UK - Gerriets GB Ltd has appointed Suzanne Wynne to its London office as the company's new head of sales.

A familiar face to many, Suzanne has over 20 years of experience within the industry working with textiles and associated products, servicing theatre, hospitality, special projects and the Event sectors.

Gerriets GB Ltd based in London are suppliers of theatrical curtains and flame retardant fabrics, track systems, screens and stage equipment.

(LSi Online)

USA - DTS will showcase its latest products at LDI 2016, booth 2359. The focus of the display will be on three innovative fixtures - Core, the true hybrid moving head; Katana, an advanced LED bar for the entertainment market, and NRG 1401, the LED beam / wash projector designed for the most creative applications.

George Tellos, the lighting director who lit the last Winter Olympics in Sochi, designed the DTS booth and the light show of the fixtures on display.

(Jim Evans)

USA - With an impressive variety of new products on hand to satisfy even the most discerning lighting professional, and with the added impression that an LDI Show and LDI Live Outside sponsorship makes, Elation is gearing up for an unprecedented LDI.

Join Elation 20-22 October at Booth 2515 at the Las Vegas Convention Centre for a look at a broad line-up of new cutting-edge lighting innovations then head out to the Silver Parking Lot and the LDI Live Outside stages where visitors will get a first look at an all-new product series that is set to be the talk of the show.

Designed to showcase the latest technology available as more and more events make their way outdoors, LDI Live Outside will feature demos, educational sessions and live entertainment in a festival-like set-up that will feature with some of Elation's latest lighting solutions.

Inside, Elation will debut t

UK - It may not have been a particularly 'illuminating' result for the home side as Nottingham Rugby were defeated 7-29 to newly-relegated London Irish. But no one could deny there were highlights of a different kind on the pitch, as Nottingham-based company and team sponsor, McCann, demonstrated its floodlighting expertise at the first night match of the season.

McCann - the company also behind the impressive lights on the tram bridge joining Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre with the University of Nottingham - is a long-term supporter of the 'Green n Whites'. When the team moved last season from its shared Notts County FC ground at Meadow Lane to its new home at Lady Bay, they looked to the leading civil and electrical engineering company for help in building its entire electrical infrastructure - including those all-important floodlights.

Tasked with designing and upg

UK - The Progress 1000 Awards, in partnership with Citi, is an annual event hosted by the London Evening Standard. It recognises the most influential people in the capital who work across a range of fields, from theatre to film to medicine to architecture. This year's event took place on Wednesday 7 September at the Science Museum and White Light was approached to provide the complete technical solutions.

This is the second year that WL has worked on the event, following last year's celebrations at the Canary Wharf Crossrail Station. Richard Stirzaker, WL's creative producer, comments, "The Progress 1000 is one of the most important dates in the capital's social calendar therefore the expectations of those in attendance are always extremely high. The brief was to make the evening as visually impressive as possible while accentuating the features of the Science Museum an

Europe - Beyoncé's Formation world tour is one of the highest profile and most talked about of the year so far, with everyone wowed by the massive 'Monolith', a 4-sided LED / video sculpture that moves and rotates and is right at the heart of a spectacularly elegant production fusing expressionist art and innovative stage technology.

The 20m high by 20m wide Monolith is 10m deep and was created by production designer Es Devlin working in close conjunction with Beyoncé herself who is involved in all the major details of her stage presentation. It takes the striking beauty, isolation and simplicity of a Monolith design concept to amazing new levels.

The object opens 7.3m in the middle, tracks - as two sections on sliding grids - and rotates 360 degrees, a feat of engineering enabled by Belgian automation specialist WIcreations who designed the rotation and slid

Italy - The Colosseum in Rome - world famous heritage site and one of Italy's most popular tourist attractions - was originally constructed in 70 - 80 AD and is the largest amphitheatre ever built. This summer it was reopened after three years of extensive refurbishments - the first in its history.

The momentous occasion involved a high profile gala event. A special classical programme was played by the Accademia Teatro alla Scala conducted by Zubin Mehta, and the Colosseum was lit by lighting designer Giancarlo Toscani who utilized 20 Robe BMFL WashBeams for this special occasion.

Giancarlo was asked to propose a lighting scheme by the show director, Fulvio Michelazzi, working for event producers Studio Exhibita for end client Grupo Tod, one of the co-sponsors of the restoration project along with the Italian government working in a PPP arrangement.

The brief was to l

USA - Washington University in St. Louis hosted the second debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. The school, which has hosted five debates in the past, was buzzing with excitement in the days leading up to the 2016 contest, including a parade through campus by the famous Budweiser Clydesdales and a colourful red, white and blue lighting display anchored by a collection of fixtures from Chauvet Professional.

Chip Self, owner of Logic Systems Sound and Lighting, created the patriotic display on the exterior of Brookings Hall, the sprawling Gothic structure that serves as the symbolic heart of Washington University's Danforth Campus, where the debate took place.

Logic Systems used 40 COLORdash Par-Quad 18 RGBA LED par style fixtures, six COLORado Ridge IP RGBWA LED wash panels and two ellipsoidal units to bathe the iconic building's north side in colorful light.

Sold Out - Glastonbury 2017 sold out in 50 minutes on Sunday morning - with a reported 2m applying for the 135,000 tickets available - and the usual complaints regarding problems in access-ing the ticket website. "We have, once again, been blown away by the incredible number of people from around the planet who hoped to come to the festival, with demand significantly outstripping supply," said the organisers in a statement. Next year's event will take place from 21-25 June, with the line-up not being announced by organisers until early 2017. Daft Punk and Kraftwerk have been tipped as potential headliners.

Old Gold - The first leg of the much-hyped Desert Trip festival took place over the weekend, with The Rolling Stones, The Who, Roger Waters, Paul McCartney and Neil Young taking to the stage in California. Organised by the people behind Coachella - and dubbed #Oldchel

Australia - GDS has appointed Jands as its exclusive distributor in Australia. With a head-quarters and manufacturing facility in Sydney, a factory in Melbourne and offices in Brisbane and Perth, Jands is an established manufacturer and distributor of lighting and staging products and also distributes top international audio brands. As well as designing and manufacturing its own lighting products, Jands identifies and sources the best lighting products from around the world in order to supply its customers with the most comprehensive choice possible. Established for well over 40 years, Jands enjoys a strong reputation for delivering high quality solutions across every area of the entertainment technology industry in Australia.

Tim Kennard, Lighting Sales Manager at Jands was upbeat: "GDS lighting products complement our extensive lighting offering perfectly. This distribution

USA - What happens in Vegas will not be staying in Vegas, at least not as far as the Chauvet Professional and Ovation LDI booths (1315 and 1515 respectively) are concerned. The company is introducing an impressive collection of new fixtures.

In the Ovation line, there is the new Ovation E-260WW IP, the first IP65 rated LED ellipsoidal. The new indoor/ outdoor fixture, which has the same familiar form factor as standard ERS style fixtures, joins the Ovation E-260WW, which was introduced earlier this year. The two Ovation LED ellipsoidals have an output that surpasses that of a 750-watt HPL ellipsoidal (6,910 lux at 5M with a 26° lens).

Chauvet Professional is also showcasing the first batten fixtures ever in the company's Ovation line. The new Ovation B-565FC and B-2805FC are the first batten style fixtures anywhere to utilize the extended colour rendering capacity of t

South Africa - DWR Distribution is hosting aRobe LED Theatre Workshop presented by renowned international lighting designer, Andy Webb. The workshop will be hosted at UJ Arts Centre Theatre in Johannesburg on 9 November. There are two sessions and delegates are either welcome to attend from 9am to 12 noon or alternatively from 2pm to 5pm. The workshop is free of charge.

Freelance UK theatre lighting designer, Andy Webb, presents Robe's LED range of fixtures with the context of how to use these fixtures within theatre show designs while incorporating examples of productions he has designed. Andy explains why LED is so useful within his theatre designs, describing key factors such as fan noise (being super quiet), Power consumption (being able to link multiple fixtures together on power runs), colour mixing (having endless colour options and not just a single LEE colour filter o

Singapore - From 1 October, MA Lighting has appointed Total Solution as an exclusive distributor for Malaysia and Singapore. The Singapore-based company is one of the leading distributors for premium professional light, video and rigging products in Asia. Total Solution also started a regional service centre in 2005 to enhance its after sales customer support.

Riku Kauppinen, MA's director of sales, commented on the cooperation, "Strategic partnership with Total Solution will bring MA Lighting even closer to the MA users in the region. True commercial and technical competence as well as commitment that we can see and feel in the people working at Total Solution are in the very heart of both companies work ethic. We are really thrilled to start a new era in Singapore and Malaysia."

Managing director Glenn Wong said, "We are honoured and very humbled that MA Lighting has cho

USA - Elation Professional has announced launch of a new beam/wash moving head in its Rayzor Series of compact and high-speed LED luminaires, the Rayzor 360Z.

The Rayzor 360Z houses three 60W RGBW LEDs for a powerful thrust of light and includes a 5° to 50° motorized zoom for the versatility of narrow to wide beam angle spreads. Lighting professionals will be able to get an up-close look at the speedy Rayzor 360Z at Elation Booth 2515 at the upcoming LDI show in Las Vegas.

The Rayzor 360Z offers surprising brightness for its size (20,550 Lux @ 3m with 5° zoom) and with fast and precise 16-bit continuous 360° pan and tilt rotation it can add an energizing look to any show.

Also useful as an effective wash light, colour temperature is variable from 2,700K - 8,000K and colours mix uniform from vibrant saturates across pastels to authentic warm and cool sha

USA - Console and automated lighting manufacturer High End Systems will once again be exhibiting their products at the 2016 LDI trade show (Booth #2215) in Las Vegas, held 21-23 October.

Key personnel from the company's executive, sales and engineering departments will be on hand at the show to meet with customers, LDs and programmers. In addition to displaying their Hog 4 range of lighting consoles, the company is introducing several new products in their SolaRange and FX lines of LED based automated luminaires.

Unveiled at the recent PLASA show, the SolaWash FX 2000 is the latest addition to the SolaRange family, joining the revolutionary SolaWash FX 1000 and SolaSpot 1000 launched earlier this year. High End is also introducing SolaSpot Frame 2000 to compliment the 2000 Wash and Spot range.

High End will also be displaying their full line of Hog lighting consoles -

USA - The LDI tradeshow has played a major part in ETC's history, being the site of countless product launches that have propelled the company forward.

In a nod to that tradition, the company will mark its 40th anniversary at this year's LDI show by introducing a host of new products and giving attendees sneak peeks at upcoming gear. With so much to celebrate, ETC will have three stands - 2773, 2872 and 2972 - and a demo room - N115 - at the show, 21-23 October, in Las Vegas.

ETC will show the full ColorSource family, including the ColorSource and ColorSource AV lighting control desks and the brand new ColorSource Linear batten-style fixture. LDI show attendees can also get demos of the Irideon FPZ architectural luminaire and Prodigy hoists.

And ETC's stands will feature never-before-seen fixture, control, rigging and networking products, along with a big surprise that

USA - Country crooner Frankie Ballard is out on tour bringing his classic country sound to fans across the nation. The Sunshine and Whiskey singer is known for his vintage style on tour, something Bandit Lites lighting director Patrick Sieg focused on continuing.

"There was no direction on design or concept from the camp or management when I first came on, so I studied the show, watched previous live concerts and pretty much threw ideas at the wall until something stuck," said Sieg.

Using a Bandit supplied GrandMA 2 Ultra-Lite console, he worked to carefully accentuate Ballard's four-piece band, a component Sieg calls a major part of the performance. "I wanted the audience to visually perceive the band and take notice of their involvement without highlighting a clear focus on the stage," he said. "I use a lot of saturating backlights on the band to achieve this, and

Puerto Rico - Salsa, cumbia and contemporary North American pop all swirl together harmoniously in Christian Daniel's lively vocal style. Describing his captivating blend of music as "tropical pop", the Puerto Rican-born artist has attracted a passionate fan base throughout the Americas as evidenced by his string of hits, including the chart topping single Me Vuelvo Un Cobarde.

At a recent sold-out concert at San Juan's Centro de Bellas Artes de Santurce, lighting designer Lara Alsina of Entertainment in Motion captured the uplifting mood of the artist's genre transcending music with a celestial-like lightshow that featured a collection of floating overhead cubes glowing with the warm white light of Nexus Aw 7x7 LED panels from Chauvet Professional.

Alsina flew eight of the large cubes 20'-25' over the stage, suspending them on motorized cables mounted on trussing.

Latin America - Avolites, the British manufacturer of intelligent media control solutions for the entertainment industry, is expanding into South and Central America - further to a significant sales and training tour in the region.

Avolites sales engineer Javier Pastor has just returned from a successful, whistle-stop tour of seven countries in just four weeks. Following a rigorous schedule packed full of meetings, TV and radio appearances, presentations and training sessions, Pastor met with Avolites' key audio-visual equipment distributors in each state: Integraled in Mexico, Layset in Peru, Rojo Audio e Iluminaci

USA - Heavy metal rockers Slipknot have been out on the road again, thrilling audiences using Elation Professional hybrid Platinum SBX moving heads with visuals projected across a large LED wall made up of Elation EPT Series video display panels.

In a sensory-overload show, a massive projection screen made up of EPT6IP LED panels flashes a mix of chilling imagery while Platinum SBX hybrid moving heads keep the mid-air visual look electric.

Production and lighting design is by Trevor Ahlstrand of Ahlstrand Productions with lighting supply by Gemini Light, Sound & Video, both of whom have worked with Slipknot on several tours.

Known for their aggressive style of music and energetic live shows, Ahlstrand was looking for a combination beam and profile fixture that could keep up with the band's hard driving show. "The SBX were chosen for their output to punch through the ba

Europe - LumenRadio has announced that Martin Professional and ChamSys have chosen to add support in their respective control software for the CRMX Nova USB TX dongle to give their users easy access to reliable wireless DMX control directly from the console.

"We have added support in M-PC for the USB dongle transmitter from LumenRadio. We think it is a great way for our users to get access to reliable wireless technology without the need for using cables to connect a transmitter to the controller. M-PC will offer one full universe of DMX for free using the LumenRadio transmitter." says Matthias Hinrichs, product manager at Martin Professional.

Hinrichs continues, "We are also planning to add support for the Nova USB TX driver to our range of M-Series consoles in the near future."

British console manufacturer ChamSys also decided to add support for the CRMX Nova USB TX

USA - Robe is ready to rock the LDI 2016 expo at the Las Vegas Convention Center October 21-23 on Booth 1715 where the featured product will be the new Spiider LED wash beam luminaire - the next big thing - from Robe, which has just been launched worldwide.

Much anticipated, the Spiider will be the visual centrepiece of the large booth with a special lightshow running at the top of each hour.

Bob Schacherl, CEO of Robe America comments, "We are extremely pleased with how well the North American market continues to embrace our brand. Lighting designers have been very complementary on the performance of our luminaires and the rental companies are thrilled with their reliability. It doesn't get much better than that! We look forward to introducing our clients to the latest Robe innovations at LDI 2016."

Robe lighting s.r.o CEO Josef Valchar confirms, "Spiider is really so

USA - Thousands gathered at the National Mall to take a breath from divisiveness, hate and despair at Together 2016, an event whose mission was to "come together around Jesus in unified prayer, worship, and a call for catalytic change". Bandit Lites provided the lighting for the 16 July non-denominational event, where Hillsong United, Lecrae, Crowder, Michael W. Smith and Kari Jobe performed.

With the bulk of the performances taking place during the day, lighting designer Mark Carver thoughtfully chose fixtures that would pop in the daylight and shade.

"Logistically, this was a very large space and open to the public," said Carver. "Our goal for the stage was to create an atmosphere that matched the scale and allowed for flexibility for all the various artist participating in the event. We tried to utilize a forced perspective to create depth."

The stage rig consisted

Germany - Lleyendecker, the event technology service provider, has expanded its inventory by investing in 120 X4 Bars from GLP. These are now available for hire from their 4,000 sq.m warehouse.

Stated Jasper Hülsmann, head of the lighting department at Lleyendecker, "For over 20 years GLP has stood for high-quality lighting technology, and of course we already have many of their LED spotlights in our inventory. Now the X4 Bars are increasingly appearing on tenders, and so this investment became a logical one in order to meet customer demand.

"Because of their versatility, the X4 Bars can be used for many different projects - and we were further convinced by the fixture's colour spectrum and perfect dimming performance. The customers that have already used these fixtures have been thoroughly satisfied with the result. We now look forward to the realization of other project

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