LATEST ISSUE

Most historic theatres have ghost stories attached to them; this month’s cover star, the grand old Theatre Royal Drury Lane, is certainly no exception. In fact, some believe it to be one of the most haunted theatres in the world. One has to wonder, then, what they make of the Grade I-listed venue’s most recent renovation. Gone is the fascinating collection of archaic equipment from beneath the stage that was no doubt state-of-the-art in the time of some of the theatre’s resident spooks. Now themselves ghosts of productions past, the pieces of equipment have been documented and carefully removed, with examples in the care of Unusual Rigging. The removal helped to make way for a new array of solutions that very much meet modern requirements. Discover more about this impressive, £60m renovation in Rob Halliday’s bumper report.

Also this month, Simon Diff reports from Creamfields, the electronic dance music festival that took place in Daresbury over the August bank holiday weekend. Plus, Steve Moles gets the lowdown on the visuals at work for two high-profile headliners of this year’s Reading and Leeds festivals, Stormzy and Biffy Clyro. Elsewhere, Kate Lyon visits Tate Britain to speak to the creatives behind the visually-striking Heather Phillipson exhibition. Plus, we report on the recent homecoming concerts for Team GB and ParalympicsGB.

Also inside, Phil Ward examines the colliding worlds of studio and live sound solutions, and Richard Cadena charts 45 years of Avolites. Meanwhile, Martin Audio’s constant curvature solution, Torus, is the subject of this month’s in-depth technical product review. Plus, we bring you all your regular favourites and more. Enjoy!

Rob Halliday uncovers the two-year refurbishment of the historic Theatre Royal Drury Lane, now restored for a new era of theatre-making . . .

Simon Duff celebrates the return of the vibrant dance music festival, which delivered an audiovisual feat across 10 stages this summer . . .

Richard Cadena charts Avolites’ illustrious history of innovation, from humble beginnings to the present-day merger of lighting and visual effects control . . .

Regulars

LSi talks to rising star Al Tombs

Scene and herd (sic),  Phil Ward speaks volumes . . .

The Shend interrogates Kim Watson

Working coefficients

LSi talks to Tom Williams of Pro Media Audio Video EU . . .

James Simpson predicts the shape of tech to come : NFTs explained