USA - Entertainment technology charity Behind the Scenes has announced that the The Lightpower Collection’s work of famed Rock‘n’Roll photographer and author Neal Preston is returning to the NAMM Show (16-19 January, Anaheim). Neal’s pictures will be displayed in the BTS booth #10747 and will include pictures not previously seen at the show including Mötley Crüe, Kiss, and Bruce Springsteen. Neal’s books Exhilarated & Exhausted and In the Eye of the Hurricane and posters, including his famous images of Robert Plant and Carlos Santana, will be available for sale. Proceeds will benefit the charity. Neal will be present in the Behind the Scenes booth to sign books and posters on Thursday, 16 January at 3pm and on Friday, 17 January at 11am and 3pm. Neal’s archive is regarded as one of the music industry’s most extensive and signif
World - As the LSi office closes for the Christmas break, we would like to wish all our readers a very special holiday and a happy and prosperous 2020. We'll be back with more daily news here at LSiOnline in the New Year, kicking off on 2nd January. Until then, have a great time - and thanks for reading . . . The LSi team
USA - Behind the Scenes (BTS) - the US charity that provides financial support to entertainment technology industry professionals who are seriously ill or injured - has now awarded $1,000,000 in grants. The milestone has been reached with the support of the wider industry, with numerous companies and organisations backing the charity via direct donations or by donating portions of its sales profits or service fees. “Every person or organisation who has made a donation, bought a raffle ticket or a holiday card, organised or participated in a community fundraising event, or become a Pledge-of-Support Partner has made it possible for Behind the Scenes to bring help and hope to our colleagues during some of their most difficult moments,” says the charity in a statement. Grants have been provided to individuals from across the US and Canada working in every facet of th
Big Issues - Industry bodies have highlighted the biggest issues for the arts following the general election result – with Equity stating it is “extremely concerned” about the impact of Brexit. Following the Conservative win in last week’s general election, organisations, also including the Creative Industries Federation, UK Theatre, Incorporated Society of Musicians and the Back for the Future Campaign, have outlined their priorities for the creative industries. Equity general secretary Christine Payne said: “As the largest union in the creative sector, representing more than 48,000 professionals, we strongly encourage the government to take up the offer we make today of expert guidance on matters that are crucial for the future health of the UK’s creative industries. “Equity remains extremely concerned about the impact Brexit will have on our memb
USA - PixMob, a Montreal-based company designing crowd experiences through LED wearables, won the new Sustainability Award at this year’s LDI for the PixMob Recycling Programme. Since the beginning of the programme in 2018 with Taylor Swift’s Reputation stadium tour, PixMob successfully recycled over 1m wristbands, an initiative recognised by the LDI Awards panel. “It’s an honour for us to receive this award because the Recycling Programme represents the first step in our plan to reduce our environmental impact and eliminate single-use plastics in our supply chain,” explains Jean-Olivier Dalphond, president of PixMob. “To achieve this milestone, we had to reinvent how we work, from our deployment of the Recycling Programme at venues to our message to the audience. “Artists have also sought to be involved and get the fans behind the effort. As a resu
South Africa - The South African Communications Industries Association (SACIA) has announced that the Council of Events Professionals Africa (CEPA) will be reconstituted as a special interest group under the SACIA umbrella. CEPA was established in 2014 as the events industry’s professional body to develop and award professional designations to individuals working in the events industry. Originally formed as a three-way partnership between the Exhibition and Event Association of Southern Africa (EXSA), the International Festivals and Events Association (IFEA) Africa and the Southern African Association for the Conference Industry (SAACI), the Council (CEPA) has broad buy-in from members of all three associations, and the CEPA Board members appointed by the founding associations will continue to oversee activities through their appointment to a governing council. SACIA
Festive Spirit - Theatre Royal Stratford East will make its pantomime available for streaming to local hospitals and care homes. Its production of Dick Whittington will be captured live at the venue and made available for streaming to hospitals, hospices and care homes in east London and Essex. The initiative expands on a 2017 scheme in which Rapunzel was made available to three organisations in and around the area. TRSE head of learning and participation Flo Paul said: “We’re delighted to be able to offer this streaming service to people in our local community who are not able to make it to Theatre Royal Stratford East to see our much-loved annual panto. This year we are expanding the offer to adults in care homes, as well as children in hospices and hospitals. At Stratford East, we believe it’s vital to offer a range of opportunities for people of all a
USA - Behind the Scenes has announced that J-4 Design has become a Pledge-a-Service partner by pledging to donate a percentage of their fees from theatrical lighting equipment repair to the charity. This represents a percentage of the gross labour charges from every repair order or outsourcing contract. J-4 Design focuses on architectural and theatrical systems sales and equipment repair services and work on all types of architectural and theatrical systems. On announcing the pledge, founder Scott ‘Scooter’ Wasserberg states: “I’m doing this because I was once in pain and dealing with my own personal mental health crisis and trying to find ways to pay the bills and find a new job and just not feel down. Our Pledge-a-Service commitment speaks to the heart of the company’s mission, to build partnerships and find solutions. Behind the Scenes provides solutions
Call to Arms - Industry leaders including National Theatre bosses Rufus Norris and Lisa Burger and Bristol Old Vic’s artistic director Tom Morris are calling on the sector to band together to fight for increased arts investment from a new government. They have issued the call to arms in an attempt to undo the effects of austerity-era cuts. Their demands for increased arts funding from central government come alongside warnings that the regional theatre sector could “fall over” if support does not increase, and that the crisis facing organisations nationwide is “sharper and more acute” than has so far been publicly acknowledged. As the UK prepares to head to the polls and with both Labour and the Conservatives promising a boost to public spending, theatre bosses have claimed now is the moment for a major policy shift around arts funding. Morris said: “
Record Breaker - At the American Music Awards, Taylor Swift was presented with the Artist of the Decade award by singer-songwriter Carole King who commended Swift for the strength of her lyrics, and the relatability of her music, predicting: "The best is yet to come." In turn, Swift acknowledged the impact King's music had had on her parents and her family, saying it was every musician's goal "to create something that will last". The career-spanning honour wasn't Swift's only award at the ceremony - she picked up another five competitive awards, including artist of the year. That brings her total tally of AMA trophies to 29 - breaking a record held by Michael Jackson, who received 24 American Music Awards. Secondary Ticketing - Andrew Lloyd Webber is joining forces with ticket resellers Twickets in a bid to beat touts. The theatrical grandee, whose LW playhouses
USA - ETC continued its commitment to caring for entertainment technology professionals in need by presenting a cheque to Behind the Scenes during LDI for $23,628.98. This represented the most recent proceeds from the company’s iRFR and aRFR (Radio Focus Remote) applications. Since the launch of the iRFR in 2009, ETC’s mobile app sales have now generated over $390,000 in donations. The iRFR and aRFR mobile apps enable convenient, touchscreen-based remote control for Eos family consoles and controllers. You can learn more about the apps from the ETC website and download them from the iTunes or Google Play stores. “We never imagined that this app would provide such continuous support to Behind the Scenes. ETC is grateful to all the people who have supported the Eos platform and purchased this app over the years,” comments Wendy Orfan, marketing communications m
Get Back - One of the live industry’s worst-kept secrets has been confirmed: Sir Paul McCartney will headline Glastonbury in 2020. The former Beatle will top the bill on the Pyramid Stage on Saturday 27 June, a week after his 78th birthday. He last played the Somerset event in 2004, and organisers have long been keen to get him back for an encore. Next year will be Glastonbury's golden jubilee and co-organiser Emily Eavis says: “There really was no one that we wanted more for the 50th anniversary.” Together Again - Mötley Crüe are to reform for a stadium tour of the US - less than five years after they played what they said would be their final ever show. Def Leppard and Poison will join them, but dates and venues are yet to be announced. Before their supposed farewell tour in 2014-2015, the band had signed what they said was a "cessation of touring agreement"
UK - Penn Elcom has launched a new range of its premium flat pack 19" racking Credenzas, manufactured and tailored to meet the high standards of custom installers working in all market sectors - from commercial to residential and entertainment. These are available in two, three, four, six, eight and 12U variants and in two high-quality wood-style finishes for maximum versatility in all types of built environment. Demand for the products has been fuelled by numerous factors including changes in digital technology and the need to combine elements of home entertainment / smart-home and commercial / industrial systems into good looking integrated packages. Each pack includes two pre-threaded steel rails and a set of four non-marking feet. The panels are specially made from tough 25mm high resin density melamine faced chipboard, which is durable, featuring 2mm solid
USA - Behind the Scenes reports that its recent Survey to Assist in the Development of a Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Initiative in the Entertainment Industry received “an incredible response from the industry” with over 3,300 people completing the survey. An initial look at the survey results confirmed that the long hours, pressures of deadlines, lack of resources, and uncertainty of employment have taken a very hard toll on our industry. These affect not only mental health, but physical health as well, and impact relationships with family and friends. Unsurprisingly, over 90% of respondents have experienced anxiety while over 80% have suffered from depression. What is also apparent from the responses, and very encouraging, is that many individuals want to step up and help colleagues they feel are struggling but simply don’t know how and are very
Czech Republic - Prague-based Elvia-Pro has taken on the distribution of German fibre network specialists BroaMan in the Czech Republic, following a request from private commercial station, TV Nova. Formed in 1993, Elvia-Pro specialises in management, engineering and project work within the broadcast sector, and manufactures and installs equipment for OB and DSNG trucks, specialising in main broadcast organisations such as Czech TV, TV Nova, TV Prima, TV Barrandov and production houses. It was TV Nova who were largely responsible for the new distribution arrangement. “They came to us with a request for BroaMan devices,” recalls Tomáš Kocáb, Elvia-Pro’s sales product specialist. BroaMan technical sales manager Maciek Janiszewski made a professional presentation at TV Nova, leading to the new distribution deal, which was formalised on the BroaMan stand at the IB
USA - Producers, musicians, DJs and music industry professionals came together at the Capitol Studios in Hollywood earlier this week to honour producer Quincy Jones with an AKG Lifetime Achievement Award. Held in Capitol’s historic A and B studios, guests were treated to a performance by Quincy Jones protégé and multi-Grammy award winner, Jacob Collier, along with a variety of immersive experiences that celebrated the microphone and headphone brand’s iconic past while showcasing its rich future. The evening culminated with host and broadcast journalist Nic Harcourt presenting Quincy Jones the AKG Lifetime Achievement Award, for Quincy’s contribution to music since the early 1950s. “For almost seven decades in this business as a musician, composer, arranger, conductor and producer, I have always gone for the music that gives me goosebumps. And whether it was
On The Campaign Trail - Actors and theatre staff are being urged to make sure they have made arrangements to vote in next month’s election amid warnings that those working away from home on Christmas shows could be disenfranchised. Matt Hood, Equity’s assistant general secretary, described the election date as “inconvenient for many”, adding: “For our members, many of whom will be working away from home on tour, in panto or filming, it runs the real risk of them losing their right to vote.” Thomas Hescott, chief executive of Stage Directors UK, comments: “November and December is an extremely busy time of the year for our members, many of whom are working away from home on Christmas shows. The short notice means many of our members are already away working and so have little opportunity to organise postal ballots. We are concerned that our members will s
USA - Newly-elected ESTA board members are Todd Spencer, PSAV, for president; Alan M. Rowe, IATSE Local 728, returns for his second term as organisational director, and Joe Aldridge as individual director. These terms of office begin on 1 January 2020 and run through 31 December 2022. ESTA and its members wish to thank outgoing board members Jules Lauve of Theatre Projects Consultants and Dana Taylor for their dedicated service.
Major Revamp - The Brit Awards have announced a major revamp for 2020, with fewer awards and an end to fan votes. Organisers promise "more music" as a result, with artists being given full creative control of their performances. Prizes like Best British Video and Best International Group have been cut, while the outstanding contribution award has been retired for 2020. Despite press reports earlier this year, gendered awards will remain part of the ceremony. The changes come after several years of falling ratings. This year's ceremony, which saw performances from Pink, Dua Lipa and George Ezra, was watched by 4.1m people, down 400,000 from 2018. This year, all awards will be decided by a 1,200-strong "official voting academy", made up of “experts” from all areas of the music industry. Brits chairman David Joseph explained the changes, saying: "We will be putting cr
Property Moves - An immersive Monopoly experience is the first show to be announced under a new partnership between Selladoor Worldwide and games company Hasbro Inc. The collaboration will see the theatre company and Hasbro adapt more boardgames into live experiences in the future. While further productions have not yet been confirmed, other boardgames in Hasbro’s portfolio include Cluedo, Risk, Trivial Pursuit, Twister and Operation. Monopoly will run at a location in London which is yet to be announced in 2020. The experience will include a 75-minute segment where teams will compete to win tasks in order to move along the board, buy properties, and attempt to win the game. Features from the game including famous London landmarks, chance, community chest and jail will all be “brought to life” in a space that will also f
Lead Guitar - Some of the biggest names in rock and roll including Sir Paul McCartney, Robert Plant, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Steve Winwood, Mark Knopfler, Pete Townshend, Albert Lee, David Gilmour, Joe Brown, Richard Thompson and Dave Pegg have signed a guitar to be auctioned in honour of stroke victim Jerry Donahue. In 2016, American guitarist Jerry Donahue suffered a catastrophic stroke, almost certainly ending his career as one of the world’s finest folk-rock guitarists. The former Fairport Convention, Fotheringay and Hellecasters guitarist, was regarded by the music media as an extremely talented musician with an extraordinary technical approach to string bending. “To have so many famous signatures on this guitar is a fantastic achievement,” says close friend Dave Pegg, bassist in Fairport convention. “We know that the guitar will raise many t
Glastonbury 2020 - Tickets for next year's Glastonbury Festival sold out in just over half an hour. All 135,000 tickets for the 2020 event were bought within 34 minutes, according to organisers. Demand for the Somerset festival far outstripped supply, as 2.4m people registered to try to attend. Glastonbury celebrates its 50th year in 2020, and big acts are expected to be booked to appear on the various stages at Worthy Farm. Sir Paul McCartney has hinted he may return to play the festival in its anniversary year. Emily Eavis, daughter of founder Michael, tweeted: "We have now sold out. Thank you all for your incredible, continued support. Demand was higher than ever, with over 2.4 million people registered. Bring on 2020!" Carbon Neutral Theatre - Shell’s membership of the National Theatre will come to an end next year, as the arts organisation unveils a
Gendered Awards - The Brit Awards say they will review the way they distribute prizes, with one option being the abolition of separate male and female categories. But reports that gendered awards have already been axed are "based on rumour and speculation", organisers said. "We can 100% confirm that there will be male and female awards in the UK and international categories in February 2020," they told the BBC. The statement was issued after a story in The Sunday Times at the weekend claimed organisers wanted to accommodate non-binary artists - who identify as neither male nor female - and that scrapping gender-specific categories was the likely outcome. The report came a week after pop star Sam Smith asked fans to call them by the pronouns "they/them", not "he/him". "After a lifetime of being at war with my gender I've decided to embrace myself for who I am, inside and out,
UK - The PLASA Awards for Innovation, organised in collaboration with LSi magazine, took place at the end of a vibrant Monday at the PLASA Show 2019. The Awards recognise and reward pioneering product designs and the people behind them and are widely respected as they are independently judged by a team of industry experts with a variety of specialist backgrounds. This year saw 36 entries for the Awards, with the judges selecting seven winners and one Gold Award winner.
The winners, along with the judges comments, are: Nexo for the P12 Point-source loudspeaker “This is the ‘loudspeaker version of a source 4’ having interchangeable horns with tool-less interchangeability.” Robe for Esprite “This advances technical practice by increasing the potential lifespan of LED fixtures, hopefully
