DCLighting lights Kelly Clarkson Show with Elation
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For the show’s fourth season, which first aired on12 September, 2022, Darren and his team are keeping the lighting looks fresh using a rig of Elation DARTZ 360 narrow-beam LED moving heads, SixBar 1000 linear LED bars and Cuepix 16 IP LED matrix panels.
Produced by NBCUniversal Syndication Studios and taped at Universal City in Los Angeles, The Kelly Clarkson Show is an American daytime television variety talk show hosted by American singer Kelly Clarkson. More than a simple sit-down talk show, the programme includes games, demos, interviews, outdoor shoots, and a host of musical performances.
DCLighting handles all the visuals for the show including design and programming and built a lighting system that can adapt to the diversity of performances and the needs of a multiple-camera setup. “The Kelly Clarkson Show was an opportunity to show the level of lighting design we were capable of, and an opportunity to craft a vibrant and versatile design,” Langer commented.
Clarkson opens each show with a performance - called a Kellyoke - usually accompanied by her band from a barn-like studio that is a reflection of her country roots. The show often includes an additional performance by a guest artist. Two shows are recorded per day - three to four days a week - so many weeks see eight performances by Clarkson plus guest artist performances from acts like The Backstreet Boys, Jewell, The Black Keys, and Panic! at the Disco. Some days see three performances.
“The goal has been to give every single performance its own unique look,” Langer says, adding that if the rig has the same layout, they are sure to change the colour scheme, focuses, etc. so not a single performance is identical. “We keep it fresh and push the limits every day.” The designer says they have lit 600+ performances in their run with the show.
Often working weekends to prepare for the week of shooting, the DCLighting team will sometimes arrive at the studio to find that Clarkson has turned a song into an acoustic number or changed songs entirely. “Sometimes we need to pivot at a moment’s notice,” Langer says. “A 100-cue song might need to change to a single look and we’ll need to adjust. We’re flexible and there to accommodate them so we have to be prepared for anything.”
It is DCLighting’s first season using the DARTZ 360 on the show, an LED moving head with 3-degree aperture that Darren says he first saw on a show in Las Vegas. “We wanted a compact, discreet light that could fit in a little space, something beamy and fast that wouldn’t bust the budget and the DARTZ fit the bill perfectly. They are versatile and give us a lot of impact without being in the way.”
Additional to the rig are SixBar 1000 linear LED bars used to define the shape of the trusses but are also used for eye candy looks. Further SixBars are mounted to a back wall. “We’ll use them horizontally or vertically, whatever we can to make it unique for every performance,” Langer says. A background wall of Cuepix 16 IP LED matrix panels provide a eye-catching color changing pixel backdrop and are often used behind guitarist Jaco Caraco’s platform with 8 DARTZ projecting beams from beneath.
The Kelly Clarkson Show has been a success on nearly all fronts since debuting and Langer says they’ve received a lot of positive comments on the lighting “and that’s because we give 110%. It’s about teamwork and I’m fortunate to have surrounded myself with the best in the business,” he concludes.
