Lighting

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22 January 2025

Germany - Lighting designer Matthaus Scheuerer used Claypaky Arolla Aqua Spots for four weeks on the last tour he did with German thrash metal band Kreator, and gives the fixtures rave reviews for their reliability and performance. 

“I got the opportunity to see the Arolla Aqua Spot in action and to test its strengths extensively, and the experience showed me why the fixture is so highly valued and considered by many colleagues to be one of the best options in its class,” says Scheuerer.

“The Arolla Aqua Spot proved to be extremely robust and durable. During the entire four weeks of use, there were no failures whatsoever, a clear testament to the high quality of workmanship and reliability of this product,” he states. “Even under demanding conditions in various arenas, the spot worked perfectly at all times. The lamps were mounted on dolli

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22 January 2025

France - Digital Projection’s M-Vision 27000 WU delivered projection for Paris Basketball for the team’s first match in the top-flight international EuroLeague championship.

The M-Vision 27000 WU lit up every corner of the 8,000-capacity Adidas Arena for the opening game of Paris Basketball’s debut EuroLeague campaign (against Serbia’s Crvena Zvezda), as well as the team’s first full season in its new home arena, inaugurated in February 2024.

In collaboration with Digital Projection’s distribution partner, ETHA International, Paris-based video mapping specialist Doxa Vision deployed four M-Vision 27000 WU projectors to illuminate the interior of the Adidas Arena, taking full advantage of the projectors’ 27,000 lumens’ output to deliver vivid, vibrant visuals – including projected on-court banners celebrating Paris Basketball’s mai

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22 January 2025

France - At the Parc du Sautour in Les Mureaux, aerial hoopers, jugglers, clowns, and other acclaimed acts from all over the world entertained the Festival du Cirque International crowd with their virtuosity. Contributing to the magic was the event's lighting, which like the artists it illuminated went beyond the ordinary to find new ways to engage people visually.

Light technician Frederic Sportiello and the entire team accented every dramatic acrobatic move and enlivened every humorous antic at the circus with their colourful and dynamic lighting. Key to helping them accomplish this feat was a collection of 40 Chauvet Professional Maverick, Colorado, and Rogue fixtures supplied by Remote.

"In lighting this event, we were looking for new and different effects that were completely unheard of at other circus festivals," noted Sportiello. "We especiall

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21 January 2025

UK - Speaker applications are now open for PLASA Focus Leeds, which returns to the city’s Royal Armouries museum from 13-14 May 2025. Renowned for its welcoming and vibrant atmosphere, the ever-popular PLASA Focus Leeds trade show attracts over 2,000 professionals each year and showcases more than 150 leading brands from across the lighting, sound, AV, rigging, staging and production industries.

Speaking as part of the event’s seminar programme is a unique opportunity to connect with a broad audience, as the sessions draw over 600 industry attendees across two theatres during the show’s two days. 

“Your insights could have an impact far beyond the UK, reaching professionals eager to learn and innovate,” say the show’s organisers. “This is your chance to position yourself as a thought leader, sharing knowledge that could help shape the

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21 January 2025

Denmark - Allround Lyd & Lys (Light & Sound) based in Struer, Denmark, purchased Robe iForte LTX Follow Spots ahead of its busy 2024 festival season, so – in conjunction with its existing RoboSpot systems – going forward, it could offer “outstanding follow spotting facilities with dynamic festival stage lighting packages”.

Head of lighting, Martin Breinholt, and his team designed a quick-to-rig festival production lighting setup based on Robe LEDBeam 350s and Esprites for over-stage lighting, with the fixtures installed in pre-rigged trussing sections. These were deployed on a string of festivals around the country throughout summer.

Denmark’s music festival scene is one of the most vibrant and prolific, starting in mid-May and running until the end of September.

Eight units of each fixture type were rigged to a standard run

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21 January 2025

France - UK-based tech provider SLX was awarded the tender for supplying broadcast lighting and rigging across a range of venues at the Paris Games this past summer, and chose Obsidian Netron data distribution devices as the backbone of its data management strategy.

“We needed a system that was rock solid and could keep us going in case of critical failure,” stated Russell Payne, managing director at SLX. “We were looking for something that we could use not only for the Games but something that could go into our business for the long run. Stability was important, but also availability and return on investment.”

While evaluating available signal distribution products, SLX technicians and engineers took some Netron devices to the SLX facility in Bristol for extensive testing. “We ran them through their paces, stressing them with large amounts

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21 January 2025

Singapore - Stage 4, a busy rental company based in Singapore, has joined the growing list of Singaporean rental companies to use Ayrton products, and is the first in Singapore to invest in Rivale Profiles.

The company explained its decision to add Rivale Profile to its stock. “We chose Rivale Profile for our inventory so that we can cater for the wide range of lifestyle and conference related events that we work on. We had been using other brands for around 15 years and we needed to replenish our moving heads.

“We had heard lots of positive news from the industry about Ayrton and also from many of the programmers in Singapore, and had seen the fixtures in action in venues. Initially we’d had a concern about the heat given off by the fixtures, but this was quickly dispelled when we were shown the excellent heat management system of these units,

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21 January 2025

Australia - The Unity high-performance power switching and dimming system from LSC Control Systems is delivering a secure and reliable solution to one of Australia’s leading performing arts centres, the Canberra Theatre Centre (CTC).

CTC’s technical director James Tighe explains: “Our previous system was at the end of its life, and we were seeing intermittent faults, which were becoming less intermittent. Random dimming curves, channels powering up without control, and an increasing number of failing modules meant we were no longer able to reliably support performances to the expected standard.”

The search for a dependable replacement was also driven by the need for a system capable of supporting and powering a range of moving, LED, and incandescent lighting fixtures. “The existing system wasn’t capable of hot-powering circuits,” contin

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21 January 2025

Spain - Naostage will showcase the interactive future of AV technology at ISE 2025. In partnership with fellow French companies Groupe Novelty and XD motion – with which it is sharing its booth – as well as several other key industry partners, the tracking pioneer invites ISE attendees to discover the power of real-time tracking through an immersive media show, hands-on demonstrations, and live dance performances.

Stand 6L900 will centre on an impressive immersive showcase, featuring a 6m × 4m LED wall and 6m × 6m LED floor provided by Groupe Novelty (via its Spanish subsidiary, Novelty Spain). Leveraging Naostage’s tracking platform, K System, to create interactions between guests and the LED video content, a looped five-minute AV show will transform the space into an interactive celebration of the immersive potential offered by the combination of r

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21 January 2025

Europe - Astera has announced Agata Birn as the company’s new head of sales. Agata Birn brings over 12 years of experience in international business development and distribution strategy. With a track record of handling motion picture equipment, including four years as international sales and business development manager at DoPchoice, Birn is positioned to help strengthen Astera’s international relationships and streamline the customer experience.

Chief sales officer Sebastian Bückle commented: “Agata’s extensive expertise and dynamic approach make her an outstanding addition to our team. Her leadership will undoubtedly help us serve the film and event communities.”

In her new role, Birn will oversee Astera’s global sales strategy, while delivering exceptional service to its existing partners, clients and customers. She will also focus o

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21 January 2025

UK - PRG UK has appointed Phil McMichael as UK sales & business development director, with Miles Hillyard promoted to commercial director as the company continues to focus on growth.

McMichael has over 20 years of experience in the event industry, working with high-profile clients and growing their accounts. As sales director at Blitz, he focused on corporate accounts and agencies including Boeing, Temenos and Karla Otto. He then co-formed JLLive that later merged with JLLighting and JLUSA to form JLGroup, where he worked with the likes of Pico+, 2Heads & Disney.

“I’m thrilled to take up my new role at PRG UK, forming part of the leadership team and supporting both our strategic development plans and growth ambitions across all sectors of the live event, sports, television, theatre and music industries,” says McMichael. “With a backgr

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20 January 2025

France - More top names from across the lighting industry have joined the line-up of speakers set to present at Showlight 2025, which visits Dijon, France, this 19-22 May.
With topics drawing from innovations in mixed and multimedia lighting, the illumination of spaces from the smallest venue to the wide open sky, and the subject of climate change and sustainability initiatives, the second batch of names and topics revealed includes . . .

Lighting ‘Cine-Theatre’
Nick Schlieper, one of Australia’s most highly awarded designers, will examine the considerable challenges posed by lighting Cine-Theatre, a style of production which utilises live feed video combined with pre-recorded footage with which the performers constantly interact. The term was coined by a critic, writing about a ground-breaking production of The Picture Of Do

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20 January 2025

The Netherlands - A new installation of Robe T11 Profiles in the 200-capacity Small Hall at the Theater de Bussel in Oosterhout, southern Netherlands is helping to save electricity and enhance the scope of lighting shows and events there, explained the venue’s head of technical, Evelyn van ‘t Hof.

The 32 x T11s are the first Robes in the house, and they are replacing a larger number of ‘conventional’ profiles and PC luminaires.

The new fixtures are part of a general drive to reduce energy consumption, an initiative shaping new investments in all venues across the Netherlands.

Adaptability was also a key consideration here, as the programme encompasses theatre productions, musicals, symposiums, parties and assorted other performance genres.

Evelyn has been working at this busy producing and receiving house since 2008. The 450-c

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20 January 2025

UK - “I enjoy being the wild card. I enjoy being the outsider and being different," rapper Sainté declared in a recent interview.

He kicked off his Still Local tour at the All Points East festival supported by a powerful, fast-moving Elliot Baines lighting design that effortlessly balanced grit and grace.

Representing a city-street basketball court with custom-made controllable ‘streetlamps’, a brick-and-fence facia, and a graffiti wall backdrop, the distinctive set evoked powerful images of an urban landscape. Baines, owner of Spiralstage Lighting, intensified this mood with a bold lighting design that featured ample amounts of atmospherics.

Helping Baines achieve these evocative looks were 24 Color Strike M motorised strobe-blinders and an equal number of Maverick Storm 4 Profiles. Part of the house rig, the Chauvet

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20 January 2025

Spain: Chauvet Professional has built its booth (6M100) for ISE 2025 around the theme of Finally True Colours Revealed.

For Chauvet Professional, the true colours phrase refers to its recent breakthroughs in LED technology and optics that allow its fixtures to render a rainbow of colours that are truer and more realistic than ever before, says the company.

The results of these colour rendering advances will be evident throughout the company's booth, including in the Maverick Storm 1 Flex and Strike V, two products built on the reputations of their namesake series in terms of output and performance.

For the Maverick Storm 1 Flex, the story begins with it being a high-output, lamp-free multi-functional fixture. This fixture allows installers, integrators, and other lighting professionals to enjoy the flexibility of a multi-functional u

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17 January 2025

USA - German DJ Bunt is touring with a "barrier-free" production design. "Bunt shows don't follow your typical format, where fans are barricaded off from the stage," said Tony Caporale, lighting designer for the current global tour, which ends later this month in Australia. "There are no boundaries. Bunt’s DJ booth is smack dab in the middle of the venue floor with the audience surrounding him. He wants to share the experience with the fans up close and personal."

Reflecting this philosophy, Caporale, of Infinitus Vox, creates a "perimeter of light" around Bunt and his fans. This, he says, "allows everyone to be in the moment with him from start to finish."

This openness has made it easy for the good vibes to flow between Bunt and his fans, but lighting an in-the-round DJ booth on a multi-city tour is not without its challenges. "We've had to retro

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17 January 2025

UK - Lighting designer Elliot Baines from Spiralstagelighting reached for some Astera PixelBricks to help create an imaginative, memorable, and high-value lighting effect for the London show of Canadian indie band Wild Rivers, a showcase gig at the O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire that was part of their 2024 UK tour.

Introduced to their tour manager Ben Pollard by Portsmouth, UK-based lighting rental company LiteUp, the brief was to create a homely and warm vibe onstage, whilst also impressing fans who packed out the London show, which was a great success.

Baines achieved results by using a careful combination of the 20 x Astera PixelBricks which were used as ‘specials’, the venue’s house lighting rig and the band’s own touring lighting specials.  

Wild Rivers were already touring a number of filament light bulbs on stands for additional

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17 January 2025

Belgium - Follow-Me has announced a new sales partnership with XLR Pro in Belgium and Luxembourg. The partnership aims to ‘revolutionise live performance experiences’ by integrating Follow-Me’s tracking system with XLR Pro’s range of lighting and audio equipment. As a result, Follow-Me's independent solutions will soon be offered to the entire market. 

The collaboration will bring together Follow-Me’s performer tracking solutions, which supply precise positional data for performers, with leading lighting and audio systems. This synergy is designed to enhance the connection between performers and their audiences by enabling more dynamic, immersive and responsive environments for both lighting and sound. 

Located in Brussels, XLR Pro delivers innovative premium AV equipment to theatres, recording studios, broadcasters, system integrators, r

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17 January 2025

Mexico - In designing the reality show La Casa de los Famosos, the Mexican version of Celebrity Big Brother, lighting designer Miki Molina uses innovative Elation lighting technology to transform the set into an impressive visual spectacle that blends aesthetics with emotion.

For Molina, whose career in film, theatre and television stretches to collaboration with giants such as Amazon, Disney, HBO, Netflix, Sony, Telemundo, and more, lighting design is not just technical but more akin to “painting with light”. His work on La Casa de los Famosos, which airs on TelevisaUnivision, has elevated the reality show to remarkable visual levels while tapping into the emotive facets of the show. 

Since beginning his collaboration with Endemol Shine Boomdog, Molina has worked to capture the key moments of the show through a desig

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17 January 2025

USA - Bandit Lites recently honoured lighting designer Chaz Martin for marking more than 40 years with the company, and recognised Don Lockridge, Rick Munroe and Rick Herndon as they retired from the renowned lighting company, marking the end of an era. They have been integral in shaping the company’s success as their decades of experience helped innovate lighting designs, train the next generation of technicians and foster a legacy of creativity, precision and excellence.

Chaz Martin joined Bandit Lites in 1984 when he came to the United States with R.E.M. as their lighting designer. His storied career includes working with Jimmy Buffett, System of a Down, Beck, The Cowboy Junkies, Faith No More, OMD, Dan Fogelberg, Jewel, Tears for Fears and Hugh Laurie.

“Chaz and I became the best of friends in 1984 and have remained that way ever since,” sa

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16 January 2025

The Netherlands - A leading theatre organisation has chosen Unitour racks from LSC Control Systems to provide power management and dimming solutions. With five Unitour racks specified for its three auditoriums in Heerlen, Parkstad Limburg Theaters (PLT) is one of the latest performing arts hubs to adopt solutions from the Australian manufacturer.

PLT operates seven venues across the cities of Heerlen, Kerkrade and Sittard in the country’s south-eastern region of Limburg. Ranging in capacity from 120 to 1,100, these venues play a significant role in the cultural lives of the communities they serve. Across the organisation, PLT hosted almost 1,500 events in 2024.

Amid this busy environment, PLT’s head of lighting, Rob Debets, recalls his team looking for a “very flexible and reliable rack” when they saw the Unitour on the LSC booth at Frankfurt

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16 January 2025

Europe - After the global triumph of Cobra, which has sold in thousands across the world, Ayrton has unveiled Mamba, a versatile lighting concept. Equipped with a laser source twice as powerful as Cobra, Mamba delivers a multitude of new psychedelic effects.

As the first laser-sourced IP65 fixture in Ayrton’s 6 Series, Mamba boasts 18 motors dedicated solely to effects creation. It offers a vast selection of 92 fixed and rotating metal gobos across two wheels, specifically designed to sculpt light in ‘beam’ mode. An endlessly rotating ovoid animation wheel adds to its dynamic arsenal.

The gobos can be paired with an initial level of two palettes, each containing four individually rotating, indexable prisms that can be combined. These can then be linked to a second level of four combinable prisms situated at the front of the fixture, enabling th

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16 January 2025

Spain - Digital Projection will paint the town red (and green, and blue) at Integrated Systems Europe 2025, showcasing its new 1-chip projectors – which incorporate Texas Instruments’ High-Efficiency-Pixel (HEP) DMD for colour accuracy and native contrast – and Nexus electronics platform, for precision and control over projector installations.

Under the banner of its new campaign, We Love Colour, the Digital Projection stand (3K700, in ISE Hall 3) will centre on the colour reproduction offered by the company’s new 1-chip DLP projectors: the E-Vision 16000i-WU and E-Vision RGB 4K+.

Powered by a 0.8” HEP digital micromirror device (DMD), the E-Vision 16000i-WU features increased mirror tilt angle for improved light efficiency and ‘filled via’ technology for higher native contrast, delivering unprecedented image quality, brightnes

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16 January 2025

Germany - GLP has announced the appointment of Mark Ravenhill to the board of directors of the GLP Group.

Ravenhill will form part of the executive leadership of the company, adding focus to its relationships within the global design community while addressing its future product requirements, says the company. Based in the US city of Nashville, Ravenhill will also lead the sales and marketing of the GLP US subsidiary.

GLP managing director Udo Kunzler comments: "I am excited to have Mark join our executive leadership. We know him well, of course, and he brings a great level of knowledge and experience with him."

Ravenhill adds: "I am looking forward to re-joining the company in this expanded role. GLP has a strong reputation for product innovation and creative solutions which I look forward to being a continuing part of. These are exciting ti