Robe Precision for Downtown Shakedown
- Details
The new event – which celebrated being able to stage live music shows again due to New Zealand’s containment of Coronavirus – was organised by Precision Live which is run by Andrew Tuck who also produces Homegrown, one the country’s major annual music festivals.
Stage lighting, rigging and site power was supplied by Wellington-based rental company Grouse Lighting, project-managed for them by Steve Sanders, and Robe moving lights were at the core of the production lighting system.
The 350sq.m of stage space (including wings) was located inside a 40m wide by 90m long marquee. A 14m by 10m deep ground support system provided the lighting positions, with an upstage 4m high LED wall also in the mix.
Twenty Robe LEDWash 600s were utilised for overhead washes and side-fill positions – on drop bars – with 24 x LEDBeam 100s allocated for various floor packages with some on trusses above the audience.
Twenty-four Pointes were used on the rear truss, on the upstage side drops either side and also in selected floor packages, again proving perfect for the job with their multifunctionality.
Eight Robe ColorStrobes were also added to the rear truss / side bars. Lighting control was via a grandMA2 console.
Fitting all the production elements into the marquee was the major challenge explained Steve, even though the space was quite massive. The notorious ‘Wellington Winds’ also played their role in disrupting the structure’s erection, but everyone took this in their stride.
“We were extremely happy to be part of the event,” stated Steve, adding that Grouse Lighting has worked for Homegrown Events for around 10 years, and in fact they were booked as the lighting vendor for the 2020 Homegrown festival which was postponed in March as the pandemic took hold as the initial get in and build had started.
Steve worked alongside lighting operator and crew chief Rowan McShane who also took care of lighting all acts prior to the headliners, and lighting systems tech, Cam Harley.
Other key suppliers for Downtown Shakedown included Metro Productions who built the stage, Western Audio who provided the PA and Streamliner Productions who delivered the LED screens. Precision Live’s site and operations manager – at the heart of all things technical – was Michael Lamusse.
