France - Showlight 2025 made a triumphant return in May, revived and rejuvenated after an eight-year break, visiting the historic city of Dijon - appropriately for Showlight, one of France’s centres of art and gastronomy.

Hailed as the largest and most international Showlight to date, Showlight 2025 marked a welcome, and long-overdue, chance to converge once again and dedicate three whole days to talking about light.

“I sensed an enormous feeling of joy and relief that Showlight was not just back, but had if anything moved on. I am sure it was the most international Showlight I have experienced!” Bernie Davis, papers committee and technical manager.

The event exhibited a greater international presence with participants coming from all over the world, not just Europe but as far afield as America, Brazil and Aus

UK - PLASA Focus Leeds 2025 returned to the Royal Armouries on 13-14 May, drawing a vibrant cross-section of the live entertainment technology sector for two buzzing days of connection, innovation and learning.

This year’s show welcomed 2,852 professionals, an increase on the 2024 show. The quality of attendees continues to thrive, with 687 directors, owners, or chairs representing 16% of the audience. Significantly, when combining senior roles and those in sales, procurement and specification, nearly 40% of the professionals on site held final decision-making responsibility, underscoring the event’s commercial impact.

A broad spectrum of industry roles was represented, including sound and lighting engineers, technicians, production and tour managers, lighting designers, venue and operations staff, as well as consultants, buyers, lecturers, conte

UK - Follow-Me is inviting lighting industry professionals and venue owners to its inaugural open day at its new meeting and demo space at Underbelly Boulevard Soho. Scheduled for 17 June from 11:00 to 15:00, this special event will offer hands-on demonstrations of Follow-Me's performer tracking solutions, supported by SLX.

The open day takes place at Follow-Me's newly established demonstration facility within Underbelly Boulevard Soho, situated in London's bustling Soho district. This venue provides industry professionals with direct access to Follow-Me's remote follow-spot and performer tracking technology in a real-world environment.

Luke Edwards, designer relations liaison UK at Follow-Me, will lead the day's activities, offering personalised demonstrations, Q&A opportunities, and technical consultations. Visitors can explore Follow-Me's comp

Germany - The Digital Signage Summit (DSS) Europe concluded with a record of almost 500 delegates following three days of strategic insight and technologies at the Hilton Munich Airport, Germany. Organised by invidis in a joint venture with Integrated Systems Events (ISE), DSS Europe took place from 21-23 May, bringing together innovators and thought leaders to debut its new three-day format.

Florian Rotberg, conference chair and managing director of invidis consulting, reflected: “Over the past three days, DSS Europe 2025 has not only set a new benchmark for innovation and collaboration but has also highlighted the pressing challenges and future opportunities that our industry must address.

“From groundbreaking advancements in digital signage to meaningful conversations about sustainability and user engagement, this year’s summit has truly red

UK - The Profile Awards 2025 Television nominations have been released by the STLD and are now published on the TPA web page.

The TV section of The 2025 Profile Awards is judged by a panel consisting of theatre lighting designer Peter Small, TV lighting designer Martin Kempton, TV director Stephen Neil and chaired by STLD honorary secretary and lighting designer Stuart Gain. (https://profileawards.com/television-nominations-2025/)

The Profile Awards TV sponsors are:

@rosco_labs - TV Entertainment Series Award

@lightscontrolrigging - TV Entertainment One-Off Award

@chamsysltd - TV Drama Award

@elpelstree - TV Small studio Award

@cameo_light - TV Non Scripted Entertainment Award

@led_creative_limited - TV Continuing Drama Award

@

Glastonbury Time - The 1975, Neil Young and US pop star Olivia Rodrigo will headline this year’s Glastonbury Festival which opens on Wednesday. Rod Stewart will also be performing on Sunday afternoon in the ‘legend slot’, 23 years after his last appearance at the festival.

Other notable acts on the line-up include Charli XCX, Wolf Alice, The Libertines, Wet Leg, Biffy Clyro, Franz Ferdinand and The Prodigy. There will also be debut Glastonbury performances by Alanis Morisette, Noah Kahan, Gracie Abrams, Lola Young and Doechii.

Glastonbury is known for unpredictable weather so festival-goers are advised to pack for all conditions, including wellies, waterproof clothing and sun cream. There is also a list of prohibited items to ensure the safety and security of everyone on site. Banned items include - but are not limited to - fireworks,

South Africa - Following the recent announcement of Mediatech’s return in 2026, organisers have confirmed an important venue and date change. After close consultation with key industry stakeholders, the expo will now take place at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit and International Convention Centre in Midrand, Johannesburg from 1-3 July 2026.

Mediatech Africa is the continent’s largest and most established trade show dedicated to professional audiovisual, broadcast, media, and live event technology. The show brings together industry professionals, technology providers, creatives, and decision-makers for three days of hands-on demos, networking, and innovation. It serves as a platform for both global brands and regional players to connect, collaborate, and explore the future of the industry.

Previously scheduled at Johannesburg Expo Centre, the move

USA - CEDIA Expo/Commercial Integrator Expo (CIX) returns to the Colorado Convention Centre in Denver, Colorado, from September 3-6, 2025.

With 300+ exhibitors displaying smart home, commercial integration, luxury audio, home theatre, lighting, outdoor living, energy management, security, Work From Home (WFH) and commercial AV technologies and solutions, the combined show promises a broad and compelling showcase of new technologies in addition to keynotes and panels on the most pressing tech-related issues of today. Exhibitors include ADI Global, Crestron, Harman Luxury Audio, Legrand AV, Lutron, Origin Acoustics, Nice, Samsung, Sonance, Sony, and more.

“The lines separating home and work are becoming increasingly blurred, requiring smarter and more flexible systems integration solutions,” said Jason McGraw, group vice-president for CEDIA Expo/CI

UK - Polar, supplier of key industry brands to the installation, MI, and professional audio markets has announced that it will demonstrate its full portfolio at the Old Savoy Theatre, Northampton on Wednesday 28 May.

Polar Expo, a day-long event for integrators, AV consultants, rental companies, sound engineers, and everyone passionate about technology, will present an opportunity to see, hear, and explore the full Polar catalogue.

Last year, Polar staged a series of successful demo days for specific brands, including one at the Old Savoy for Turbosound, which drew plaudits from the wide range of audio professionals in attendance. Convinced by the success of the format, which gives visitors a real-world, hands-on experience of products, Polar sales manager Andy Plunkett will host Polar Expo, the company’s largest demo day to date:

UK - The Theatre nominations for The Profile Awards 2025 have now been published on the TPA website. The Theatre section is judged by eight of the UK’s leading theatre, dance and opera critics chaired by David Benedict (Variety). Every single new production seen is automatically eligible for consideration and, as each judge may see around two hundred shows over the year, that is a significant amount of work that gets covered. (https://profileawards.com/theatre-nominations-2025/)

The Profile Awards Theatre Sponsors are:

@chauvet_pro  - Outstanding Achievement in Theatre Award

@elationlighting - Outstanding Achievement in Dance Award

@elctronictheatrecontrols - Outstanding Achievement in Opera Award

@fix8group - Outstandi

Germany - Digital Signage Summit Europe will take place on 21-23 May at Hilton Munich Airport with ChromeOS by Google as the headline sponsor. The event, organised by invidis in partnership with Integrated Systems Events (ISE), will also be supported by Lenovo as premium event partner, M-Cube as technology partner, along with several other notable brands.

DSS Europe 2025 is poised to include the largest speaker line-up to date, as well as enhanced features and a variety of new experiences aimed at promoting networking, knowledge-sharing, and innovation. 

New for 2025 the DSS Europe app, sponsored by Lenovo, is a major highlight of this year’s summit. The app features an advanced matchmaking engine that suggests meaningful connections between delegates, as well as between delegates and exhibitors, based on shared interests. Users can seaml

France - Robert Juliat is proud to welcome Showlight 2025 to France for the first time in its history as it opens its doors in Dijon from 19-22 May.

This global quadrennial networking event for lighting professionals is itinerant by nature, choosing a new country and a new venue at each outing. France has a rich tradition in the arts and lighting which Robert Juliat is thrilled to showcase on an international stage.

“As a company that has been at the heart of the lighting industry for over a century, Robert Juliat is honoured to be the headline sponsor of Showlight 2025,” says Robert Juliat’s third generation managing director, François Juliat. “Bringing this prestigious event to France, the home of our heritage, is a moment of immense pride for us. For over 100 years, Robert Juliat has been synonymous with excellence in li

France - The fantastic line-up for Showlight 2025’s speakers is now complete. We are excited to bring you over 30 speakers covering lighting topics from every discipline and every corner of the globe. Here’s the last group of speakers who’ll be coming to the Parc des Expositions, 19-22 May 2025. There’s something for everyone, so book your ticket now and join us in glorious Dijon!

Frédéric ‘Aldo’ Fayard

Light and laser for New Year’s Eve at Burj Khalifa

Founder of Concept K, Aldo Fayard has 30 years of global experience working on live tours, large-scale events, cinema and permanent installations. He will give us the lowdown on his stunning installation for the New Year’s Eve show in Dubai Downtown, which encompassed a combination of several permanent technologies mixed with a temporary ins

UK - The Profile Awards for Theatre and Television are once again to be held at the Alexandra Palace Theatre on the last day of the ABTT Show, which this year is Thursday 5 June.

Organised by Durham and Jennie Marenghi in association with the ABTT, the ALPD and the STLD, Ayrton returns as the event’s headline sponsor. Lucky winners are set to take home Patt 23M fixtures on stands, a miniature LED version of the Rank Strand Pattern 23 profile fixture with an engraved base.

The Theatre category of The Profile Awards is currently being judged by eight of the UK’s leading theatre, dance and opera critics, chaired by Variety’s David Benedict, and were not open to nominations.

The TV category is judged by a panel chaired by STLD honorary secretary Stuart Gain and comprising theatre LD Peter Small, TV LD Martin Kempton, and TV directo

India - Canadian manufacturer of professional audio solutions, Adamson, will be represented by local distributor StageMix at this year’s Palm Expo in Mumbai. Taking place between 29 and 31 May, Palm Expo is the leading professional audiovisual exhibition in India. StageMix will be responsible for the debut of Adamson’s new VGt series of large-format line array loudspeakers, the first member of the brand’s Vergence Group.

“India represents an exciting and fast-growing market for Adamson, and we are thrilled to introduce our VGt loudspeakers at Palm Expo,” confirms Pieter van Hoogdalem, business development strategist at Adamson. “StageMix will present a range of Adamson solutions, but the spotlight will be firmly on the VGt and its potential for large-scale live events and venues.”

VGt is a peak-performance large-format line array loudsp

UK - For the first time, PLASA Focus Leeds has launched an official mobile app, now available to download on both Apple and Android devices. Introduced following the success of the PLASA Show London app in 2024, which saw strong uptake among visitors, the new app is designed to maximise engagement and efficiency at the 2025 show.

Taking place at the Royal Armouries, Leeds on 13–14 May 2025, the event will once again welcome thousands of professionals working across live events, AV, lighting, audio, rigging, staging and more. The PLASA Focus Leeds app serves as a comprehensive, digital companion for navigating the show, enabling you to:

 - Access and print visitor badges directly from the app

 - Browse a full exhibitor and product list in advance

 - View the detailed seminar and workshop schedule

 - Use the inter

Japan - Ampetronic, designer and manufacturer of assistive listening solutions is sponsoring the UK Pavilion at Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan. Ampetronic is ensuring clear audio is accessible to all UK Pavilion visitors so they can fully engage in this entertaining experience that demonstrates the best of British creativity and innovation.

Expo 2025 opened on 13 April and will run through 13 October. More than 28m visitors from Japan and internationally are expected to attend the Expo, themed Designing Future Society for Our Lives.

Visitors to the UK Pavilion will meet the UK’s Expo 2025 mascot, PIX, and be invited to participate in an immersive and interactive exhibit. The exhibit is an animated 20-minute journey that features a heartfelt story of a Japanese father and daughter and their experiences working in, living in, and visitin

Hall of Fame - Rap group Outkast, pop star Cyndi Lauper and 1960s pioneer Chubby Checker have all won places in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. This year's inductees were revealed live on American Idol, with the UK represented by hard rock band Bad Company and Joe Cocker, 11 years after his death from lung cancer. Performers become eligible for inclusion 25 years after the release of their first commercial recording. The nominations are voted on by more than 1,200 music historians, industry professionals and previously inducted artists.

The full list of performers to be inducted this year is: Bad Company, Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, Cyndi Lauper, Outkast, Soundgarden and The White Stripes. Salt-N-Pepa, the first commercially successful female rap group, will also receive the musical influence award, alongside Warren Zevon. There are also musical e

France - The Showlight quadrennial is a rare event that you do not want to miss. Three days of lighting professionals networking and exchanging ideas, listening to speakers at the top of their profession, all in the beautiful setting of Dijon, France. This gathering only happens once every four years – and it’s for everyone.

Historically, Showlight is conducted solely in English but this year is different. Located in France and supported by French lighting manufacturer and headline sponsor, Robert Juliat, we look forward to welcoming many French-speaking delegates as well as international attendees.

To make sure nobody misses a word, for the first time Showlight is offering simultaneous translation of the Papers and Q&A sessions across four languages. Delegates can choose to listen – and ask questions – in English, French, Italian and Spa

South Africa - After six years off the calendar, Mediatech Africa is back. The original and largest trade show for AV, broadcast, and live event tech on the continent returns from 3 - 5 June 2026 at the Johannesburg Expo Centre (Nasrec) – and it's bringing the industry back together to mark 25 years since the first show in 2001.

Mediatech Africa has been a cornerstone of the continent’s AV and broadcast industry since day one. More than just an expo, it’s a space for the industry to connect, share ideas, and stay in step with the latest tech. Its legacy is built on collaboration, community, and innovation – drawing top brands, global suppliers, and the passionate people who keep the industry moving forward.

Simon Robinson, co-owner of Mediatech, recalls: “Our first show was in 2001 at the Sandton Convention Centre. It was small, focused mos

USA - Shure will serve as the headline partner at InfoComm 2025 in Orlando, Fl. In this role, Shure will showcase its thought leadership and technical expertise across InfoComm stages and educational sessions.

“We are thrilled to have Shure as our headline partner for InfoComm 2025. Shure is an InfoComm staple that attracts attendees year after year,” said Jenn Heinold, senior vice-president, expositions, Americas, AVIXA. “Shure’s elevated presence at InfoComm 2025 will enrich the show and inspire the pro AV community to reach new heights.” 

As Shure gears up for this significant event, it reflects on nearly three decades of consistent participation and the enduring relationships built during that time. The company’s involvement in InfoComm has been a cornerstone of its engagement with industry professionals.

“Shure has been an

Germany - The world of events is changing – it is becoming smarter, more immersive, and greener than ever. Prolight + Sound 2025 demonstrated how the industry is actively shaping this change – with innovative products, interdisciplinary know-how, and practical applications. Over 23,000 trade visitors from 108 countries used the 30th anniversary of the show to gain fresh inspiration for their work and make new contacts.

Technology was brought to life in all areas – from intelligent lighting and sound solutions to automated camera systems and sustainable concepts for energy-efficient events. 491 exhibitors plus numerous well-known brands presented their innovations and solutions for tomorrow.

Prolight + Sound 2025 welcomed visitors from all over the world. For example, from Europe, especially from the Netherlands, France, Italy and Spain; from Ea

UK - Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has offered his support for Production Futures’ forthcoming On Tour event at the city’s AO Arena.

The free-of-charge event which takes place on 28 April is set to attract a wide range of young people from across the North West of England, and promotes employability, transferable skills, diversity, free training, networking, and paid work opportunities to newcomers across the live event and broadcast production industry.

This will be Production Futures’ second visit to the AO Arena following last year’s successful event which was attended by a host of world-leading manufacturers, supply and production companies, venues and distributors.

Andy Burnham, who also visited last year’s event, comments: “Greater Manchester has a proud history of creativity and innovation in live events an

UK - PLASA Focus Leeds returns to the Royal Armouries from 13-14 May 2025, with its highly anticipated seminar programme now live. Designed to reflect the current needs and future ambitions of the live entertainment technology sector, this year’s programme will explore critical topics across audio, sustainability, emerging professionals, and artificial intelligence.

Across the two-day show, visitors will gain insight from technical pioneers, creative leaders, and forward-thinking organisations. All sessions are free to attend and take place on Level 1 of the Royal Armouries on a first come, first served basis.

Audio innovation in focus 

The 2025 programme brings a strong emphasis on professional audio, with highlights including an exclusive audience with FOH sound engineer Robb Allan, whose work spans from Radiohead to Mas

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