Pharos - Leaderboard - May 2024

Projects

Details
USA - Built as a hotel in 1865, the Haywood House in Jefferson, Texas, has served as a grand hotel, a local history museum and a personal residence. Today, the historic Haywood House is an upscale Euro-American restaurant and cocktail bar.
Owners Teresa and Alan Ponder purchased Haywood House in 2020 and have been updating and renovating the building's infrastructure, including the installation of a new state-of-the-art, facility-wide sound system from AtlasIED, featuring the company's Strategically Hidden Speakers and Atmosphere audio control platform.
Michael Chism, account manager at Visual Techniques (VTI-TX), was the point person for the historical Haywood House sound system project. Based in Longview, Texas, VTI-TX is an AV systems integration firm providing a range of products and solutions, including high-quality audio and control systems, visual presentation a

Details
UK - London’s 02 Intercontinental Hotel recently hosted the World Procurement Awards. Organisers of the event, which celebrates the achievements of companies and individuals involved in the procurement supply chain, wanted to endow it with a “rock vibe” to reflect the bold convention-challenging attitude that drives that industry. Helping to convey this mood was a dynamic production and lighting design by Pytch that emulated the look and feel of rock shows throughout the venue.
The design team created one of the largest scale of productions the 02 has ever seen. This required a complex rigging system, incorporating a large mother grid and a kinesys based motor system to accommodate unique angled automated diamond LED wall. There were also over 400 panels of LED for the stage set. The size and scope of the production meant that load in and load out were challenging, wit

Details
The Netherlands - The Nederlands Blazers Ensemble Nieuwjaarsconcert - performed on-stage before an audience and broadcasted by NPO 2 on New Year’s Day - is a pivotal event in the Dutch cultural calendar, ringing in the New Year for countless viewers. The 2022 edition marked the concert’s 50th iteration, which paid tribute to legendary singers Nina Simone and Maria Callas. To create immersive and riveting visuals suitable for such a milestone, veteran lighting designer Henk-Jan van Beek and the Light-H-Art team selected the Martin MAC Ultra Performance as the lighting fixture of choice.
“I had already seen and played with the MAC Ultra Performance, and so I knew it was something I wanted to have,” said van Beek. “It’s since become my de-facto workhorse - it’s easy to set up, zooming into an iris effect is fast and elegant. Because it’s so bright, the fixture

Details
UK - Sennheiser has been an essential part of Ed Sheeran’s touring inventory since the start of his career, with his long-time production company, Major Tom, providing Sennheiser’s flagship Digital 9000 system for him in recent years. Now on a tour that takes in some of the biggest venues in the world, including London’s Wembley Stadium, the Stade De France in Paris, the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, New Zealand’s Eden Park and Sydney’s Accor Stadium, and with a show that has expanded significantly from his ‘one man and a guitar days’, a switch has been made to Sennheiser’s Digital 6000.
“Digital 6000 delivers the same sonic excellence, but with added flexibility,” says RF engineer Dave White. “The 9000 Series served us incredibly well, but with large shows on multiple nights with a band and the addition of guest artists, we needed some extra flexibility

Details
China - Fujian Province’s new Pingtan International Performing Arts Center recently invested in a series of Green-GO digital intercom products to provide a much-needed scalable, high-quality sound and simple-to-use solution.
The centre, which serves as a cultural hub in the Pingtan Comprehensive Experimental Area in northeast Jinjing Bay, is a vast building. It includes a 1,500-seat theatre, a 400-seat multi-function hall and a public centre for performance and art, covering almost 40,000 sq.m. Now open for business, it will be the home to a stage play directed by Chinese dancer YANG Liping called Pingtan Impression.
Chinese AV solution provider EZPro was responsible for the audio system design and installation at the Centre.
“The project needed an intercom system with a good quality of sound, which is easy to use and would be scalable. Therefore, we c

Details
USA - There are many reasons why Dustin L. Derry always embraces the opportunity to light dance performances. High on this list is the opportunity it affords him to depart from the conventional use of colours and patterns.
“What’s nice about dance, is you don’t have to think so literally about 'natural' lighting,” said the Chicago-based designer. “In dance, you can push deep into the surreal and express yourself in new ways to support the choreographer’s vision. You can focus on individual elements, like live musicians, and help blend them into the background, and then pull specific dancers or ideas into the foreground and vice versa depending on the needs of the moment. I don't think this presents any challenges, so much as it opens new doors for me creatively.”
Derry stepped boldly through those doors recently, inventively using gobo patterns and coloured

Details
USA - Bandit Lites has added more Robe fixtures to its inventory. Designer Dave Butzler has over 200 BMFL Spots, WashBeams, Robin 1200 LED Washes and BMFL Lightmaster Side Kits on the 2022 Garth Brooks Stadium tour.
“Robe is obviously the heart of Dave’s massive design,” said Bandit Lites chair Michael T. Strickland. “Garth has gone where no other stadium act has gone before, selling out multiple shows in stadiums across the country. Garth did three nights sold out in Salt Lake City, two nights sold out in Edmonton, two nights sold out in Birmingham, and over 100,000 in each sold out show at LSU Stadium and at AT&T Stadium in Dallas. Every show on the tour was a sellout. Garth closes the 2022 Stadium Tour in September with five sold out shows in Dublin, Ireland at Croke Park, over 400,000 people total!”
Constant demand for the popular Robe FollowSpot wi

Details
USA - Tears for Fears has wrapped the North American leg of their Tipping Point World Tour 2022 in support of the duo’s comeback album of the same name. Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal treated fans to favourites from their new album as well as classics from throughout the years in an amphitheatre tour with lighting design by Joe Cabrera II who chose 48 Ayrton MagicBlade R fixtures for effects lighting. ACT Entertainment is the exclusive distributor of Ayrton lighting in North America.
This leg of the Tipping Point World Tour 2022 kicked off at the end of May in Cincinnati and concluded a month later in New York’s Jones Beach. The duo’s eponymous album, their first since 2004’s Everybody Loves a Happy Ending, was released earlier this year.
Cabrera, of Los Angeles-based Flash and Trash Works, served as lighting programmer on Tears for Fears’ previous two

Details
UK - Last week, Alexander Stadium was brought to life for the opening ceremony of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Engaged by Birmingham Ceremonies (a Joint venture between Gary Beestone Associates and Done and Dusted), Creative Technology provided LED display technology and playback services for the show, working closely with Total Fabrications for the structural elements and BAFTA award winning artist and creative director Tal Rosner for the content.
Centre stage on the stadium floor the ‘Bullring’ was made from a specialist outdoor and waterproof LED, created measuring over 260m in circumference, incorporating ramps for vehicle access in several locations and a seamless removeable section allowing larger scenic access including the massive mechanical bull.
At one end of the stadium a massive telescopic LED tower incorporating 250m2 of CT’s flag

Details
Australia - Irish playwright, poet and author Oscar Wilde and his only novel The Picture of Dorian Gray tells a provocative and dreamlike story of a young man living in a Victorian-era England who relinquishes his soul for eternal youth and beauty.
Under the direction of Kip Williams, artistic director of Sydney Theatre Company (STC), actor Eryn Jean ‘EJ’ Norvill plays 26 separate roles capturing the audience’s attention throughout a two-hour performance.
To bring each role to life, TDC – Technical Direction Company worked with the team at Sydney Theatre Company to develop an on-stage technical solution for five moving LED screens and media server technology.
“The Picture of Dorian Gray uniquely uses live camera, pre-recorded and display technology as part of the stage design. The amazing stagecraft was developed by Sydney Theatre Compa

Details
Vietnam - Phuc Giang recently supplied Xu Restaurant Lounge and Cocktail Bar with a JBL Professional distributed audio system.
Established in 2005, Xu Restaurant Lounge and Cocktail Bar is a social gathering place located in the centre of Ho Chi Minh City. In addition to its menu of cocktails and cuisine from Vietnam, Xu offers premium musical entertainment in the form of live bands and guest DJs. During the 2020 lockdowns, Xu took the downtime as an opportunity to upgrade their sound system with the help of Phuc Giang. To provide immersive musical experiences for guests, musicians and DJs alike, Phuc Giang installed a sound system using JBL EON powered speakers and subwoofers.
Staff reported that Xu Restaurant Lounge and Cocktail Bar needed a seamless and easy-to-use sound system that would deliver clear and balanced audio in all areas of the restaurant, and that the

Details
USA - Bob Harmon, CEO and president of Eggshell Light Company of Honolulu, has had success using his stable of Proteus Hybrid luminaires to light shows at the Waikiki Shell ever since he acquired the multi-functional weatherproof lights in 2017. Still going strong after five years, Elation’s IP65 moving heads are reliably weathering another season at Honolulu’s renowned outdoor venue.
“I use a variety of manufacturers’ products but by far the most robust in holding up outdoors and dealing with heat and humidity are the Proteus Hybrids,” commented Harmon, noting that Eggshell has added more Proteus Hybrids to inventory since that first acquisition. “At the Waikiki Shell, they stay outside for four months at a time and work just flawlessly. They have been very reliable for us over the years.”
Eggshell handles lighting for a large number of one-off shows at

Details
USA - Popular Richmond, VA live music venue, The Broadberry, has taken delivery of a new Martin Audio Torus constant curvature array, supplied by locally based rental partner, Soundworks of Virginia.
Soundworks has been working with the 550-capacity venue, owned by Lucas Fritz and Matt McDonald, providing sound for their outdoor concerts since the Spring of 2021.
Explaining the rationale behind the venue upgrade, Fritz says they had been making do with the old system that was in the venue when they took over in 2014. “We were well overdue for a PA overhaul, especially given the calibre of artists we were continuously bringing to the market. We had been working with Soundworks and knew they wouldn’t lead us astray.”
The venue’s production manager Justin Lewis confirms that the previous system had been poorly deployed - and he had a firm idea in mind for it

Details
South Africa - Blond Productions supplies technical production for a slew of popular reality TV shows which have included several iterations of Big Brother over the years. There was much anticipation this year when the South African version – Big Brother Mzansi – returned for the first time since 2016 produced by Red Pepper and broadcast on Mzansi Magic.
Blond’s Ryan Lombard (head of the show lighting department) designed and operated the lighting, working closely with a new set design created by Michael Gill, and several of his go-to Robe moving lights including Esprites, LEDWash 300s and six of Blond Productions’ new iSpiiders.
Blond made this initial purchase of 12 x iSpiiders for I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here (Germany) which was shot in the South African bush for which they needed some hardy, weatherproof, LED wash fixtures

Details
USA - For ARRI’s contributions to the industry, the company will receive the Philo T. Farnsworth Corporate Achievement Award at the 74th Engineering, Science & Technology Emmy Awards.
ARRI receives the award for its more than a century of designing and manufacturing camera and lighting systems as well as its development of systemic technological solutions and service networks for a worldwide complex of film, broadcast, and media industries.
Named after Philo Farnsworth, the inventor of the first fully working all-electronic television system and receiver, the Philo T. Farnsworth Corporate Achievement Award is a non-competitive award presented by the Television Academy as part of the Engineering, Science & Technology Emmy Awards. Since 2003, this prestigious accolade has honoured “an agency, company, or institution whose contributions over time have signific

Details
USA - “I’m ready to get back out and feel the nights come alive,” Jason Aldean said when announcing this summer’s 34-city Rock N’ Roll Cowboy tour. The country music superstar’s lighting designer, Keith Hoagland, knew just how he felt. After two years of contending with COVID lockdowns and restrictions, both were ready to spread their creative wings and fly.
From Hoagland’s perspective, the tour represented a welcome opportunity to roll out some big, bold looks with new tools, such as the Chauvet Professional Color STRIKE M motorised strobe/wash and STRIKE Array, which like the rest of the lighting rig, were supplied by Bandit Lites.
“We really wanted to come at this tour from a new direction,” said Hoagland of CKP Lighting. “The Luz Studio team did a great job developing this scenic concept mainly driven by video. Manager Chris Parr, project manage

Details
Hungary - The infectious beats of EDM music fused with the vibrance of festival culture returned to the picturesque shores of Lake Balaton at Zamárdi (AKA The Hungarian Sea) with the 2022 Balaton Sound event which was completely sold out. An impressive line-up included Martin Garrix, Alesso, Marshmello, Sven Väth and many more international artists performing across multiple stages.
Robe moving lights had a big presence on the main stage with over 200 fixtures in a high impact production design created by LD Mark Kontra and delivered by Budapest-based rental company, Colossal LTD.
Apart from the Main Stage, there was even more of a Robe buzz on site this year as the brand’s own Show Truck rocked up – fresh from a four-date tour in Switzerland – and became an integral part of the backstage village. The Show Truck’s tent extension provided a hub for the media

Details
Poland - Erected in the 19th century at the request of Ksawery Konopacki, the Konopacki Palace is located on Strzelecka Street in the heart of Warsaw's bohemian Praga district, known as Nowa Praga (New Praga).
After major reconstruction works on this Neo-Renaissance style building, the Konopacki Palace finally re-opened its doors as the second home of Praga Cultural Centre in September last year. It offers its auditorium, gallery and outdoor terrace for various functions including music concerts, art and an open-air cinema. Such versatility of events required an equally flexible sound system, with L-Acoustics Polish distributor, Audio Plus, delivering Syva, X Series and A Series systems to one of Warsaw’s newest cultural sites.
The diverse genre of events at the Konopacki Palace required a tailored sound system that would keep up with the ever-changing roster of ent

Details
Canada - Gil Perron lit a special, private show by the award-winning Italian trio Il Volo at Montreal’s Teatro Leonardo DaVinci. Although rigging was a lot easier at this beautiful facility, the design team had to be much more mindful of load capacity.
This was “sort of a big deal” for Perron, given his penchant for grouping fixtures in clusters to create unique multi-directional light angles. “It’s kind of my thing; I like clumping fixtures in groups of three and then layering them vertically and horizontally,” he said. “This is tougher on a fly system than on truss, but it’s well worth the effort. Doing this, I can use colour theory to create either triadic or analogic colour complementariness.
“Working with another proponent of colour theory, our programmer/operator Guy Laflamme, made this a lot of fun - you pick the primary and then, as if by magi

Details
USA - Last year, César Benítez Seilhamer became a fan of KLANG’s approach to immersive in-ear monitor mixing on a co-headlining tour with Latino superstars Ricky Martin and Enrique Iglesias, using a DMI-KLANG card mounted into one of the slots on the back panel of his DiGiCo Quantum5 console.
And the shows keep getting bigger - Martin is doing a series of one-off orchestral dates this year, including two recent nights at the Hollywood Bowl with the 100-plus-member Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra in July - but Benítez has a new way to keep up with that, as well as giving the artists and musicians the most effective sonic environments possible on stage.
His solution is the new KLANG:konductor immersive in-ear mixing processor. Able to deliver 16 immersive mixes and process 128 input signals at up to 96kHz at an astonishing internal latency of less than 0.25ms, th

Details
The Netherlands - Heerlen hosted the 10th edition of ParkCity Live on 16 and 17 July 2022. Headliners on the main stage on Saturday night were BLØF and Limburg legends Rowwen Héze, while Sunday night ended with performances from Danny Vera, Anouk and renowned Dutch DJ duo Lucas & Steve. The main stage featured lighting provided by Ampco Flashlight Group, while spectacular lighting effects for the tented dance area were provided by SLF Group.
ParkCity Live is an event that's gone from strength to strength since its inception in 2010 and this edition welcomed around 35,000 festival goers over the course of two days.
For the main stage, 24 iFX-640 effect moving heads by Infinity were used. These versatile light fixtures ensured that the main stage was illuminated with an ever-changing variety of colourful light effects.
For the tented dance area, SLF Group us

Details
UK - London's first permanent digital immersive arts experience, Frameless, will be opening in October in the heart of London’s West End. Frameless has partnered with projection technology provider, Panasonic, who will use the venue as their global flagship showcasing their projection technologies and large format displays. Creative Technology, have also been brought on board to deliver integration services for all video systems across the attraction.
Using over 50 of Panasonic’s 3-Chip DLP laser projectors, the art projections inside the attraction will be delivered by 479m pixels and 1m lumens of brightness and colour, to give ‘a truly stunning image’ quality across all four immersive galleries as well as a fifth gallery dedicated to corporate and educational events.
A second layer of audio immersion is achieved by 360-degree surround sound played over 158 l

Details
Austria - Sting visited Eisenstadt during his My Songs Tour and performed on 15 July in the grounds of the Esterházy Palace Park in Vienna. With him on tour were Austrian Audio mics. Since all Austrian Audio mics are hand-made in Vienna, it’s an actual homecoming for the OD505, CC8 & OC818 mics, used on backing vocals and guitar amps.
Sting: My Songs is a special performance featuring the 17-time Grammy Award winner's best-loved songs, like Englishman in New York, Fields Of Gold, Every Breath You Take, Roxanne and Message In A Bottle and many more. Sting performs live, accompanied by an electric rock ensemble consisting of: Dominic Miller (guitar), Zack Jones (drums), Rufus Miller (guitar), Sting (bass), Kevon Webster (keyboards), Shane Sager (harmonica) with Melissa Musique and Gene Noble (backing vocals).
Sting’s FOH engine

Details
Europe - Located at the intersection of France, Germany and Switzerland, the Basel Train Station (Basel SBB) in Basel, Switzerland is a primary hub for travel throughout Europe and is often regarded as Europe’s busiest international train station. With high background and travel noise compounded with highly reflective ceiling and walls, announcements were hard to understand, resulting in traveller confusion, missed trains and unnecessary congestion throughout the station. To combat the acoustic challenges Basel SBB faced, Renkus-Heinz Iconyx Compact loudspeakers were installed to aid in delivering intelligible announcements for passengers and staff.
Travellers are inundated with a wide range of sights and sounds as they pass through any busy transportation hub: arrival, boarding and departure announcements, safety and security information, marketing and services messaging
  1. Hippotizer Tierra+ feeds Electric Forest visuals
  2. Meyer Sound reinforces Montreux Jazz Festival
  3. Konin arts centre upgrades with Chauvet
  4. AED Audio supports BRIT students showcase
  5. Tallowood Baptist Church acquires SSL Live
  6. Elation Smarty Hybrids on song for DJ Deorro
Page 72 of 381
GLP - MPU - May-June 2024
Robe - Large MPU

Latest Issue. . .