Coming direct from London, where it was seen live on stage by nearly a million people, Shrek The Musical UK and Ireland Tour opened in July at the Grand Theatre in Leeds and is currently on tour until September 2015. Stage Electrics has supplied lighting equipment for the tour, which has to achieve West End results with a more compact, tour-friendly rig.
Richard Bullimore is overall production manager; lighting design is by Hugh Vanstone and Matt Daw, with lighting programmer Chris Hirst. Fraser Hall is senior production electrician, with Stage Electrics' Chris Sims as hire co-ordinator for the project working alongside Fraser and his team. Catherine Crick is chief touring electrician, with Stuart Moorhouse as deputy. It's a combination of experience and expertise that ensures smooth and trouble free operation.
"London's Theatre Royal Drury Lane is something of a barn and the venues the tour is playing in are rather smaller so, as well as the logistical and budgetary aspects of the tour, the rig had to be more compact," says Matt Daw.
The West End production featured 147 moving heads and an extensive inventory of conventionals. Stage Electrics has helped to deliver a very similar, albeit smaller-scale, show with a rig comprising 16 Martin Professional MAC Viper Performance, 16 Viper Wash DX, six Viper Profile and 12 MAC Aura LED Washes, complementing LED battens and an array of ETC Source Fours.
It was Stage Electrics Mark Burnett who suggested the Martin fixtures - with a long tour ahead, the fact that the Vipers are a 'younger' fixture meant that there was less likelihood of potential failures. In addition, the slightly smaller and lighter form aids the touring logistics.
"On tour we are working within different parameters. The physical rig is simplified, we have done away with any conventionals we had in Drury Lane and now all the overheads are moving lights. It means the focusing can be done from the lighting console, rather than having to go up a ladder. When you are moving the production every couple of weeks, and have just two days to set everything up, it saves a lot of time," says Matt.
"I think the rig we ended up with is really good. It's lean and efficient but packs a real punch, there's nothing up there that we don't use and, with a bit of innovation, we've been able to replicate virtually every effect in the West End production."
One of the aspects of Stage Electrics' service that Matt singles out for praise is the way that the company goes the extra mile for its clients.
"With the budget in mind, I was erring on the side of caution, but everything they gave us was better than what we asked for," he says. "For example, we specced a GrandMA 1 lighting console, as used on the West End production, but Mark gave us a GrandMA 2.
"Their whole approach was just a bit more forward-thinking. Knowing that the tour may ultimately be out for a couple of years, they took the trouble to provide new, really up-to-date gear. The service has been excellent and they're a pleasure to work with."
(Jim Evans)
