Double innovation award wins for Robe
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Robe also celebrated its acquisition of leading lighting console manufacturer, Avolites, now officially ‘A Robe Business’ and premiered its new expo live show Power of Imagination that will run through 2023-24, designed to show off Robe’s newest technologies in situ in a high energy live performance spectacle.
Two other major new products were officially launched at the expo in addition to the iForte LTX - the Forte Fresnel and Forte PC - while a range of other popular and current luminaires featured in the show were demoed in two closed studio spaces filled with people and interest throughout.
Also previewed were a couple of very cool looking brand-new products - the HolyPatt and the MolyPatt - both new additions to Robe’s scenic Patt range of luminaires, and these attracted substantial interest. People loved the classic design and the warm incandescent glow of the squirrel bulbs.
The Robe stand was as busy as always, the visitor quality was high with industry practitioners from a wide range of different sectors checking out the great vibes of the show which had expanded from last year with the full floorspace occupied by exhibitors.
The Robe UK sales team commented generally that people spent meaningful time on the stand, which resulted in many orders taken and confirmed - always a positive sign!
Six Robe NRG (Next Robe Generation) students from five associated colleges worked alongside the Robe international team - with one assisting the Avolites team - all gaining valuable experience, contacts, and insights into the world of production technology. Three of the students operated RoboSpot systems during the live shows.
All eyes were on Robe for the launch of the new nine-minute live show, Power of Imagination, featuring three dancers including an aerialist. Bold and full of big, bright looks and statements, the narrative was inspired by the rich and diverse performance cultures of illusion, dance, cabaret, and theatre.
Using around 200 lighting fixtures, the four-part extravaganza was conceived, storyboarded, designed, and produced by Robe’s ever-inventive in-house creative team led by Nathan Wan and Andy Webb with Jordan Tinniswood and Tomáš Kohout. This was presented complete with flames, confetti, smoke, and much anticipation ramping up the drama!
“The goal is always to illustrate the versatility of the products and how it is possible to hop from one genre to another using them and also how they can all work together,” explained Nathan, who also created all the video content.
Andy, who generated the special soundtrack, added: “We’ve just launched the most powerful fixture in the LTX, so the show needed to have a massive impact, to be highly visual and have that bang to ensure that people went away with memorable impressions of what the fixtures can potentially achieve.”
Nathan and Andy worked with choreographer Jaye Marshall to produce the slick, kinetic fusion of movement and fun that thrilled audiences who gathered in advance each day to enjoy the magic.
The Avolites booth was positioned adjacent to the Robe booth along one side, while on the other side of that wall, the ‘Robe Village’ continued, with the stand of architectural sister brand Anolis; engineering control solutions specialist Artistic Licence, and fog/haze aficionados MDG Fog Generators completing the triumvirate of diverse brands with which Robe collaborates closely.
Robe’s architectural and LED lighting brand Anolis had its own space that highlighted its new Calumma, Ambiane and Eminere product ranges.
Artistic Licence also had its own area on stand C28 showing a selection of lighting control technology products popular across the entertainment industry and a favourite for systems integrators and installers.
Atmosphere engineers and experts MDG were also located in the Robe Village, and as well as all the products being shown there, The Power of Imagination featured theONE and Ice Fog Q in action.
Robe UK’s sales director Ian W Brown comments: “PLASA 2023 was a tremendous success for Robe UK. The amazing show brought the show floor to a standstill and allowed our customers to see all the newest lights in action. We saw people from all over the UK, Ireland and Europe proving PLASA really is a show where business gets done!”
While Robe UK’s head of marketing, Theresa Gibson, concludes: “The vibrant atmosphere of PLASA London delivered three exhilarating days of high calibre visitors from a wide cross section of the industry, giving us the perfect opportunity to reconnect with our existing customers and forge valuable new relationships, whilst providing an excellent platform to showcase Robe’s newest technologies.
“We were proud to return as headline sponsor and continue our long-standing relationship with PLASA which saw an increase in visitors from the UK and Europe, also attracting customers and distributors from further afield like South America and Southeast Asia who joined us on the booth.
“PLASA London always delivers lots of magic with the best of our industry all under one roof and 2023 was hugely invigorating and no exception!”
