direct from: www.etnow.comRegularsContentsthis monthJobs and CareersWeb DirectoryFeaturesIssue: 332Genelec leaves visitors spellbound at HEX! Museum of Witch Huntpage 25October 2020Backstage Academy has affirmed its commitment to safeguarding students after it was selected to take part in Covid case studies. Around 2,000 places all over the USA were lit in red for the #RedAlertRESTART campaign on 1 September. Robe has been involved with all of these.Amsterdam’s West Side Studio installs Alconspage: 21page: 22page: 2page: 31pages: 28 to 31West Side Studio’s most recent addition is a cinema screening room, where an Alcons Audio pro-ribbon 7.1 surround system has impressed.LIGHTING | SOUND | VIDEORIGGING | STAGING | DRAPESw: hawthorn.bizt: 01664 821 111e: hire@hawthorn.biz Reproducing Full-Spectrum Colour with 1-Chip DLP™ SOLID SHINE Laser Superior White Balance and Colour Reproduction Dual-Laser Optical Engine Assures Failsafe ReliabilityAVAILABLE TO HIREWe’re here for youOpen Monday to Friday Outline’s new Stadia 28 now shippingOutline has announced the immediate availability of the new Stadia 28 constant curvature array designed for outdoor applications, launched during the 2020 edition of ISE.Featuring an excellent performance to price ratio, Stadia 28 is a medium-throw system for permanent outdoor installations, ideal for sound reinforcement in stadiums, theme parks, leisure facilities, tourist attractions and public spaces.More on page 12Robe Supports USA’s #RedAlertRESTART page: 24BA Takes Centre Stage with Covid Best Practice contents this monthOctober 2020page no.Featurespage : 4page : 9page : 13page : 10TECHNICAL STANDARDS FOR PLACES OF ENTERTAINMENTRevised in April 2019 Available now from www.etbooks.co.uk20 Robe Installed at Terminal 5 New YorkThree key live music venues in New York City, managed by The Bowery Presents, all feature Robe moving lights in their house rigs. At Terminal 5, 12 MegaPointes and 12 Spiider LED wash beams have greatly added to the flexibility of the existing lighting rig. 21 Backstage Academy Takes Centre Stage with Covid Best Practice Backstage Academy has affirmed its commitment to safeguarding students entering the live events industry after it was selected by the QAA to take part in a series of best- practice Covid case studies. 22 Robe Supports USA’s #RedAlertRESTART CampaignAround 2,000 venues, places, landmarks and monuments all over the USA were lit in red for the #RedAlertRESTART campaign on 1 September. Robe has been involved with all of these ‘LightItInRed’ campaigns in some capacity.24 Amsterdam’s West Side Studio Enjoys Dutch Directness with AlconsWest Side Studio is a creative partnership between four Dutch production professionals. Its most recent addition is a cinema screening room, where an Alcons Audio pro-ribbon 7.1 surround system has impressed the studio’s owners and clients alike.25 Genelec leaves visitors spellbound at HEX! Museum of Witch Hunt HEX! Museum of Witch Hunt, has recently opened in Ribe, Denmark, complete with a Smart IP loudspeaker solution from Genelec designed and installed by the Moesgaard Museum Exhibition Design Studio. 26 Robe Supports WeMakeEvents RED ALERT Day of ActionRobe UK helped to support #LightItInRed and PLASA’s #WeMakeEvents national call to action on 11th August.14 White Light Rocks On with Jesus Christ Superstar: The ConcertLast month, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre reopened with a concert version of Jesus Christ Superstar, making it the first major London venue to do so post lockdown. Having supplied the Open Air Season for many years now, WL was called upon to supply the lighting for this much anticipated concert.16 Robe Wants to Be a Millionaire!“Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” has been a TV favourite for years. For the 2020 Israeli edition, lighting designer Ofer Jacobi was asked by producers July August Production to light the show again. They studied the UK’s latest version’s format and followed some of its style. This approach also dictated where he hung the moving lights, comprising 18 MegaPointes, 24 Spiiders and 40 LEDBeam 150s. 17 Warner Grand Theatre Gets Grander with Dynamic DiGiCo DuoThe 1,525-seat historic Warner Grand Theatre film house in San Pedro, California, hosts classic and art films as well as concerts and other live performances. It’s doing that with very modern sound thanks to newly installed DiGiCo audio consoles: an SD12-96 at front of house and an SD9T for monitors, as well as an SD-Rack with Stadius 32-bit I/O mic pre’s on an Optocore HMA optical loop. 18 White Light Supplies The Warren’s Outdoor SeasonTaking place on a purpose-built site next to Brighton Pier, The Warren Outdoor Season offers a range of shows. Having supported the Brighton Fringe at The Warren for over five years, White Light was called upon to supply the lighting, rigging and power equipment for this new season, which is one of the first following the outbreak of Covid-19.19 Astera Illuminates “One-hundred Unseen” InstallationTim Smith of TS-TS Productions utilised the power and practicality of Astera wireless lighting to illuminate his “One-hundred Unseen” a live art installation created as part of a UK nationwide campaign day to highlight the critical state of the live entertainment industry amidst the Coronavirus pandemic.from the editordirect from: www.etnow.comEntertainment Technology is published 12 times a year in conjunction with the leading industry portal www.etnow.comEditor: John OffordTechnical Editor: Jackie StainesPublished by: Entertainment Technology Press LtdThe Studio, High Green Great ShelfordCambridge CB22 5EGTelephone: +44 (0)1223 550805Fax: +44 (0)1223 550806Website: www.etnow.comemail: editor@etnow.com© Entertainment Technology Press Ltd.Subscription Rates:Annual Subscription for 12 issues (UK): £27.50Annual Subscription (overseas): £50.00Subject to acceptance, subscription is free to UK based industry professionals.Subscribe online at: www.etnow.com/etmag/Opinions expressed in Entertainment Technology are not necessarily those of the publishers. All rights are reserved and reproduction of any part in whatever form is prohibited without the prior permission of the publishers.etnow.com (entertainment technology news on web) is the industry portal site with news from around the world added daily under various sector headings coupled to an extensive archive. The site also features a books section where titles from Entertainment Technology Press can be ordered online via our secure Sage Pay credit card services.Issue: 332#WeMakeEvents campaign continues to build momentumThe #WeMakeEvents campaign aims to raise awareness around the current plight of the live entertainments sector and its urgent need for financial support if it is to support the Covid-19 crisis. Last month, it was announced that it would be steered by a collective of industry trade bodies, businesses and freelancers, all working in collaboration with each other. Over the past few weeks, the team has continued to build momentum around the campaign, working endlessly to rally the government for much needed support.Following the August Day of Action which saw buildings across the UK lit up in red as a show of support, the #WeMakeEvents team has been busy capitalising on the extensive media coverage and attention this received. One of those involved is White Light’s managing director Bryan Raven, who comments: “The Day of Action was vitally important for our cause as it finally got people talking. There were a few government figures who weren’t particularly listening to our concerns prior to this and didn’t fully appreciate the scale of the crisis we are in. That certainly seems to have changed now and, whilst it may appear that the campaign has been slightly quieter for the past few weeks, this is only due to us putting all of our energies into the various meetings and surveys we’ve had to conduct to ensure the campaign continues to gain momentum.”Activities over the last few weeks include meetings with political advisors, who are helping to formulate precise action points of the campaign’s next steps, as well as collating a Briefing Information document which is being used to rally MPs and other people of influence. There have also been several surveys conducted, such as the Freelancer Survey, which will allow the campaign to present the government with facts and figures which show how vital this industry is to the economy. A letter featuring prominent industry heads was printed in The Times newspaper to rally further mainstream support of our plight. The campaign team has also been working hard to determine just who will be able to receive any existing government funding, after receiving confirmation from the DCMS that the Culture Recovery Fund will not apply to event companies.In addition to raising the profile of this emergency, #WeMakeEvents is implementing its plans to raise funds for those most affected, the first step is the merchandise store, now available on the new WeMakeEvents.com site, https://www.wemakeeventsstore.com/, and contributions to our chosen industry charities starting with Backup – The Technical Entertainment Charity.As we go to press, there have also been plans made for a Creative Action Protest to be held in Parliament Square on 29th September to continue pressuring the government for support. For this event in particular, the #WeMakeEvents team would encourage as many individuals as possible to attend in order to emphasise the importance of this campaign as well as how the industry is edging ever closer to collapse. Reinforcing the professionalism of our sector, all events observe Covid safety protocols including masks and social distancing, of course. You can register here. This will be followed by the Global Action Day on the 30th, more information on which will be issued shortly.Bryan concludes: “It’s safe to say that it’s been an incredibly busy few weeks for all of us at #WeMakeEvents. Unfortunately, we have to be honest and say there is no instant fix available to solve the issues we all face, so instead, our time and energy need to go into well-thought out strategies and ensure we use our resources as effectively as possible. With Furlough ending next month, this is a battle that still needs fighting and we will be at the forefront of that. We will continue our hard work over the next few weeks and hope that our efforts will see the breakthrough we so desperately need.”For more information about the campaign and how you can get involved, visit www.wemakeevents.comOctober 2020news4sunDial quad www.ArtisticLicence.comDims LED close to zero!For the smoothest fades with dimmable replacement LEDTrailing edge DMX512/RDM mains dimmerA tribute to Unusual Rigging’s Paul Taylor “We are extremely sad to report that our dear friend and colleague Paul Taylor lost his battle with cancer on 17th August 2020.“Known affectionately as PT, he entered this world on 7th June 1956. He often joked that he was born a day too late and the 6th June would have been more fitting given his passion for the history of the second world war and military vehicles. In fact, he loved tanks so much that I have always been amazed that he didn’t call his kids something like, Sherman and Challenger 2.“PT started his ‘Unusual years’ in March 1988. He joined the company because he felt that as he was now a family man, he should have a quiet nine-to-five job! It did not quite turn out like that. He soon became one of the foundation stones of the company. He was a pioneer in the field of automation and quickly established his position as our electrics and automation guru.“I remember him being astounded, when introduced to a new member of the crew, at Drury Lane, when he received the response: ‘Paul Taylor, you’re actually the Paul Taylor?’ He seemed strangely unaware of how well liked and respected he was by all his friends and colleagues here at Unusual, and indeed across the industry … his leaving us has created a huge gap.“He had an encyclopaedic knowledge of Theatre and Automation and was happy to pass on his knowledge and expertise. In an atmosphere of impossible deadlines and challenging problems, none of us can remember PT ever raising his voice. He retained a serene disposition and a dry sense of humour. On one occasion, PT found himself chairman of the jury for the Clive Ponting trial. The Guardian added a codicil to the cartoon depicting PT’s delivery of the verdict: ‘Not guilty, so there’!“During the 2012 Olympics, PT spent his time raising the flags for the swimming event medallists. People would ask him the daftest questions. One day he gave into his dry wit and advised someone who had asked what the big red button was for (the emergency stop), that it was to empty the pool if any of the swimmers were in distress. Satisfied that they now had insider knowledge they wandered off happily. “One project PT was particularly proud of involved programming and operating the automation desk for New York aerial choreographer Elizabeth Streb, for the cultural events leading up to the 2012 Olympics. He managed, against the odds, to turn Elizabeth’s vision, through sequencing clever and ambitious cues, into cohesive aerial ballets. He used technology, to facilitate art, with safety in mind. A speciality of PT’s, and not for the faint hearted – a task he undertook again with dedication (whilst battling the cancer) in October 2018 at the Musée d’Orsay, in Paris.“For the past three years or so PT and I sat at adjacent desks in the office. He spent many an hour telling me stories about various pieces of military paraphernalia he had bought from E-bay, whilst I tried to stay awake.“I remember walking around the yard at Unusual one afternoon, looking in through the various workshop doors. As I passed LX, I saw a truck mounted 50 Calibre machine gun pointing at me. Guess who was responsible?“I am sure that many of us in the coming months whilst working on-site, up to our elbows in wires, drives and winches, from time to time, will hear a reassuring whisper from above “Oooo you don’t want to do it like that” – a catch phrase of his. It is hard to imagine how we will cope without him.“We have lost an encyclopaedia of knowledge, a depth of experience that spanned many decades, and a dedicated colleague. But mostly we have lost a true gentleman, enthusiast, mentor, father figure, and friend.“It might be that he and AJ are already putting their heads together to make celestial events even greater.“On the other hand, PT may be spending time at the 24-hour Army Surplus Store in the sky.”Robin Elias, Technical DirectorA note from Vera Taylor: “Next year, on the 5th or 6th of June (Covid19 willing) the family will be holding a memorial/damned good party (the latter was PTs wish). If you have a tribute to PT that you would like to have included please let Unusual know and/or if you want to join the party drop them a note and they’ll share the details with you individually.”CAST Offers Students and Teachers Free wysiwyg As part of its commitment to education, CAST Group of Companies Inc. has announced a free version of wysiwyg Design is now available to all students and teachers, enrolled on a full or part-time lighting design course at a university, college, post-secondary vocational or poly-technical school. Used in over 300 educational establishments worldwide, wysiwyg offers a 3D environment where productions can be planned, designed and programmed, risk free, offering students a safe virtual lab where ideas can be tested and experimented with.With wysiwyg Design, you can create professional lighting plots and paperwork, and clearly communicate design ideas through high quality renders and animations. Should you wish to connect to a lighting console to program shows, you can upgrade your free wysiwyg Design to a 4 universe (2048 channel) or 8 universe (4096 channel ) version of wysiwyg Perform for only 99 or 149 USD per year respectively.wysiwyg Educational software gives you the power to learn at your pace, in or out of the classroom. Once approved, your license is valid for 365 days.Joining up with the WYSIWYG Educational Scheme brings its benefits:•To help you get up and running with the software you have access to the popular wysiwyg forum, Getting Started Guides, and wysiwyg ReferenceGuide, installed with the software, are also there to help you to develop your knowledge and skills.•Students are invited to attend any of our publicly scheduled training courses at reduced cost.•The opportunity to enter our annual Design competition with a chance to have your work showcased on CAST website and win CAST swag.•A chance to enter the CAST internship scheme, working with the CAST team at a major industry trade show. This is your opportunity to meet theCAST team, showcase your talents and develop your network of industry contacts.Apply for your wysiwyg Student Edition at https://cast-soft.com/educational-program/4Issue: 332news5Optoma launch Creative Touch 5-Series Interactive Flat Panel DisplaysOptoma has announced its new range of Creative Touch interactive flat panel displays. The new Creative Touch 5-series will be available in 65”, 75” and 86” formats, offer 4K UHD resolution (3840 x 2160), annotation tools, and connectivity aimed at classrooms, lecture halls, boardrooms and meeting rooms.Featuring an ultra-slim bezel, anti-glare glass, and TUV certification for low blue light and flicker-free operation, the displays have 20-point multi-touch capabilities and a built-in whiteboard with annotation tools.Able to work with any USB webcam, and with a quick-draw pen and Office Suite included, the Creative Touch 5-Series is an out-of-the-box solution allowing users to switch on and start work at a touch of a screen.Looking to practice your presentation or lecture? Not a problem! The Creative Touch displays come with full-screen video recording, enabling teachers and businesses to record their presentations to prepare, or even for review purposes once finished presenting.The 5-Series Creative Touch displays also offer wireless content sharing with the Optoma TapCast app and the integrated AirShare feature.For meeting rooms and huddle spaces, the integrated Joan meeting widget and app simplifies room scheduling to increase efficiency and time management, allowing users to sync with popular calendars such as iCal and Google to find and book meeting rooms quickly.Arco’s Centrale Caffe Brought to Life with Adorn and BlacklineSituated in the northern Italian town of Arco, the Centrale Caffe recently underwent a complete renovation, which in addition to the general interior and patio also included the sound and video systems.Local contractor, Iiriti srl, was brought in and, having installed Martin Audio systems many times in the past, again recommended the brand, as did the project architect Thomas Matteotti.Owners Ciroc Srl had commissioned the substantial upgrade just before the COVID19 lockdown. Special attention was paid to the terrace, which has been completely renewed, with three Blackline X8 mounted horizontally on the external walls of the patio. Meanwhile, ten ADORN A55 loudspeakers populate the main room and lounge.The system was designed by Iiriti owner, Giacomo Galassi, and supplied by Audiosales srl, Martin Audio’s territorial distributor.The sound system, which is split into three audio zones, is controlled by the customer’s computer running Xilica X-Touch App, with two quad channel power amplifiers driving the loudspeakers. The video system is controlled from the AVPro Edge video matrix, integrated into X-Touch.According to Giacomo Galassi: “The new audio system guarantees optimum sound and helps create the perfect atmosphere throughout the entire day, from breakfast to after-dinner.“A complete renovation of this nature required a step forward in sound quality as well, and once again Martin Audio has been able to provide this.”With its extensive and tasty menu, the new-look Centrale Caffe is proving to be a landmark for both locals and tourists alike, as Arco and the surrounding area is a destination hotspot, located close to Lake Garda. Customers who gather there and sit in the terrace, which overlooks the main square and the public gardens, can now dine or sip their aperitivo with appetizers, listening to high quality music in a perfect setting.October 2020news6ALD Launches Sponsored Student SchemeThe ALD, for people in performance lighting, has announced that applications for its perennially popular Sponsored Student Scheme for the year 2021 are open, and that also running alongside the scheme, for the month of September only, is a promotion targeted at the other individual membership categories, for discounted subscription rates for the rest of the membership year to March 2021.The Sponsored Student Scheme is funded by ALD Corporate Members and is targeted towards students who have not previously been members, offering the opportunity of free ALD membership until the end of March 2022.Membership within any category provides vital interaction opportunities and connection between established figures in professional lighting and video design, and the next generation of talented designers, programmers and technicians. Members also enjoy complimentary copies of the Association’s magazine Focus, as well as full access to the ALD website (and student micro-site for students) which provides a range of documents and resources designed to inform your contract negotiations, assist your working conditions and highlight issues affecting our members.Jack Wills, of the ALD student working group explains why students should apply: “ALD student membership gives an excellent introduction to those entering or considering a career in the lighting and video areas of the live performance arts. It allows you to plug directly into a network, and through the experiences and literature offered by the Association, exposes the breadth of jobs and career paths available within the in the UK and around the world.”Applications for the Sponsored Student Scheme can be submitted straight away via www.ald.org.uk/join, but must be received before Christmas 2020. Students will not have previously been a member of the association and will be studying full time on a UK course or recognised industry apprenticeship scheme and have an interest in the process of live performance lighting and/or video and projection.For other individuals who have not been a member previously, or for at least three years, the fees to March 2021 are discounted from the pro-rata level for the remaining membership year, with further savings to be made if signing up to pay by monthly direct debit. In addition, those applications supported by a current member ALD Sponsor will also attract a discount on their fees as well. Full details of the schemes and applicable rates can be found at www.ald.org.uk/blog.The last six months have shown that the industry is stronger when it is unified and supporting its practitioners through advice, networking and information sharing. Joining the relevant association now will help the process to build that voice, and contribute to creating stronger representation for those working in the industry as it starts to open up again.Entrepreneur Nigel Wray invests in television lighting experts Version 2Version 2 Lights Limited, a foremost lightingrentalspecialist for the television, broadcast and entertainment media production industries, has announced the completion of an equity investment deal with Nigel Wray and his team.This significant investment represents a milestone step in Version 2’s strategic plan to grow its position within the UK production community through an expanded equipment inventory and enhanced company infrastructure.“We are delighted that Nigel has chosen to join us at this important stage in the evolution of our company,” says Nick Edwards, managing director of Version 2. “Nigel has an incredibly strong commercial background working with high profile names such as Domino’s and Saracens. His considerable business acumen which, importantly for us, includes a solid understanding of our industry, makes him an ideal partner. His involvement will allow us the scope both to build our equipment offering and to further develop our range of client support services.”Nigel Wray comments: “Small entrepreneurially led businesses are the true lifeblood of this country. Without those little acorns where will the next mighty oaks come from. We’ve been impressed with Nick Edwards and his team and we’re delighted to join them on the journey to hopefully building a long-term success story.”Working alongside some of the industry’s most prominent lighting directors, Version 2 services a broad range of productions, including Strictly Come Dancing, I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! and The Jonathan Ross Show.Since its inception in 2016, the UK owned company has enjoyed a carefully managed growth and has recently completed a move to a state-of-the-art facility in Reading. The new partnership, along with the availability of fresh funding, will allow the company to reinforce its market leadership position and maintain the ongoing policy of investment across all areas of its business.Nick adds: “We have some exciting plans for the future. We are committed to strengthening both our team and our equipment inventory as we continue to support the growing number of productions we service. Having Nigel on board as a long term partner is a fantastic addition. I am confident that our clients will immediately see the benefits that this investment will deliver.”ISE postponed to June 2021After a period of consultation with the industry and the impact of the ongoing pandemic, Integrated Systems Events has announced that ISE, scheduled for 2-5 February, has been postponed and will now take place in June, dates tbc, alongside a virtual offering.Additionally, ISE will launch RISE Digital, a regular programme of content and networking events which will run throughout the year and support the live show.Integrated Systems Events released the following statement: “We’ve been monitoring the conditions in Europe since the beginning of this year and have worked hard on your behalf to balance health and safety concerns with the need for commerce and F2F interaction. These two factors have had shifting weight throughout the calendar year and although we’ve felt confident and hopeful regarding delivering this show in February, we’ve come to the conclusion that the best option for all of us is to delay the show edition until June 2021.“The health and safety of our team, exhibiting companies, industry partners and attendees is our number one priority,” said Mike Blackman, managing director, Integrated Systems Events. “Given the understandable concerns among all of our stakeholders regarding coronavirus, and the uncertainty regarding travel restrictions and country lockdowns, we have concluded it is not prudent to maintain our original schedule of an in-person February 2021 trade show.“From our many conversations, it is clear the industry can’t wait to get back together doing business face to face and we are committed to delivering an engaging and safe in-person ISE in 2021. We feel by moving the event to June, it provides time for the industry to adapt and restore balance. We look forward to hosting the global AV community in our new home in Barcelona.”Fira de Barcelona Chairman, Pau Relat, comments: “From Fira de Barcelona we highly value ISE’s strong commitment to Barcelona and, in moments as complex as the current ones, the decision to postpone the event for a few months in order to ensure the best possible edition with the largest international participation of companies and visitors, will be very positive both for attendees and for the city. We will keep on working together to ensure that a leading event such as the ISE has a great first edition in its new home in Barcelona in 2021.”ISE would like to take this opportunity to thank exhibitors, sponsors, visitors, media partners, contractors and the team at FIRA Barcelona for continuing to support it through this uncertain and ever-changing situation.THE WORLD'S FIRSTTRANSFERABLE LED ENGINE#RobeInnovationOctober 2020news8Ayrton Ghibli and Diablo take up residence at London’s Southbank CentreAs part of this drive towards LED, the team at the Southbank Centre has invested in Ayrton Ghibli and Diablo profile fixtures. Supplied to the Southbank Centre by White Light, they bring a new uniformity and quality to its moving head inventory.“We made an initial purchase of 16 Ghibli profiles: six for the Royal Festival Hall and ten for the Queen Elizabeth Hall at the beginning of 2018 when the Southbank Centre reopened after its major two-year refurbishment,” says Roger Hennigan, technical manager of the Southbank Centre. “We were so happy with them that we invested in an additional ten Ghibli at the end of 2019 for the Royal Festival Hall. All of our moving lights are now LED as a result.“We chose Ghibli after a shoot-out between three or four major manufacturers to find a new workhorse LED unit that would replace our 12-year old tungsten and discharge moving heads. We thought we’d already decided on an alternative product, but when we saw Ghibli we were so impressed we changed our minds. Ghibli’s brightness, number of features, quietness and price were outstanding!“Our programme at the Southbank Centre is incredibly varied and demanding: we run many contemporary gigs each week as well as regular annual events like the Jazz Festival and Meltdown Festival when the fixtures are heavily used every day for ten days at a time. Ghibli’s range of features give us the flexibility we need and are unique in offering a second gobo wheel which gives us so much more variety of breakups and patterns, ideal for our rock and roll, fast-turnaround shows.”Senior technician, Cressy Klaces, agrees with Hennigan: “The Ghiblis are easy to use, have good colours and great colour mixing, and the dimmer curve is just brilliant. They are extremely diverse tools; you can do so many interesting things with them in a way that was not possible with the other contenders in the shoot-out. The shutters are superb, there are very few times when I can’t position them precisely where I want and the rotating gobos interact amazingly with the animation wheel. The animation wheel brings great subtlety and adds texture and depth – I’ve been able to create beautiful water effects with them with an almost imperceptible, slightly shifting ripple that works beautifully on the dark floor of the Queen Elizabeth Hall.“The Ghiblis are ideal for us as they can go from a rock concert to a kids’ concert to a dance show to theatre with ease. They have a very good quality of light and a zoom which covers all our needs. It’s a good concert light that can also do theatre, and I really love them. I’d be very happy if someone gave me a load of those to tour with because I’d have all the tools in one package.”In addition to the Ghibli investment, six Ayrton Diablo were purchased for Southbank Centre’s Purcell Room. “Diablo is like a smaller version of the Ghibli with all the features,” says Klaces. “Other than the lack of the second gobo wheel, they are just as versatile as Ghibli, and so bright we are considering moving them to the Queen Elizabeth Hall. It is such a compact unit, it is perfect for any studio like the Purcell Room, they are so strong a fixture they could handle either space easily.”“I’ve been utterly and thoroughly impressed with the reliability of the new Ayrton lights,” concludes Hennigan. Like many venues, the Southbank Centre is currently closed but continues to prepare for a future with the latest, most versatile equipment, and plans to reopen in the Spring of 2021.Ayrton Ghibli is a 23,000 lumen, 600W LED profile with a beam range of 7°-56°. The first Ayrton spot luminaire with a 100% framing system, Ghibli is packed full of features for unlimited creative possibilities without any compromise on quality or output.Ayrton Diablo is a 19,000 lumen, 300W little brother to Ghibli. With a 7°-53° beam range and a full set of features, it can almost rival its bigger sibling toe to toe!photo: Joel Stanners, Courtesy of the Southbank CentreBrompton Technology makes Sunday Times Sage Tech Track 100For the third year running, Brompton Technology has been ranked in the Sunday Times Sage Tech Track 100.Celebrating its 20th anniversary, The Sunday Times Tech Track 100 league table ranks Britain’s 100 private tech (TMT) companies with the fastest-growing sales over the last three years. This year’s special Covid-19 edition highlights the important contribution that technology companies have made to the UK during the pandemic, from supporting the NHS to enabling remote working.The current situation has had far reaching effects on the entertainment and corporate events industry, but Brompton has continued to work closely with its customers, supporting them in the development of new initiatives, such as the use of LED screens to provide virtual backdrops for TV and film production in studio rather than on location.“The company’s priorities for its products have always been reliability, ease-of-use, powerful features and excellent technical support, which all contributed to the significant growth we have experienced in the last years,” says Brompton’s managing director, Richard Mead. “Our rankings in both the Sunday Times SME Export Track 100 and Tech Track 100 league table are testament to the strength and continuous dedication of our entire team. At the moment, we are fully focused on keeping everyone safe and supporting our industry partners through these challenging times, but we look forward to a bright and exciting future for all of us on the other side of the pandemic.”www.bromptontech.comUltra-high resolution dimming with sunDial quadsunDial quad, the PLASA Gold award-winning mains LED dimmer from Artistic Licence, has won praise for its ability to provide exceptionally smooth LED dimming with DMX512. Following a firmware upgrade, the product just got even better, with a huge improvement in dimming resolution now achievable with many theatrical controllers.The latest firmware is available free-of-charge and can be uploaded using DMX-Workshop.DMX512 can control up to 512 channels and has an 8-bit native resolution. This means each channel can be set to a level between 0 and 255 and is encoded as an 8-bit number (256 levels). sunDial quad has a much higher native dimming resolution of 14-bit, so in normal operation a dimmer curve translation is used - in effect, sunDial picks ‘sweet spots’ on the response curve to achieve a nice fade.However, some professional lighting consoles allow two DMX512 channels to be combined to provide up to 16-bit resolution (65,536 different levels). In this scenario, no curve translation is necessary. Following sunDial’s latest firmware upgrade, the console can access all the subtle levels available in sunDial’s high native dimming resolution, thus ensuring ultimate dimming performance for applications that demand the most subtle effects.sunDial quad is often used for house lights in theatre, and can be easily integrated with the stage lighting consoles. As many of the favourite theatrical controllers feature 16-bit channel resolution, sunDial quad represents an ideal dimming partner.sunDial quad also has the major advantage that its firmware can be upgraded (at zero cost) in the field. Customers can achieve this using the Artistic Licence DMX-Workshop free software package.4Issue: 332news9Fanny & Stella Performance for Zero 88London fringe theatre returned to the capital with a bang, as the first socially distanced and fully Covid-compliant live musical production of post-pandemic England 2020 was staged in a specially renovated garden space at The Eagle pub in Vauxhall. “Fanny & Stella” a hilarious, poignant, and sharp-witted com-romp through some extraordinary events gave theatre fans a snapshot into the real lives of two eccentric Victorian Londoners: Ernest Boulton and Frederick William Park.Based on the book and lyrics by Glenn Chandler (creator of hit TV series ‘Taggart’) the show was directed by Steven Dexter and produced by Peter Bull and Richard Lambert of Lambco Productions. Richard also designed and operated the lighting using his handy Zero 88 FLX S24 console.“It was perfect for the job,” enthused Richard about the console, “totally portable and fitted easily onto a fold-out table, and just like the essence of the show, it literally popped up!” He is a great advocate of Zero 88 consoles, adding, “It packs away into a tiny flightcase about the size of a satchel!”The 40-capacity audience sat under cover around tables that were re-arranged each performance to accommodate guests in their relevant social bubbles as identified in the online booking system, while the stage was in the open air.Needless to say, most of the cast and crew became earnest meteorologists for the run of shows, which was originally scheduled to be nine performances, but another 18 were added to meet demand indicating that the British public is clearly ready to get out and start enjoying live theatre again!Every single show sold out every single seat, and the final week the Box Office was inundated with phone calls and emails for tickets as it became the hottest show in town!Richard specified front lighting only to attain the truly ENSA (Entertainment National Service Association, nicknamed back in the 1940s as “Every Night Something Awful”) style of ‘pop-up’ theatre aesthetic desired by the director to set the scene for the piece, which is set in 1871 when Boulton and Park were subjected to a notorious show trial for dressing as women and conspiracy to commit sodomy (then a felony) as detailed in the rousing opener, “Sodomy on The Strand”.With a 6pm and an 8:30pm performance most days, lighting still made a subtle impact even on the earlier shows, especially on cloudy days, while for the later ones, the stage lighting combined seamlessly with natural light as dusk fell. This included some stunning sunsets over the month.The main lighting fixtures were six GLP X4 Atom 30W full colour LED luminaires rigged on scaff bars above the audience area alongside some outdoor birdies. A Zero 88 portable Betapackprovided dimming for the garden spots. These lights created a nice face-wash and some keying for the cast who stand on correct ‘marks’ at strategic moments. Additionally, Richard scattered P-light strings around the garden in the bushes and foliage to augment the general ambience.It was effectively a one-scene lighting show, carefully balanced for that fusion of stage and natural lighting. This ‘naturalistic’ approach to lighting also enabled the highly talented cast to shine without distraction or augmentation.While he didn’t even scratch the surface of the power of the FLX S24 on this, Richard likes the FLX consoles for many reasons including the ZerOS software which enables “quick and intuitive” programming, and also makes shows highly cross-compatible between consoles.He made the most of the surrounding environment, threading power and DMX cables through plant pots and along trellises in the garden and storing the console multicore in a hanging basket overnight! After each day’s final performance, the Garden was re-opened to pub patrons and audience members who wanted to enjoy an al-fresco drink.The cast stayed distanced whilst onstage, while the audience had temperatures measured on arrival and scanned a QR code to register for track-and-trace before entering the pub where they were taken to their allotted places and received table service for food and drinks.“Fanny & Stella” was a great success as the story unfolded revealing two extraordinary characters and their infiltration and influence whilst cruising the edgy underbelly of stiff upper lipped Victorian society.photo: Richard LambertClaypaky Adds HY B-EYE K25 Teatro to rangeClaypaky adds to its HY B-EYE 25 series with the introduction of the HY B-EYE K25 TEATRO, a special version of the HY B-EYE K25 that is designed for venues that need silent operation without sacrificing bright colours. This fixture is ideal for theatres, television studios, conference halls, showrooms, corporate events, and more.The HY B-EYE K25 TEATRO has all the same optical, electronic, and mechanical features of the HY B-EYE K25 with changes in the overall design to reduce the acoustical footprint. This luminaire has the same 37 powerful 40 Watt Osram Ostar RGBW LEDs, a zoom range of 4° to 60°, uniform light spread, a rotating front lens, an enhanced electronic engine for dynamic beam pattern design with digital accuracy and repeatability, individual control of each single LED to make spectacular kaleidoscopic projections and charming eye-catching effects.The HY B-EYE K25 TEATRO is extremely bright thanks to its powerful light source and special optical unit with a truly amazing lumen/watt ratio. The built-in Kling-Net protocol enhances the lighting designer’s creativity, while making the management and synchronization of LED light parameters and functions simpler.The HY B-EYE K25 Teatro is selling now.www.claypaky.comMulti-Lite (UK) Limited appoint Justin Althorpe as Key Account ManagerMulti-Lite (UK) Limited is delighted to announce the appointment of Justin Althorpe to the newly created role of Key Account ManagerMulti-Lite (UK) Limited’s general manager Martin Carnell (left in picture) said: “Justin is a well-known and well-respected figure in the UK Entertainment Industry and we are thrilled to have him on board. We have a lot of contacts in common and share a very similar work ethos and hands-on approach to helping customers in this demanding sector. We believe that even in these unprecedented times that there is still a bright future ahead for new and existing customers, and we look forward to supporting them.”Justin says: “I am genuinely excited by the prospect of working with Martin and the team; I believe that I can grow their UK customer base by bringing my direct approach and 14 years of experience to bear – it is a fantastic fit for both of us.”Next >