UK - Leicester-based provider of specialist electrical LED lighting installations, Ventola Projects, has completed a major project at the newly re-launched Cheshire Oaks Tenpin bowling centre near Ellesmere Port. Cheshire Oaks has invested more than £1m in the recent transformation which includes the latest technology, new attractions and will create more than 25 new jobs. Ventola Projects has helped to implement some of this latest technology. Managing director, Mick Ventola and his team have assisted the venue in achieving its ultimate objective; to change the dynamic of the existing design, ensuring high quality white lighting plus the inclusion of vibrant colours through the site. Functionality and controllability were high on the wish-list of the client and neither of these proved to be a challenge for Ventola who understood the wants and needs of the entertainme
South Africa - DWR Distribution hosted a Robe Roadshow during the first week of December. “It has been a while since a product has made such an impact in our market, and both the Esprite and Tetra2 have blown us away,” said Duncan Riley, managing director of DWR. “While the roadshow - hosted in Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg - coincided with the busiest time of the year for many in our industry, we were pleased to demonstrate the fixtures to several key industry players. We were very grateful to those who were able to join us, and for the positive feedback that they gave. A big thank-you to the Roxy Revue Bar at the GrandWest Casino in Cape Town and the Grace Family Church in Durban for hosting us.” Demonstrations were held on the hour between 10am and 4PM throughout the Roadshow by DWR’s Jannie de Jager and Harry von den Stemmen, international sales dire
USA - In January 1922 the Orpheum Theatre in Marion, IL, opened its doors for the first time. The flagship location of a vaudeville chain, the theatre offered locals a wide array of entertainment options, even hosting stars like Harry Houdini and the Ziegfeld Follies who performed before standing room only crowds. Although the Orpheum is long gone, having been purchased by the city and renamed from a variety of genres. Only today, performers on its stage are supported by a modern LED lighting system that would have been unimaginable in the Orpheum’s incandescent era. Anchoring that rig is collection of 46 Chauvet Professional Maverick fixtures that were added to the theatre’s rig earlier this year. “We purchased the Mavericks after some extensive research and testing against competing fixtures, led by our executive director Josh Benson,” said Kyle Upchur
UK – Australian three-piece alt dance group Rufus Du Sol headed to London’s Alexandra Palace for the headline performance of their Solace tour and their biggest UK show to date. In a statement, the band said: “We wanted to find somewhere big enough to host a night of electronic music with all the bells and whistles.” TSL Lighting was brought in to make this happen, specifying their latest investments to provide the pizazz befitting of Matthew Smith’s ambitious lighting design and production manager Jonathan Nelson’s requirements. Senior TSL project manager James Davies oversaw the equipment package creation and delivery, which included 25 of GLP’s award winning JDC1 hybrid strobe and control via the company’s new grandMA3 Light consoles, NPUs, a Luminex networking solution and a full rigging package utilising EXE Hoists. “TSL has heavily
The Netherlands - Highlite International will be present during CUE 2020 from 13 to 15 January at Rotterdam Ahoy (NL), hall 1, stand 1.402. Here, they are going to showcase a wide array of lighting, audio and video applications from DAP Audio, DMT, Showtec and Infinity. The biennial exhibition offers a comprehensive overview of the latest technical facilities for indoor and outdoor stage presentations. Infinity will show the Furion Series: powerful and intelligent LED-based moving heads, equipped with wireless DMX. There will be special attention for the Cue 2020 Audience-award nominee Furion B401 Moving head Beam. The B401 is equipped with a multicolour bump functionality. This feature gives light engineers sheer endless possibilities in combining colours. Besides Furion Infinity will also show the Chimp light controllers and the Signature LED based theatre luminaires.
Belgium - LED lighting manufacturer Lucenti has appointed Jeroen Carette as brand manager. With over 16 years of extensive experience in the professional lighting industry, Carette will implement the development strategy, focussing on the optimisation of the distribution channels and taking the brand’s identity to a next level. Karel De Piere, co-owner of Lucenti, comments: “We’ve known Jeroen for many years as a true professional and experienced export manager. His approach will be appreciated by our professional customers and leading designers. A firm sales structure will support our valued and trusted distributors worldwide.” Carette adds: “ Finding this truly innovative state of the art technology in a company I’ve known for years , has been a pleasant surprise. Being able to work within this team of excellent developers and product specialists is absolu
USA - St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church of Newport Beach, California has added Ayrton Khamsin-TC profile luminaires to its equipment inventory for worship services and special events. St Andrew’s has been in the Newport Beach community for about 70 years and is known as a neighbourhood church with global impact. It holds three weekend worship services, both modern and classic, and maintains a staff to handle AV production needs. “It’s been our long-term goal to offer live streaming on the internet, and our recent camera and lighting purchases are designed to aid us in live streaming services and events,” says Erik Alkire, lighting designer at St Andrew’s. The church has six Panasonic cameras, four of them remotely controlled by the technical director and two manned on tripods. Its extensive lighting complement includes 90 conventional fixtures plus some
South Africa - Few holiday traditions are more treasured in Joburg, South Africa than the annual pantomime, held at The Mandela Stage at Joburg Theatre in Braamfontein. This year, writer, director and South Africa’s queen of pantomime, Janice Honeyman has brought to stage the story of country boy Jack the Joller, and his adventures with a family cow, some magic beans, an enormous beanstalk, an unfriendly giant and an enchanted hen that lays golden eggs. Long-standing technical manager at the Joburg Theatre and industry veteran, Enos Ramoroko, points out that the panto is one of the biggest draws for the Joburg theatre over the December holidays, and is a highlight in the year for cast and crew alike. “The characters on stage are always larger than life, and everyone has a leading role. In some productions, you can switch the followspot from one lead to another –
Germany - The German theatrical tradition has always relied on colourful and vivid productions to convey the intricacies of the nation’s intricate language and rich culture. For more than two centuries, this tradition has flourished at the Stadttheater Aschaffenburg, which has played host to countless seminal productions since first opening its doors in 1811. As part of a long term renovation of this bastion of German theatre, Siegbert Blattner, technical director at Stadttheater Aschaffenburg, oversaw the creation of a modern and versatile lighting system that is comprised entirely of Chauvet Professional fixtures, including 26 Maverick MK3 Spots, 28 Maverick MK2 Washes, 56 Ovation E-930VW variable white ellipsoidals, 10 Ovation E-260WW warm white ellipsoidals and 34 Ovation F-915FC Fresnel units. The Stadttheater Aschaffenburg traditionally presents audiences wit
USA - As the year draws to a close, Bandit Lites continues its annual tradition of giving back to its local community by participating in the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree programme. It is an event the entire office enjoys, as it builds comradery and refocuses the season on giving to those less fortunate. Bandit Lites team members are provided funds and time to come together to shop for those in need. HR Coordinator Cori Link organises the efforts in Nashville by coordinating the staff, transport and Angel Tree drop off, while Lisa Fodge spearheads the Knoxville staff’s efforts. “It’s great working for a company where the owner gives the employees the ability to give back,” says Bandit Lites general manager Mark Steinwachs. “You can forget how easy to get wrapped up in our world worrying about the next prep and the next gig until you are off doing something
Czech Republic - Dance music fans returned to the O2 Arena in Prague, the home of popular trance party Transmission, to enjoy a line-up of Ferry Corsten presents System F, Blastoyz, Darren Porter, Thomas Coastline, Giuseppe Ottaviani, Key4050, MaRLo, Cosmic Gate and many more. Adding to the occasion was lighting designer Bas Kemper, who likes a dynamic and flexible palette of lights. For this show his spec’ featured over 100 Robe moving lights, with 72 MegaPointes, 19 BMFL Blades and 48 LEDBeam 150s incorporated into the rig. Kemper works closely with a diverse team, including visual artists Vision Impossible who develop the show narrative and create all the screen content, to bring the production alive, uniting all the technical disciplines of lighting, lasers, video and staging. This year’s concept featured a semi-circular stage design that Kemper had conc
Switzerland - Pop-rock band Hecht entertained 13,000 fans at Zurich’s Hallenstadion in an energy-fuelled visual and sonic extravaganza which included zip-lining keyboardists, crowd surfing, inflatable pink flamingos and several tons of confetti. Show and lighting designer Roger Staub was asked to create a big, vibrant and memorable show to end their current touring cycle riding high on their chart-topping third studio album Oh Boy and assisting him to make a massive impact were 98 Robe MegaPointes and 60 Pointes. Roger is also a video content creator and his elegant design combined the media of lighting and video, proportionately putting the band right at the centre of the action on a large (18 x 8m) semi-transparent LED screen. Visually, Roger wanted to create simple and powerful statements and a clean performance space. To keep focus on the band, he p
USA - Keeping pace with Andrew Peterson’s gently winding performance of Behold The Lamb Of God as it weaves its way through a mix of words and music is a supple lightshow designed by Winn Elliot and operated by Jessica Sanders. Elliot and Sanders’ blend of brightness, colour and shadows was on full display Sunday 1 December when the 20th edition of the popular holiday tour played to a sold-out crowd at the Von Braum Civic Centre in Huntsville. Helping them create their flow of evocative looks was a collection of 16 Chauvet Professional Maverick MK2 Spot fixtures supplied by 44 Designs. Flown on upstage, midstage and downstage truss, the 440W moving fixtures were used to spot performers in all sections of the stage as the Christmas narrative unfolded. During dramatic moments, the Maverick MK2 Spot units turned up the intensity level with sweeps and overhead
France - The Abbey of Mont Saint-Michel, the well-known islet in Normandy, provided an enchanted venue to Laurent Voulzy’s concerts in September. The popular French singer and song-writer performed here for the first time accompanied by a keyboard player and harpist. Lighting designer John Artonne enhanced the atmosphere by using Prolights Starkbar1000 to illuminate the stage and create a set of aerial effects. “Choosing Prolights Starkbar1000 fixtures was a no-brainer for me,” says Artonne. “Among all the products I have seen were those who convinced me the most in terms of light output and effect possibilities, to such an extent that we had the chance to see up close its great potential even when Mont Saint-Michel was shrouded in thick fog. My team was enthusiastic about this choice too. “It’s always a pleasure working with this brand. Thanks
World - Twenty-four Astera AX1 LED battery powered wireless ‘pixel tubes’ played their part onstage with rock band Muse during their action-packed Simulation Theory world tour, which has just played its final show in Chile, having been on the road since February. The AX1s were used in just one song - Algorithm - for maximum impact. They were placed in custom angled holders on the sides of a long runway / thrust during the blackout, and at the start of the song formed 12 illuminated pillars of light behind lead singer / guitarist Matt Bellamy, who was playing keyboards on the B stage right in the centre of the venue. The tubes were then picked up by a troupe of Ninja performers who used them in bō staff-style to make geometric formations and accentuate their distinctive robotic movements as they moved along the walkway and across the stage. Two conjoi
Italy - The Parma Città Della Musica festival is new, but its Romanesque setting was decidedly historic. Set in the Parco della Citadella of this ancient northern Italian city, the festival’s inaugural edition had the walls of a 16th century citadel serve as the backdrop for its stage. Accenting this setting was evocative lighting from over 60 Chauvet Professional Maverick fixtures supplied by Fumasoli Audio and Lights Rental. Gustavo Boetti, lighting manager for Fumasoli, built the lighting rig with the evocative nature of the festival’s setting firmly in mind. His goal: create a rig that would lend itself to theatrical looks. The lighting designers for the festival’s co-headliners, pop icon Antonello Venditti and Italian rap star Salmo, both made use of his rig to support their clients with compelling scenic panoramas on stage. Utilising deep pools of light
UK - For the UK tour marking the 40th anniversary of Gary Numan’s career as a solo artist, lighting designer Luke Edwards called on the power and clarity of the VL2600 Profile luminaire from Vari-Lite. The tour, which completed at the end of October, played 24 UK venues. “Although this tour was to celebrate the fact that Gary has been touring for 40 years, he is still very much an artist in the present,” says Edwards. “So we’re using the newest technology, with a large video wall and stage set design for the size of venues we are playing.” Placed on tiered risers upstage, 14 VL2600 Profile fixtures created strong gobo looks through the band, as well as beam and mid-air effects. “I was looking primarily for brightness and clarity, which the VL2600 Profile handles particularly well,” he explains. “I would have thought they were a discharge lamp source,
UK - Light Fantastic Production Services once again supported CoppaFeel with a full production package as well as taking on the overall production management mantle for Festifeel 2019. The work being done by CoppaFeel raises awareness of the signs and symptoms of breast cancer particularly amongst young people. Held at House of Vans London, deep within the arches below Waterloo Station, Festifeel is the charity’s annual music and comedy festival that flies the flag for the work they do and highlights the help they provide. Having provided a full production package, including lighting, audio, rigging and video, LFPS transformed the underground venue with a vibrant, creative mix of colour and projections throughout the urban interior. The lively look provided an appropriate backdrop to a host of musical performances that included Bombay Bicycle Club, James Bay a
USA - ZZ Top recently wrapped up a tour celebrating their 50th year as a band with a lighting package provided by Bandit Lites. Comprised of Billy Gibbons, Frank Beard and Dusty Hill, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band formed in 1969 and have sold more than 50m albums worldwide Lighting designer John Lucksinger conceived a classic par can rig made up of moving lights to give the band the authentic rock look of yester-years. “It’s been a fun time,” says Lucksinger. “Three guys on stage. No real frills. Just guys playing great music. It has been different in that the last few tours I was behind the console for where we had a lot of trucks, huge video walls, and lots of lights. This is just a plain and simple rock show. The band doesn’t like movement in the lighting, so the show is mostly big rock looks with hits of lights and colour chases. I’m just trying
USA - Building on the momentum of last year’s inaugural event, the West Coast Music Festival treated fans to a star-studded line up of hip-hop, DJ and rap artists this fall. Headlining the festival at Tucson’s Mercado district was Ice Cube. Supporting the festival, was a punchy and flexible light show created by John Garberson and his team at Creative BackStage that featured Chauvet Professional fixtures. “We built our design around a large video wall,” says Garberson. “Inter Technologies, supplied the screen and hired us to do the lighting. The wall displayed some iconic images for Ice Cube. We needed lights that would stand up to the bright wall and provide colour and movement to energize the looks for Ice Cube’s show. We also needed the fixtures to be flexible enough to create distinctive looks that reflected the music of the other artists.” Garberson
South Africa - The Joburg Zoo Festival of Lights, held in partnership with the Joburg Theatre and the City of Johannesburg, has transformed the city’s zoological gardens into a night-time wonderland for both young and old this festive season. Many of the trees at Joburg Zoo are more than a hundred years old and contribute to the city’s magnificent forest canopy. The Festival of Lights pays homage to these majestic forest giants by bathing them in light over the festive season for all to enjoy. Johnny Scholtz, architectural lighting specialist at DWR Distribution, worked with Joburg Zoo management and the City of Johannesburg to come up with a design for the temporary installation of lighting fixtures and audio equipment for this year’s festival. “There were a number of factors that we needed to take into consideration, such as the sheer size of th
Iceland - Prolights has appointed Exton as its new distributor for Iceland. Exton’s Vignir Hreinsson (project manager) and Sigurjón Sigurðsson (sales manager) comment: “Our motto is ‘ambition built on equality, cooperation and fun’. We take great pride in assisting our clients in any way needed and delivering on time world class services. It means a lot to us to be able to work in this kind of industry. “When we first approached to Prolights, we immediately appreciated their vision, intuition and quality. Prolights’ broad selection of equipment really impressed us.” Paolo Albani, international sales manager for Prolights, adds: “Exton shares our philosophy and they are well known as a top products supplier in their country. I have no doubt that their expertise will help Prolights gain popularity throughout Iceland and we are beyond proud they jo
Australia - ADJ entered a distribution partnership with the ULA Group for Australia and New Zealand on 1 December. Established in 1992, ULA supplies rental houses of all sizes as well as supporting major installers who provide clients with market-leading visual solutions and services. Working from three offices spread across Australia, in addition to a dedicated facility in New Zealand, the company demonstrates versatility and commitment to each project it undertakes, whether a standalone display for an event or an extensive collaboration with a publicly listed corporation. “We are extremely excited to extend our partnership with ADJ Group and include the world renowned ADJ product range in our portfolio,” comments Cuono (Con) Biviano, managing director of ULA Group. “The globally strong ADJ brand represents a vast range of innovative products with great ROI an
Columbia - Juan Luis Guerra recently kicked off his 2019 Literal Juan Luis Guerra 4.40 Tour Grandes Éxitos with a complete Robe specification for the lighting rig, which has been designed by Daniel Charif and is being operated and directed on the road by Emmanuel Ferry, who also programmed. The three-time Grammy and 21-time Latin Grammy award-winning artist, musician, singer, composer and record producer has sold over 70m records worldwide and is one of the most internationally recognised Dominican artists. His signature merengue / Afro-Latin fusion style has been distinctive, popular and successful, and for this tour he is playing alongside his band, 440, creating a diverse mix of sounds in an entertaining live show. Bogota’s new Movistar Arena provided the second stop on the tour, The show was completely sold-out with the majority of the Robe moving lights supplie
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