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Brilliant Stages in the Pink ‘Funhouse'
American bad-girl Pink kicked off her fifth album tour, Funhouse, in Belgium in February this year, touring Europe before finishing the first leg of her worldwide tour at London's O2 Arena in early May.
UK-based set manufacturers, Brilliant Stages, provided the spectacular staging from the ambitious designs of Mark Fisher of Stufish and, with lighting and show direction by Baz Halpin, the show was destined to be fast paced and exciting from the start.
Stufish's Nicoline Refsing, who had worked with Brilliant Stages on Take That's Beautiful World tour in 2008, contacted Brilliant Stages' Tony Bowern in December 08 with the brief to prepare all for shipment by the end of January. Brilliant Stages was able to design and build the set in just over a month in readiness for the tour's departure in early February.
The set is based on a 1930's funfair for which Brilliant Stages constructed a large, rear walkway edged with safety chains. Two metal slides lead from the walkway to the stage, forming a significant part of the choreography for the performers, along with zigzag access steps on either side for which the Brilliant Stages team had to calculate intricate, precise angles and dimensions.
Video screens, supplied by XL Video, are located towards the back of the stage and supported by picture frames which were also the work of Brilliant Stages.
In the foreground, three risers are designed to look like ‘Waltzers'. "We achieved this by covering the front fascias of the risers with printed Scana-chrome, using artwork created by Nicoline, Mark Fisher and Ric Lipson at Stufish," states Bowern." "The rails and waltzer edges were then powder-coated and distressed to create that old fashioned Waltzers-style and any further painting and distressing of the original artwork was carried out on-site by Jacqui Pyle."
The fairground artwork also continued on to the floor vinyl and out along the walkway to the B stage, into which Brilliant Stages inserted two trapdoor-style decks. These were manually operated and lifted up to reveal a water tank into which Pink is lowered on a trapeze.
Brilliant Stages then created the huge heart shaped bed with leopard-skin base which forms the centerpiece of several numbers, decorating the headboard with psychedelic Scana-chrome artwork, and also supplied the unusual chaise longue. "The chaise had to have holes cut through the back and base and be able to conceal several dancers who were then directed to put their arms through the holes to grope the singer!" continues Bowern.
Both chaise and bed were placed on castors with truck locks to facilitate fast deployment on and off stage and were upholstered by Karl Wilson of Elstree Drapes.
The whole was surmounted by a ‘FUNHOUSE' sign rising above the stage and outlined with fairground lighting and LEDs.
Production manager for the tour is Richard Young, who was awarded Total Production International's Production Manager of the Year 2009 for his work on Radiohead's green-conscious In Rainbows world tour.
"Brilliant Stages are very good value for money," says Young. "The set is of an excellent build quality and it came in both on time and within budget. I found them very flexible and willing to take on board my input. It is great to work with a company who listens to what you want, and then gives you what you ask for!
"The set is holding up very well on tour and will be coming to Australia with us later this month."
The Funhouse tour continues to Australia from late May through to August before returning to Europe in September and running through until late December.
11th May 2009
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