T's were available from the stand for a donation to the Case for the Cure campaign of $10.00 .

A crew of Janal Case

Beatlemania - Let it Be, a tribute show to The Beatles, will open in the West End this September. The show - a new version of Rain, which ran on Broadway in 2010/11 - will run at the Prince of Wales Theatre for a limited season from 14 September 2012 until 19 January. The Prince of Wales is where The Beatles played a Royal Variety Performance in 1963 and the show will mark 50 years since the band's first single Love Me Do. It is the first time that the grand theatrical rights to The Beatles' back catalogue have been granted by Sony/ATV for a West End production.

No Show - The Sonisphere rock festival has been cancelled, organisers have confirmed. A web statement said they had fought hard to keep it going but that "a very challenging year" meant the event wouldn't have satisfied fans and the artists. The event was to take place at Knebworth P

UK - Entertainment lighting specialist White Light supplied equipment and support services to Mr Dickens and the Actors, the recent production marking the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens held at London's Guildhall and attended by The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.

The event featured some of Britain's leading actors - including Sir Derek Jacobi, Eddie Redmayne, Samantha Bond, Stephanie Cole, Matthew Kelly and Samantha Spiro as well as performers from the Chicken Shed theatre company - performing some of Dickens' most memorable characters, from novels including Great Expectations, Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickleby. The event was held in support of the Royal Theatrical Fund, of which the Queen is patron.

White Light was brought in to help with the project by Peter Roberts and lighting designer Alistair Grant, to provide both a lighting rig to transform

USA - Following the outstanding response from Le Mark's recent LDI exhibition, export manager Matt Every returned to even more success on his follow up visit to the States this month. Set to gain eight new distributors in the little over two months with more imminently expected, the US is a rapidly growing market for Le Mark's export team.

"From first stop at the Total Structures training and event day in L.A. through to the final visit in NYC, the welcome I received was far beyond my expectations," says Le Mark's Matt Every. "All our distributors have been working so effectively to promote our range and have provided excellent feedback for our US research and development team.

"The combination of LDI and my return visit has created a huge leap in our attempts to make Le Mark Group and our range of products better known in the US. It's been our Dirty Rigger

UK - Tait Technologies has appointed two new members to its team at its UK office. Todd Vernon joins as project manager, after working for the last seven years as a lighting technician and rigger in both Australia and the UK. He has also worked as a video QC engineer for VER in Amsterdam. 2011 saw Todd working with the Tait Technologies team on the Doha Games project.

Also joining the company is new marketing manager for the UK, Kerryanne Nelson. Kerryanne will manage branding, communications and public relations for the group, as well as developing new marketing touch points for business development. Kerryanne is a New Zealander who moved from Auckland to London in 2011 and has previously worked in various marketing communication and event management roles for the likes of Expedia UK, MTV Networks and the Warner Music Group.

Tait Technologies was formed in 2010 by a collabora

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UK - Italian acoustic specialist dBTechnologies will present its new UK sales team at the forthcoming PLASA Focus in Leeds. Products to be exhibited are the highlights of the DVA series, including its largest line array module DVA T12 and the active subwoofer DVA S30N, alongside the three Flexsys FM stage monitors and the brand new Cromo 15+ from the recently launched Cromo+ range.

The dBTechnologies team will be welcoming visitors at S-D29 this year with the help of newest recruits, David Finlay and Reuben McCartney. Finlay is responsible for the north of England having gained many years of valuable experience in retail and pro audio business. McCartney is based in the south of England, and has a wide knowledge in retail, pro audio and the recording industry.

A step up the evolutionary ladder from the successful T4 module, DVA T12 is special in its class, providing more power

UK - HHB Communications has announced the release of the new Mogami 3306 Ethernet cable drums, specifically designed for the most demanding mobile applications.

Available in 25, 50 and 100m lengths, the new Mogami Ethernet cable is flexible enough to lay flat on a floor, yet rugged enough for reliable performance, even with the frequent set ups needed in live sound and commercial venues. And it fully complies with TIA/EIA-568B Category 5e termination standards and performance characteristics.

The Mogami Ethernet cable is not a standard Cat 5e cable with a heavy-duty jacket; it is meticulously constructed to ensure that its four twisted pairs remain separated from each other, which helps to ensure consistent data rates, even under extreme conditions. Its durable construction also means that it can withstand being run over by a truck without loss of bandwidth, says HHB. Supplied

UK - Production Lighting, training and safety services supplier MattLX has announced a new website at www.mattlx.com. Launched to coincide with the release of the company's new lighting services brochure, the complimentary web design is easier to navigate and reaffirms an ongoing commitment to provide customers with relevant and accurate information.

Creative and managing director, Matt Clutterham said, "Since the company was formed in 2006, we have been lighting some of the biggest and brightest shows and events in the UK and abroad and we thought it was about time we reflected that in our web site. We are sure it provides a better insight into what we do, how we approach it and how our design focus, work ethics, attention to detail and theatrical flair make us stand out from the crowd.

"Apart from lighting one of the key features of the site is the extensive traini

UK - When business owner Steve Graham took over The Torrance Hotel, a hotel, restaurant and bar in East Kilbride, Scotland, he was adamant that the renovation would be a modern and stunning success.

Today it stands testament to Graham's commitment and drive, a stylish and popular destination that has revitalised the surrounding area, and with an audio system throughout that is comprised of Tannoy loudspeakers.

During the renovation, Graham called in independent audio consultant Bryce Keachie of Keachie Electronics to specify and install a system that was both consistent and appropriate for all of the different areas, from discreet speakers in the sleek main dining area to something more powerful in the bar and conservatory.

"I have worked with Tannoy loudspeakers a lot in the past, so I knew that whatever solution I chose would be reliable and have that hallmark of qual

Israel - The buoyant theatre market in Israel is also proving to be a big success for Robe moving lights, and in particular the new Robin Series - which includes the LEDWash 300, 600 and 1200s and the new MMX Spot.

Two recent major productions - the Willy Russell classic Blood Brothers at the Beit Lessin Theatre and I Gave You My Life which is ongoing, detailing the life and music of singing star Danny Sanderson at the Rubina venue of the Habima (National) Theatre, both in Tel Aviv - have utilised Robes as key elements of the lighting design.

The show's lighting designers are Meir Alon (I Gave You My Life) and Uri Morag (Blood Brothers), and the Robes were supplied by the busy Israeli distributor, Danor Theatre & Studio Systems, based in Hod Hashron.

The Habima Theatre is the oldest theatre in Israel. It has four different venues of which the Rubi

UK - The annual First Night Riders charity motorbike event is attracting international attention from industry professionals as more bikers sign up for the event.

Organisers have just announced that theatre consultant George Ellerington of Arup Venue, Dick Lindstrom from the Swedish mechanics and lighting company Anderson & Co, stage designer and engineer Giles Favell and Andy Hayles, managing partner of theatre consultancy Charcoalblue are all signed up to take part in this year's race.

These new riders will set off with bikers hailing from all sectors of the entertainment technology industry on Friday 22 June from the grand Royal Albert Hall in London for a four-day tour visiting Theatre Royal's Bristol and Plymouth, TR2 & Globe Theatre Plymouth, Hall for Cornwall, The Minack Theatre and Kings Theatre Swansea.

Their mission? To raise as much money as possible for industry

Singapore - SWITCH by Timbre, the latest live music restaurant and bar in the Timbre Group is a 300-seat, bilingual venue that sets the stage for the best up-and-coming Singaporean musicians proficient in Mandarin and English pop-rock and offers live performances nightly. As the third Timbre property to utilize D.A.S. Audio loudspeaker systems, SWITCH by Timbre relies on a potent sound reinforcement system drawn from the company's Aero Series 2, Road, and Avant loudspeaker product lines.

As with the other Timbre locations, D.A.S. Audio's Singapore's office was actively involved in the design and specification of the sound system at SWITCH by Timbre. In addition to the deployment of a substantial number of D.A.S. Audio's Aero Series 2 loudspeaker enclosures, this new facility is the first installation in Singapore to utilise the company's new Road Series products, the stage monit

China - Electrosonic's Shanghai office has been designated a Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise (WFOE), an officially registered limited liability corporation. This allows Electrosonic to continue to pursue new business opportunities in China as a legally licensed design consulting and systems integration company while maintaining full control of business operations.

"We are very excited about the WFOE designation for our Shanghai office and look forward to the many new opportunities it affords us," says Chris Conte, Electrosonic's VP of entertainment. "We can now expand and grow our partnerships with local product suppliers, fabricators and installers, which will enhance our efficiency on the ground."

Electrosonic's China operations will conduct business under the new legal name, Electrosonic Audio-Visual Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. The office will contin

The Netherlands - From humble beginnings as a café showcase for Dutch acts, in 14 years Vrienden van Amstel Live has grown in size, with the 2012 event encompassing seven sold out nights at Rotterdam's 10,000 seat Ahoy Arena. Such were the technical demands that it required four DiGiCo SD7 consoles and seven of the latest SD racks to manage the audio, with all equipment supplied by Ampco Flashlight Rental.

The televised show included 17 top Dutch bands playing across three stages, set up as main A and C stages at each end of the Ahoy's arena, which featured a 3300Kg per side moving PA and an invisible PA respectively, with a connecting B stage in the middle. The highlight of each night was a Battle of the Bands, which saw the acts playing opposite each other on the A and C stages, with their singers walking along the central catwalk, each facing the other band via

Monaco - Jimmy'z d'Hiver nightclub in Monaco has recently undergone a renovation, during which the 300-capacity club has been equipped with an L-Acoustics ARCS constant curvature WST system.

The new sound system was supplied and installed by L-Acoustics Certified Provider, system integrator and distributor Services Electroniques & Sonorisation (SES). It comprises two hangs of three ARCS, one 115XT HiQ and two 112P coaxials, one SB28 subwoofer, one LA48 and two LA8 amplified controllers.

The owner of Jimmy'z d'Hiver, the Societe des Bains de Mer, is already a committed L-Acoustics client, having installed systems into other of its venues including the famous Salle des Etoiles in Monte Carlo.

"The ARCS constant curvature WST system is ideal for this type of application, combining strong SPLs and medium throw with controlled directivity in the horizontal plane," says

USA - Established as the region's very first church in1840, Pleasantville United Church of Christ has served the south eastern counties of Bucks and Montgomery for more than 170 years. Today the celebrated church hosts a wide range of activities for its congregation and the surrounding community.

Pleasantville Church recently completed construction of its new sanctuary, a project that began more than 15 years ago. The newly built sanctuary is an exact replica of the original building, but constructed on a larger footprint.

The challenge of designing the optimal audio system for the space was met by designer/installer Tony Hersch of Audiobahn. The sanctuary's high vaulted ceilings and reflective surfaces presented a unique challenge in system design.

"Services at the church lean towards a traditional/blended style," Hersch explains. "Music worship is typically

UK - PixelLine battens are lighting the new RSC logo at the Royal Shakespeare Company theatre in Stratford. The new sign is the highlight of the exterior and part of the recently constructed atrium.

After discussions with Vince Herbert, Royal Shakespeare Company's head of lighting, PixelRange supplied two new custom built PixelLine 6 luminaires to provide back lighting for the RSC sign which sits above the main entrance in the link between the main building and the New Tower.

The ceiling above the sign had been painted red to emulate the look of the RSC logo but was not illuminated effectively at night - as most of the lighting in that area is down-lighting. After trying various alternative lighting options, it was decided that up-lighting the ceiling with LED fixtures produced the best result.

PixelRange's John Hickinbotham states, "The purity of colour produced by our

UK - Tower Productions have just completed supplying a package of synchronised generation and electrical distribution to the National Lottery Olympic Park run and Gold Challenges, the first ever events held at the new Olympic stadium.

Tower's James Mitchelmore managed the installation of eight machines around the stadium, including three 100kvas synched together for mission critical supplies. "It was a fascinating experience and great privilege to be involved with this auspicious event and be the first event power supplier to complete an event in the stadium," says Tim Shaw.

(Jim Evans)

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