General

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14 March 2016

For the second year, the Platinum Sponsor is Robe Lighting, the Czech manufacturer of innovative, high quality moving lights and digital lighting products for the professional entertainment & leisure, architectural and themed environment industries. Josef Valchar, general manager, Robe Lighting said, "Our company philosophy is centred around working as closely as possible with our business partners and end users, listening to their needs, thoughts and wishes in order to understand their markets. PLASA London is an essential event for us as it provides the ideal opportunity to meet many of them in pe

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14 March 2016

Born out of the event sector and launched to the market in January 2013, uTRAC is currently working with companies Aikens Promotions and Knight Rigging Services. The software has become integral to ensuring events runs smoothly, allowing clients to stay on top of the essential back office administration involved with assigning staff to jobs, greatly reducing errors and hassle. uTRAC streamlines all the financial and administrative functions including wages reports, client invoices, and business reporting.

Ronan Moore, managing director at uTRAC started out as crew member at Event Services Ireland (ESI) before launching uTRAC as an independent

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14 March 2016

The organisers of the event said it would be renamed The Radio Academy Awards and that a new sponsor will be announced soon. Ben Cooper, chairman of the academy, said the ceremony would "continue to celebrate the very best of the UK radio industry". "It is now time for Sony to move on and focus on other areas of the business," said Chris Bowen, from Sony United Kingdom and Ireland. We wish T

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14 March 2016

The Beacon is situated at Customhouse Quay in Greenock, overlooking the River Clyde estuary, with stunning views towards the hills of Argyll and Dunbartonshire. The infrastructure of the new Centre has been carefully designed to accommodate the widest possible variety of uses, comprising as it does, a 500 seat theatre, a black box studio space, three large rehearsal rooms, as well as a bistro and bar.

The main stage itself is one of the largest in Scotland and it is anticipated that The Beacon will become a venue of choice for touring productions of all kinds, as well as providing a first rate facility for local community groups. The first spade in the ground, at the commencement of

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14 March 2016

Derrick's funeral will be on 30 August at St. Andrews Church, Oakington, Cambridgeshire, CB24 3AN. All who knew Derrick are welcome to attend. The family has asked for donations in lieu of flowers to be sent to St. Andrews Church fund.

(Lee Baldock)

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14 March 2016

The group plans to take one major show annually to six high street locations close to each venue, which will be free for audiences to attend. For its first year, Circulate has commissioned London-based Emergency Exit Arts, which specialises in site-specific work, to create

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14 March 2016

The Top Up year is focused on management and will provide insight into the key issues involved in the strategic management of large events, festivals and venues.

The course will provide a progression route for students who have successfully completed the Academy's Foundation Degree in Live Events Production, or other related level 5 qualifications.

It will also be suitable for people with industry experience who are looking to enhance and develop their careers, as well as gain a degree qualification.

Said Director of Courses, Robin Watkinson: "Personal and professional development is emphasised and encouraged during the programme along with employability skills and a

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14 March 2016

The PLASA Show is regarded as a major international launch-pad for new products. During its history, it has seen hundreds of product innovations introduced to the market - a trend which we expect to see continued at the 2013 event. The PLASA Awards for Innovation aim to emphasise this focus on true innovation. The procedure for entry ensures that all nominated products are vetted to show that they offer something new to the industry:

"The PLASA Awards for Innovation recognise products which advance the industry by demonstrating a new style of thinking, improving technical practice or taking a key step forward in terms of safety."

All successfully vetted products are judged a

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14 March 2016

The 2013 programme for the Fringe, the biggest arts festival in the world, featured 45,464 performances of 2,871 shows at a total of 273 venues across the city. The programme contained 713 free shows which do not sell tickets but asked the audience to contribute at the end of the show. These shows were not included in the box office ticket sales. Kath Mainland, chief executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, said,"Our

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14 March 2016

The shortlist of nominees is generated from invited suggestions from a panel consisting of PLASA team members, PLASA Regional Board & Governing Body members, regular contributors to LSi and LSA magazines, and past winners of the Gottelier Award.

All PLASA Members and pre-registered visitors to PLASA 2013 are eligible to vote, and will receive an email inviting them to place their vote at the PLASA Show website. Voting closes on Friday 20 September and the winner will be announced at the PLASA Show on Monday 7 Octobe

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14 March 2016

Version 2.0 software represents a major leap forward in the Hog 4 line of products with a whole host of new features such as media integration with CITP, fixture gobo and colour thumbnails, DMX test, ArtNet merge, and FX engine enhancements. "This is perhaps one of the most feature rich releases we have worked on and underlines our commitment to continue moving the Hog 4 line forward at an aggressive pace" says Chris Ferrante, director of project management.

Also on display, the SolaWash 19 and SolaWash

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14 March 2016

There are 52 students currently studying the training academy's16-month Foundation Degree in Live Events Production, which was independently written in collaboration with industry practitioners, (validated by The University of Bolton) and places emphasis on practical experience.

The month-long Lighting Module teaches students about the theory and art of lighting, basic lighting design principles for different types of event, lighting equipment and systems, visualization and pre-programming, and includes WYSIWYG certification.

For the second annual degree course, Backstage Academy received more support from lighting manufacturers, resellers and rental companie

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14 March 2016

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14 March 2016

Speaking to Dermot O'Leary on stage during Monday's show at the Palladium, he added: "It's been a hell of a summer. I'm glad to be rid of the appendix - it was a pesky little bugger." He said he would not curtail his touring schedule. "I've played 92 countries, and I want to play 100," he said. "That's just the way I'm programmed."

X Factor - Comedian Harry Hill has said his forthcoming X Factor musical is not just for fans of the ITV tal

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14 March 2016

All sessions in the audio streams are presented by leading experts in audio technology, with separate programmes on Live Sound and Installed Sound in the new AudioLab Theatre, and a pro audio laboratory - AudioLab Interactive - that will push audio technology to its limits - and beyond. Visitors can register their interest in their preferred sessions at www.plasashow.com/education

The AudioLab Theatre features programmes on Live Sound, Installed Sound and The Sound Business. Highlights in this theatre includ

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14 March 2016

All sessions in these streams are presented by leading experts in entertainment technology, with two new theatres dealing exclusively in entertainment lighting and stage technologies, a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the National Theatre, and an inside look at the extravaganza that is Eurovision. Visitors can register their interest in their preferred sessions at www.plasashow.com/education/

In a tribute to the National Theatre, which celebra

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14 March 2016

Martin Professional will have two new products on their booth; the MAC Viper Quadray and the Jem Ready 365 Hazer. The MAC Viper Quadray, the latest addition to the award-winning MAC Viper family of moving heads, allows for the projection of one, two, three or four individually-controllable rays of light. The Jem Ready 365 Hazer uses advanced water-based fluid which produces a haze ideal for large venues.

Group One will host a trio of Avolites' top-end consoles: the Titan Touch, Titan Mobile and Sapphire Touch. ElektraLite fixtures, including the eyeBall family of products, Dazer, ML601, eyeKandy, and ElektraFog+, and DiGiCo's SD11 dig

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14 March 2016

The finalists for the sixth annual Rock Our World Awards are:

GBLOCK - Gallagher Staging and Productions, Inc.

GCT (Guy Cable Tensioner) - Tomcat USA.

Mbox Extreme Media Server as used on Oblivion - Production Resource Group.

TiMax2 SoundHub and TiMax Tracker - Out Board.

AsteraTouch - Astera LED-Technology.

dmXLAN v4 Software - ELC Lighting.

Royal Opera House Muscat - Theatre Projects Consultants.

London Olympics Opening Ceremonies.

W

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14 March 2016

"Epic Proportions is a new and different approach to touring. The idea is to get great live bands a lot of exposure without a lot of financial risk," Kubanda says. "Instead of getting a dozen or so people to see us in a club, we play free shows for large crowds, often in the thousands. Kids love to hear new bands, an

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14 March 2016

The new operation, Martin Audio Japan, was announced in early 2013 and recently ratified, with Yusuke Karato, director of Martin Audio distributors, Audiobrains, fronting the operation.

Under the new structure, Martin Audio Japan will act as main distributor and Audiobrains will take on a dealership role. Mr. Karato believes that this will lead to even greater penetration and brand recognition for the manufacturer. "We considered what we needed to do for the Japanese market and this will deliver greater business opportunities in a wider number of market segments."

He added, "We recognise that with loudspeaker technology becoming increasingly complicated, first class customer training and service support were essential. We wanted to be the

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14 March 2016

Piano Man - Sir Elton John will perform live at this year's Emmy Awards. The musician, will play a tribute to Liberace, the American pianist and vocalist whose life was told in the recent biopic, Behind the Candelabra. The HBO film, which premiered in Cannes this year, is up for 15 Emmys. The awards, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, will

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14 March 2016

The sixteen perfectly parallel pure beam Sharpys are rigged on the main dancefloor, which forms the heart of the 10,000 sq ft multi-tiered nightspot.

Dublin-based nightclub lighting expert Audiotek – which has been involved in some of America’s biggest nightlife venue installations – worked with Hakkasan Ltd to specify and supply the Clay Paky Sharpys as part of the club’s commitment to creating a world-class venue. The luminaires were then installed by Nevada-based 4 Wall.

"When you are working, designing and overseeing the biggest club venue in the world, it pays to know that your specification and light show is going to deliver,” says Audiotek

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14 March 2016

Supported by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, the Technical Masterclass Series will be held at The Backstage Centre over three days, with each day accommodating a different age group.

The events will take place on 29, 30 and 31 October, and will be aimed at key stage 4 students, further education students, and higher education students respectively.

The masterclasses are designed to supplement classroom learning for students who have a keen interest in backstage theatre, and to provide a valuable networking and training opportunity for technical theatre students and young professionals.

Attendees will be able to participate in one masterclasses from the following options, and will benefit from practical lea

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14 March 2016

Commissioned by Stratford Rising, the artwork was designed by local artist, David Allies Curtis to depict the Ring-A-Roses children's game using an existing, metallic ring-shaped structure, ribbons and red nylon strapping. Showforce was appointed to help create the one-off installation, with crew chief, Lawrence Jones working closely with the artist to ensure the final design could be achieved. In just two days, the Ring-A-Roses was erected in the town's Theatre Square including individually affixing each section of strapping via a scissor lift.

Esteban Benedicto, sales and marketing manager at Showforce said, "The artwork for the Stratford Rising Festival was certainly one of our more