USA - Greater Atlanta Christian School (GACS) is a PK-12 Christian school in Norcross, Georgia serving over 1,600 students. Since it was first established over 50 years ago, GACS has earned itself a reputation for utilizing advanced technologies in its quest to further the learning needs of its students. This dedication to providing high quality creative and technical facilities to support its arts and media curriculum, has led the school to invest in three Alcons Audio pro-ribbon sound reinforcement systems for its venues. The first of the three spaces to be installed with an Alcons system was the Artusa Hall Performing Arts Centre, a former chapel which the school repurposed into a performing arts venue. This included completely rebuilding the interior, adding a self-supporting timber framed balcony, and increasing the audience capacity from 700 to 950. The Alcons LR7 pro-
USA - Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas has utilized Audinate’s Dante in its music and sound recording technology programmes since 2018. In that time, Dante has not only become part of the curriculum, but has also enabled many of the university’s major live productions – including its impressive jazz performances. But in 2020, Dante took on an additional role for the music department: an enabler of safe social distancing. “When we looked at returning to classes in the Fall of 2020, we had to figure out how to hold music practice with safety considerations related to COVID,” said James F. Adams, assistant professor of music and director of sound recording technology at the university. “We knew we needed to separate students into individual rooms because of the nature of many of the instruments. And, not surprisingly, it was Dante that
South Africa - The University of Johannesburg has recently upgraded its track lighting system used in its SARChI Art Gallery, as a direct replacement to the old system that had no mode of controlling, dimming, or shaping the light, all essential aspects to lighting their art as more demanding exhibitions required. South African lighting specialist Movievision was contracted to upgrade the system to Prolight. “Our suggestion was to get a lighting solution that would not only light the gallery in a more professional manner but also to give them the option to be able to upgrade, remove or add fixtures anytime they would feel the need to,” said Ruan Marais, sales executive at Movievision. The wide variety of EclMiniProfile fixtures offered by Prolights made the solution very easy. The team chose the cool-white LED variant as the best for their upcoming exhibitions - th
USA - Colorado production house Brown Note Productions was hired by long-time client Danny Wimmer Presents to provide audio, lighting and video production for a special online performance by alt-rock band Puscifer from experimental town Arcosanti in the high desert of Arizona. Called on to create evocative visual atmospheres for the shoot was lighting designer Sarah Landau (A Perfect Circle, Childish Gambino, M83), who turned to an IP-rated rig of Elation lighting to brave the desert elements. Landau has designed for Puscifer since 2016 and handled production design for the Arcosanti event along with Puscifer guitarist and producer Mat Mitchell. Puscifer, known for their eclectic live productions, performed their new album Existential Reckoning across a three-day shoot in September from the arcology site, a one-of-a-kind lifestyle project that is a fusion of ar
UK - The exterior of the Southampton Mayflower Theatre brings an extra dazzle of warmth and vitality to a usually busy city centre, illuminated with an Anolis lighting scheme which was installed by Lighting Technology Projects (LTP). Built in 1928, the venue is a Grade II listed building with a prominent central location and seating capacity of 2300, making it the largest theatre in the South of England. Anolis products were recommended for the architectural installation to the theatre’s Chief LX Neil Kingston and their head of technical operations, Rachel Fox, by several people, including those running the O2 Guildhall, another leading Southampton live performance venue - which is also externally lit with Anolis - as well as by contacts at cruise company Carnival UK which is headquartered in the city. With these references, Kingston was confident that Anolis
USA - Kalahari Resorts & Conventions is known for its waterparks, family-friendly vacations, and comprehensive meeting and events facilities. Kalahari is also known for effectively tying all these uses together through a unified experience. This is done with curation of custom artwork from African artisans, music sourced from across Africa, and top-of-the-line technology and entertainment. “Every Kalahari location is different,” says Rebecca Fuchs, senior design consultant with Conference Technologies Inc. “Kalahari has made it a point to create an authentic and impressive experience at every location within a resort. That includes everything from the art and souvenirs, to the water temperature, to the AV they use.” Conference Technologies Inc. recently completed a full integration of the newest Kalahari resort in Round Rock, Texas. And for many locations o
USA - Zach Williams was out on a solo, headlining tour when the COVID pandemic began to peak. Though the remaining shows for the year were cancelled, Williams still yearned for the live stage and delivering his gift of song to fans. The Christian country/rock star, together with Big Daddy Weave, organised the Drive-In Theater Tour. Though social distancing protocols required smaller crews, which also meant less gear on stage, Williams’ FOH and monitor engineers were in agreement that the DPA d:facto and 2028 Vocal Microphones were key to the performances. “We had one 20x24 SL100 mobile stage, definitely smaller than what we’re used to, and all of the attendees would park and stay in or near their car,” explains Carson Brannock, monitor engineer for Zach Williams. “I didn’t even realise there were this many drive-in theatres still operating in the country,
France - Nestled 50km southeast of Paris in Maincy, the Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte is famous for its beautiful gardens dating back to the 17th century and its place as the largest private estate listed as a historical monument. For the last 15 years, the estate has hosted a Christmas show, named Vaux-le-Vicomte’s illuminations, which sends guests on a festive exploration around the 100-acre grounds. In the previous two years, the estate has featured video mapping in its celebrations, and ends the event with a projection on the front of the Château. This year, the team behind the expansive illuminations, French integrator and rental stager BS Technology, chose to rely on Digital Projection’s M-Vision Laser 21000 WU for the projection mapping of Vaux-le-Vicomte’s façade. “Digital Projection’s recent ground-breaking technologies, like the remote laser
UK - Scientists at the University of Bath have developed a quick and easy approach for capturing 360° VR photography without using expensive specialist cameras. The system uses a commercially available 360° camera on a rotating selfie stick to capture video footage and create an immersive VR experience. Virtual reality headsets are becoming increasingly popular for gaming, and with the global pandemic restricting our ability to travel, this system could also be a cheap and easy way to create virtual tours for tourist destinations. Conventional 360° photography stitches together thousands of shots as you move around one spot. However, it doesn’t retain depth perception, so the scene is distorted and the images look flat. Whilst state-of-the-art VR photography, which includes depth perception, is available to professional photographers, it requires expensive e
UK - SLX Hire and Events, a Bristol-based technical event supplier, has designed and installed over a dozen festive events across the UK already this winter from Swanage to Scotland. Says Alastair Currie, CEO of SLX, “This year has been beyond challenging for the event industry, but we were lucky enough to have maintained, or in some cases procured, winter project contracts. These are mainly outdoor events, where a wonderful immersive light trail is installed to bring a bit of magic to those who visit – and importantly revenue to historic buildings and estates who have had a similarly difficult year. “When the second lockdown was announced, we were slightly anxious about what that would mean for these projects – including the Trains project that sees five heritage steam railway lines and the trains illuminated for immersive rides across the Christmas pe
USA - When Arizona Sound Productions was hired to provide video and sound production for a string of boxing matches across the US, they found themselves with new protocols, different challenges, and time to kill. “Working this year has been interesting to say the least,” said Jared Jasinski, owner and lead engineer for Arizona Sound Productions [AZSP] based in Phoenix. “With COVID restrictions we’ve been forced to be more creative and think outside the box. We’ve had opportunities to create something different for viewers at home, without an audience we can put a boxing ring anywhere [outdoors] and make it look great on camera.” On 15 August, 2020, AZSP set the stage in Oklahoma, making boxing history with what has been called the “street fight” concept. AZSP clients’ Holden Productions and Matchroom Boxing dropped a boxing match in the middle of down
Australia - The National Rugby League Dally M Awards gives kudos to the top players from the premiership season in an annual awards ceremony. Whilst there was no red carpet and certainly no shimmering frocks in sight this year, the awards show amazed its viewers by transforming into a live to air broadcast xR production, brought to life by Big Picture and held at the Fox Sports studios in Sydney. Brompton Technology’s 4K Tessera SX40 LED processor was a crucial element in the multi camera xR workflow, offering reliable timing and consistency of image at this high-profile event. “Big Picture has a long-standing relationship with Fox Sports, providing LED and other services to its studio and broadcast projects,” says Josh Moffat, business development at Big Picture. “When their team approached us about the Dally M Awards, we were both thrilled and honoured by the
UK - For Adam King, Shakespeare’s Macbeth was a welcome opportunity to jump back into lighting design after seven months of being idled by the pandemic. “My work calendar for the entire year was wiped out because of the lockdown,” said King. “I missed doing the thing I love.” Eager to get involved in theatre, King approached Mountview Drama School and asked if he could be of any use lighting shows for livestreams, pointing out that he had experience in lighting for theatre and as well as the camera. Much to his delight, Mountview responded by offering him the opportunity to light a series of shows starting with Macbeth. “This show was a new experience,” recalls King. “There were only eight people in the theatre due to social distancing, so our main audience was online. We did three days of normal tech rehearsals and then three days of came
Italy - Luxury car manufacturer Maserati launched the MC20, the first super sports car of its Trident brand, in an event format powered by disguise xR. Milan-based Feelrouge Worldwide Shows staged a two-day hybrid event held at the Autodromo di Modena race-track, and broadcast live around the world. The setting included a huge open-air, installation stage with 630 square meters of LED video screens on three different axes, which hosted a series of anamorphic visual effects and augmented and mixed reality content, powered by three disguise gx 2c media servers. The visual narrative was complemented by a live performance, light show, sound system and original soundtrack. A fleet of 50 Maserati cars from across the years were showcased in the grandstand, creating an evocative drive-in theatre setting for over 500 live guests, accommodated in socially distanced sea
UK - When event management, lighting and creative design company, Absolute Events was asked by Global Street Art to light up a series of advertisements painted on walls around London, Doughty Engineering was brought on board to help secure the lighting firmly and safely in place. Global Street Art is known for its hand-painted advertising campaigns with well-known consumer brands. Jonathan explained: "We've been working with Global Street Art to light up their amazing advertising artwork for a number of years now and we rely on Doughty to help us secure the lighting effectively. “I have known of their products for my entire professional life and was keen to make sure their kit was used on this project so I brought Rigging Services on board who handle the specialised side of fixing the relevant products in place. Initially I approached a couple of companies who said t
South Korea - Elevating the ambiance in its main theatre, the Daejeon Arts Centre hired Hansam System to install a Harman Professional lighting solution that features Martin Professional fixtures. Opened in October of 2003, the Daejeon Arts Centre has brought a new horizon of culture and arts to the city of Daejeon. Housed in a five-story building across a property size of 100,000sq.m, the centre features four premier event and meeting spaces, including the large-scale Art Hall, Ensemble Hall, Conventional Hall as well as outdoor amphitheatre. Beyond hosting a wide range of productions such as theatre and opera performances, Daejeon Arts Centre also offers a Music Academy and arts cultural programme, which are designed to inspire and educate the future generations on performing arts. To enhance the 1,546-seat Art Hall, Hansam System provided a Martin Professional light
Spain - The 2020 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Madrid (MBFWM)’s SS21 season show went ahead in its regular venue – Hall 14.1 at the Feria de Madrid – to a 30% capacity socially distanced live audience together with thousands more joining a livestream. Lighting designer Juanjo Saunier chose 38 Robe MegaPointes, 20 LEDWash 800s, 12 Spiider LED wash beams and three BMFL Follow Spots running on three separate remote control BaseStations to assist him with creating the show. Juanjo has worked on Spain’s premier biannual fashion show for around 10 years, both lighting the main show-space and various ‘off-site’ venues, and enjoys the buzz, vibes, and challenges of this seminal fashion event. This year, Juanjo started with three different catwalk lighting configurations in the multipurpose room, all of which offered the 60 different shows designers a good and d
USA - The View at Fountains is a 400-capacity conference and event space in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. It occupies the top floor of Fountains at Gateway, a multi-purpose building occupied by office space, restaurants, retail shops, and, in the future, apartment units. Aptly named, The View at Fountains features floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking greenspace. All of that glass makes the space acoustically challenging, and that challenge is compounded by tile flooring, an exposed concrete ceiling, and dry wall. Hesitant to upset the visual aesthetic, regional AV integration firm Centerline Audio Visual recommended Danley Sound Labs SH95 loudspeakers, which use Tom Danley’s patented Synergy Horn technology to deliver fidelity while keeping sound from bouncing off the walls and ceiling. “Scott Graby owns the building and is also the sound tech at Franklin Road Bap
Australia - More than 75,000 tickets were sold as part of the NSW Government’s recent Great Southern Nights performance series held throughout November which is Australian Music Month. Great Southern Nights delivered 1,100 COVID-safe performances to live music venues in over 140 towns and suburbs throughout the state. The aim was to reinvigorate NSW’s live music scene, which took a significant hit at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. Presented in partnership with ARIA, Great Southern Nights saw more than 2,500 artists perform at over 300 venues, with many high-profile names heading to regional venues to perform. All music events were programmed in line with current NSW Government health advice regarding physical distancing and venue capacity of public gatherings. Acts who performed as part of Great Southern Nights included Tash Sultana, Alex The A
France - The annual ARTE Concert Festival went virtual this year with three days of music live streamed to audiences worldwide. Lighting designer Pierre Claude deployed seven Claypaky A.leda B-EYE K10 fixtures, two dozen Claypaky HY B-EYE K25 LED washes and 16 ADB SVOBODA classic batten fixtures for the live musical performances shot at La Gaite Lyrique in Paris in November. Artists participating in the festival, which was prohibited from staging in-person concerts due to the coronavirus pandemic, included singer/songwriter Sebastien Tellier, hip-hop sensation Lous and the Yakuza and French electropop band Yelle. Pierre Claude has designed and operated tours for many musical performers, among them The Strokes, Phoenix, Gesaffelstein, Boys Noize plus Future Islands’ live stream. For the ARTE Concert Festival he created a circular stage with three concentric circular t
Germany - Bewake Studios in Berlin has become the first recording facility to install a multichannel monitoring system fully outfitted with Spacemap Go, Meyer Sound’s for spatial sound design and mixing. The installation of Spacemap Go was prompted by German electronic music icons Jan Werner and Andi Toma. They have been in residence at Bewake Studios since late 2018, and have occupied an exclusive sub-rented space and operated under the moniker Paraverse Studio. Their facility has a separate connection to the 50sq.m main recording room - where Spacemap Go is available - which is shared with Bewake’s other clients. “Andi and Jan first experienced an earlier version of Spacemap Go at Moogfest two years ago, which started an ongoing relationship with Meyer Sound,” notes Adam Kesselhaut, the studio’s co-founder and managing director as well as a producer and so
Experienced lighting pro has used the compact console on several gigs since the summer, including Arnoldo Castillo 20th Anniversary livestream celebration Like many in the lighting industry, Costa Rican lighting professional Emilio Aguilar has used the pandemic downtime to learn new competencies and better his skill set. Finding himself back home in Costa Rica last spring following Cirque du Soliel’s bankruptcy, Aguilar got in contact with long-time collaborators Luces y Sistemas, the exclusive distributor of Obsidian Control Systems products in Costa Rica. “I inquired about the NX2™ lighting console, which I thought would be the perfect console for the types of gigs I do,” he states. “They were happy to show me the console and in the end it was just what I wanted.” Luces y Sistemas provides full support for the entire Obsidian line of hardware and software lighting con
USA - When Caesars Entertainment, who operate the world-renowned Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, planned their next expansion phase - Caesars Forum, a new state-of-the-art conference centre - they needed a first-class technical infrastructure for site wide multi-signal transmission over this large facility, and opted for BroaMan, the video and data based sister company to Optocore. Locally based design and engineering specialists, National Technology Associates (NTA) have a long track record working with the Caesars Entertainment family, including LINQ promenade, the High Roller, and many restaurants and venues. Thus they were again contracted, and as their project manager Shane Snell recognized the building was way too big to run traditional SDI cabling, he instead turned to a BroaMan fibre solution. BroaMan offers customised fibre solutions as well as standard d
USA - When the leaders at Shades Mountain Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama green lighted a full renovation of the mega church’s 2,700-seat main worship centre, the job of designing and building a modern, upgraded audio system was awarded to Blackhawk Audio. In addition to quality sound and coverage, Shades Mountain also wanted to ensure that the new system was discrete in that it was contained within a very compact grill cloth area. Blackhawk found the solution with EAW and its ADAPTive line, including its Anya and Anna loudspeakers and Otto subwoofers, as well as its VFR89i Stage Monitors. “One of the biggest selling points of the EAW ADAPTive speaker system was that in addition to its audio quality and excellent coverage, it also was low profile and would not visually overwhelm the sanctuary,” says Blackhawk Audio president Rick Shimer. “The previous loo
