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CyberHoist Makes the Moves for Madonna’s Confession
The CyberHoist / InMotion 3D motion control system was at the heart of the action on Madonna’s critically acclaimed – and highly controversial – Confessions World Tour, which has just ended in Tokyto.
No sooner had the tour started than Madonna created headlines around the world as her mega-stylish, non-stop two hour show proved she still has abundant power to shock – including her appearance in riding boots atop a giant crucifix and critical denunciations of messrs Bush and Blair.
The tour was directed by longtime Madonna collaborator Jamie King with Stuart Price once again on board as musical director. Arianne Phillips and Jean Paul Gaultier, also long standing members of Madonna’s creative team, have respectively overseen and designed costumes for the tour.
The massive production, designed by LeRoy Bennett, follows Madonna’s record-breaking 2004 Re-Invention tour, the most successful tour of that year, according to Billboard magazine, and takes her sonic and visual adventures into a new league.
Multiple set elements are in constant, high-precision motion throughout the show, including the giant ‘Jump’ grid above the main catwalk, which descends for the song of that name, on which Madonna and her acrobatic dancers perform their amazing, high-speed jumps.
Other motion effects include a massive front gate for a fighting cage, a pole-ride (for Like a Virgin) and two fences above the smaller catwalks that lead to the left and right satellite stages, plus nine lighting pods and five custom 2006-styled ‘disco balls’, each carrying numerous LED lights and a single VL500.
These all hang above the semi-circular hydraulic rising and rotating center-stage area, which has a similarly-shaped semi-circular truss carrying the new Element Labs Stealth LED ‘curtain’ screen. Three more giant LED video screens and a giant mirrorball (which features a giant visual surprise of its own) complete the perpetual-motion rig that transforms the look of the stage from one song to the next, carried by some fabulous video footage and a wonderfully programmed lighting rig.
The millimetre-precise movements are provided by an impressively large CyberHoist system, featuring 40 active ½ ton CyberHoist CH500s and eight active full 1 ton CH1000 intelligent chain hoists. Three InMotion3D operating systems control the rig with split-second coordination, with safety taking top priority – the CyberHoist operator has visual sight of movements at all times to prevent any non-programmed motion (for example by a musician or dancer), while the numerous scenic elements of this enormous ‘dance/musical/show’ exchange positions at high speed.
All of this was supplied by Flashlight Rental of The Netherlands, part of the Ampco/Flashlight Group. The tour’s lighting and rigging are supplied by PRG Concert Touring, with whom Flashlight are cooperating on this tour, while Nocturne Video supplied the video production.
Senior CyberHoist engineer Erik Berends and CyberHoist programmer Niels Peeters programmed the show during rehearsals at the Forum, while Martin Hoop and Ruud Werkhoven are the CyberHoist operator-engineers and Bill Settle and Dave Thisius additional operators on one of this year’s most impressive touring performances.
The production team was headed by production tour director Chris Lamb, production director Benny Collins, production manager Bob ‘Hydro’ Mullin and stage manager Jerry ‘Hodge’ Vierna. Kurt McLaughlin was advance safety rigger and Jeff Lucas was head rigger.
20th September 2006
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