Canada - CAST Group has announced the immediate availability of their latest hardware solution. BT-1 is a compact tracking solution that delivers impressive effects, tracking and automation capabilities, similar to large-scale productions, but tailored to fit smaller intimate spaces.
Unveiled at this year’s Prolight & Sound trade show, BT-1 opens a number of possibilities for small-scale productions to experience the same precision and control capabilities as the original BlackTrax system, but in a more compact, cost effective and portable solution.
Specifically designed for small to medium-sized projects in theatre, studios, corporate events, and houses of worship. BlackTrax’s impressive feature set, including easy setup and calibration, high accuracy, low latency, prediction algorithms, integrates with any application through a single integration output. Whether it’s automating a follow spot in a local theatre or enabling media interactivity for a show or interactive display, BT-1 is purpose-built to bring the impact of grand productions to a more accessible level.
“Smaller production companies are increasingly faced with delivering a wide variety of projects on a tight budget,” says Igor Silva, VP of marketing at CAST Group of Companies. “With BT-1, we have made it easier and more accessible than ever for organisations to leverage the power of real-time tracking and automation. From interactive displays to the most complex stadium shows, now everyone can take full advantage of BlackTrax.”
Thanks to its cross-compatible Bla

Turkey - The focus of many legends and sagas, Istanbul’s Maiden’s Tower is the most important building for the city’s inhabitants, with a long history stretching back beyond 1423 when it first received its name.
During its complete renovation, the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism commissioned contractors ASTEL to conduct an international competition for a light show that should highlight the Tower, be widely seen around Istanbul and run fully-automated every night.
The contract was won by Martin Kuhn of MKLD Lighting Design & Consulting of Berlin, who conceived the idea of telling the Tower’s story using light to accompany the narrative in the manner of a theatre piece or performance.
Kuhn commissioned a seven-minute script from respected Turkish writer, Ayşe Kulin, had it translated it into English and Arabic, found professional speakers for all three languages, recorded the story and then edited it with music he also specially commissioned and produced with some Turkish musicians in Berlin.
Because the Maiden’s Tower is sited 300m from Istanbul’s ‘Asian’ side and 1500m from the ‘European’ side, broadcasting the story from speakers on the Tower was impractical, so Kuhn devised a method of using a website to send an audio file to visitors’ phones and synchronised it with the time-coded show.
The lighting project was incorporated into the building refurbishment, and included all the architectural lighting, which served a dual purpose for both the show and the general architectural look at night.

Australia - Sydney Showground was established in 1998 as a purpose-built home for major events as part of the multi-million dollar development leading up to the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
Today it's a multi-use venue, hosting nearly 150 national and international events annually, including music festivals, sporting events, exhibitions, trade shows and the Sydney Royal Easter Show, its flagship event and the nation's largest annual ticketed event.
Sydney Showground comprises several buildings, including Giants Stadium, the Dome and Exhibition Complex, Charles Moses Stadium, Howie Complex, the Sydney Royal Stables, and more. After 25 years of nearly continuous operation, the AV system was in need of refurbishment, so they turned to Connect Series amplifiers from LEA Professional to return the AV system to its former glory.
Showground staff contacted integrator The P.A. People to help overhaul the system. Ross Ford, project manager at The P.A. People, was tasked with leading the installation. “From an operational point of view, LEA amplifiers offered us several key features that made them easy to integrate. The ability to bridge channels, ingest Dante inputs, and utilise analogue inputs for the fire trip lines, plus they're a lot smaller and more compact than many competitive offerings.”
Every pavilion has a standalone public address system, with a site-wide system in place for emergency communications. A major element of the AV upgrades was the desire for complete system monitoring and supervision. Because the AV in some of the smaller venue

UK - When Audio Light Systems was contracted as specialist theatre systems installation contractors, to deliver The Studio at Pitlochry Festival Theatre, Doughty Engineering was the supplier of choice for the facility panels and production light boxes that the venue would need.
The Studio - a home for new expressive art, opened its doors earlier this summer - more than 40 years after it was originally planned. Although a smaller performance place was part of the original 1970’s design of the site at Port-Na-Craig, financial restrictions meant that this particular ambition could not be realised at the time. The dream remained, however, and the designated space was held (and used as a set store) until it became a reality.
Steve Aitchson, project engineer at Audio Light Systems said: “The space, whilst fairly small (seating 172 over two levels at full capacity), required a huge number of facility panels and production lighting boxes. We needed peace of mind that they were going to be good quality, robust items with a reliable process for delivery.”
Working to a specification from consultants, Theaterplan, Doughty initially supplied manufacturing drawings for client approvals, before producing the bespoke items that the space required. “Dan Phillips is always very helpful and accommodating, delivering the drawings and sorting labelling changes quickly. Doughty really are the experts and are always confident in suggesting improved designs for cost saving and functionality improvements, if they are identified”, said Steve.
The finished pr

UAE - Seaworld at Yas Island Abu Dhabi is the region’s first Marine Life Theme Park. It is also the first facility in the MENA region to achieve Global Human certification (the international brand of American Human, which is the world’s largest certifier of animal welfare). The new attraction was delivered by ALEC Engineering & Contracting LLC and opened its doors to the public in May 2023.
Unusual Rigging was brought on board by ALEC and subcontractors ASU and Holovis to handle the various rigging installations around the park, ensuring that the equipment and design solution remained constant throughout the different disciplines and buildings.
One of the main aspects of the project was the installation of a series of acrylic ceiling panels in the venue’s central hub. Called One Ocean, the hub looks like an underwater cave with rocky arches marking the entrances to the park’s other seven realms. Richard Hoare project manager, URE commented: “ALEC’s challenge was, how does one get a series of fragile, diminishing acrylic ceiling panels up 25 metres to a pre-installed curved, angled, convoluting MDF ceiling decoration, the underside of which was covered in programmable LED strip lighting, when each panel was bespoke in length, width and angle? It was a task the acrylic supply and installation contractor had declined to undertake. We have a good working relationship with ALEC so they asked us to rise to the challenge.”
The URE team’s solution was to design and fabricate a firm, adjustable, well supported bed to coax the panels (some

Norway - The band, Postgirobygget (named after Norway’s main post office in Oslo), which began life in 1994 under the name The Pissed Off Sons, gained traction with their debut album Melis, which sold nearly 200,000 copies and spent a total of 70 weeks in the VG Chart. Since then, they have embarked on an annual summer tour, performing at festivals and venues in front of audiences ranging from 2000 to 18,000 people.
Postgirobygget’s 28-date summer 2023 tour began in May and will continue through until September, with set and lighting design by Petter Nilssen of LiteNordic, MDG’s distributor for Norway. Nilssen chose a single MDG Me2 fog generator as his source of fog and haze for the duration of the tour, complete with MDG’s digital theFAN, both of which were neatly and conveniently housed with fluid and gas bottles in an MDG Vertical Flight Case as an instant ‘plug-in-and-play’ solution.
“I always choose to tour with an MDG machine,” states Nilssen. “I believe if you take your own lighting rig on tour, it's equally as important to bring your own fog/haze machines. It's crucial to me that the show looks consistent everywhere, and there's often a shortage of fog at both local concerts and festivals. Without a good haze/fog machine, the lighting setup you bring won't work optimally every time.
“For example, there are certain sections of the current show, often during guitar solos, where I remove all front light, lower the overhead, and use only six MAC Ultra lights positioned on the ground as backlight in a very wide zoom.

USA - Live event production company, White Tie Productions has purchased 120 Alfalite Litepix Series panels, making them the first live event company in the U.S. with Alfalite LED panels. It marks the second sale in the U.S. for the new FOR-A/Alfalite alliance.
Headquartered in Phoenix with a second office in Orlando, White Tie will have 60 panels based in each location. The screens will be shipped to customers throughout the U.S. The walls will be showcased in White Tie’s Phoenix studios when they are not out on live productions.
White Tie specialises in creating large-scale events for non-profit and corporate associations. Company president Ross Snyder comments: “When you see an Alfalite wall in person, it’s unique. You can talk about LED all day long but until you see a camera pointed at it, you can’t fully understand how well constructed it is. These panels have an almost 180-degree, crystal-clear viewing angle, which is unlike any other LED.”
When not being used for customer events across the country, White Tie will house 60 1.9mm pixel pitch Litepix ORIM screens at its Phoenix location, and 60 2.6mm pixel pitch screens Litepix ORIM screens at its Orlando office. The Phoenix office has a 2,500sq.ft streaming studio, where the White Tie team will utilise the 1.9mm video wall on set for virtual programming as well as live event rentals.
“It used to be that you didn’t go below 2mm on a portable wall for fear of damage,” said Snyder. “But with the ORIM on the 1.9’s, you get a really sharp on-camera image in a very well pro

Albania - Prolights fixtures played a pivotal role in the concert titled Dekada by Albanian singer Elvana Gjata. This event marked a significant milestone in Elvana's two-decade-long musical journey, captivating thousands of fans at the Air Albania Stadium in Tirana for a memorable four-hour extravaganza.
Contributing to the importance of the event was ASLV Albania working in collaboration with Kuadr Events, they integrated 350 cutting-edge Prolights fixtures, creating a breathtaking stage setup, including: 30 PanoramaIP Spot, 30 PanoramaIP AirBeam, 60 UNICO, 50 Jade, 40 Stark 400, 24 Sunrise 2IP, 40 SunRise 4, 40 Lumipix 15IP, 12 EclFresnel TW, 12 LumiPar 12IP and 16 Razor 440.
"The Prolights fixtures truly exceeded our expectations at Elvana Gjata's Dekada concert. Their cutting-edge technology and versatility allowed us to create a visually stunning production that perfectly complemented Elvana's performance" stated the ASLV team.
With seamless operation, remarkable colour rendition, and exceptional versatility, Prolights' cutting-edge lighting fixtures enhanced the overall atmosphere, transforming the concert into an unforgettable experience.

USA - Experimental Icelandic rock band, Sigur Rós recently embarked on a two-and-a-half-week tour of North America, complete with a 41-piece orchestra.
It marks the third phase of support from their audio rental company 22live, who earlier covered their 2022 world shows, followed by European summer dates (where the orchestral idea was first introduced) and now tour dates in the United States and Canada.
Each wave of dates has seen progressive iterations of Martin Audio sound reinforcement, culminating in monitor engineer Throstur Albertsson recently changing his monitor set-up for powerful XE500 wedges (to complement their IEMs) but more significantly 18 of the manufacturer’s new FlexPoint FP4 for local orchestral monitoring.
Explaining the background, 22live hire director, Paul Timmins, who has a long relationship with Sigur Rós, said: “We needed some tiny speakers for the orchestra. I’d got wind about FlexPoint and when I attended the Martin Audio Open Day in April I discovered that Ingvar Jónsson - Sigur Rós FOH engineer - was also planning to visit because of a side project with Martin Audio he was involved with. He was impressed with the FP4 and XE500 wedges and told the monitor engineer how great they were, believing the diminutive FP4s would be ideal for the orchestra.”
His colleague, Throstur Albertsson, duly adopted this solution for the orchestra foldback, but the challenge became one of timing. Martin Audio met the deadline by fast tracking the first production run in order to meet the first six orchestral shows in Europ

USA - Sports fans are being treated to a massive 2,000sq.ft video screen at the new DraftKings Sportsbook bar at Chicago’s Wrigley Field stadium, with game footage and betting information delivered by a tvONE CORIOmaster2 video processor and integrated by tvONE partner McCann Systems.
The expansive LED feature wall wraps around the space and is visible from practically any seat. DraftKings Sportsbook is a restaurant, bar, and sports betting facility and is connected to the historic Wrigley Field, home to the Chicago Cubs baseball team.
Upon realising that the large LED screen would require many video sources to be displayed and have several preset layouts, immersive digital environments specialists McCann Systems specified tvONE’s CORIOmaster2 video processor, which is engineered to drive ‘more pixels than you will ever need’ with its high bandwidth CORIO2 processing.
“The processing power of the tvONE CORIOmaster2 allowed us to produce a combined video resolution of 16,320 x 1560 to cover the entire LED wall,” says Al Ragone, senior field applications engineer with McCann. “We are utilising five outputs from the processor that all produce 4K resolution, which is fed to the main LED wall. We are also using the internal window processing of the unit to create up to 48 unique windows that can be displayed on the video wall across 24 different layouts and formats.”
The massive LED screen can display up to 24 sporting events at one time or provide a single expansive image for an immersive experience. Billed by developer Marquee Dev

UK - At this year’s PLASA Show (stand J5) OutBoard will preview the latest product innovations from the TiMax family of immersive audio and showcontrol products. Following another of the company’s busiest years, both in sales and in product development, OutBoard will showcase new software enhancements to TiMax2 SoundHub, including audio and workflow previews of their groundbreaking new spatial production reverb addition.
Also at PLASA will be the award-winning TiMax TrackerD4 Precision Stagetracking system, with newly refined error correction filtering as a must-see update. This and other innovations further solidify the agility and robustness of the system to meet the growing demands of live production, cementing its status as the leading tracking system for real-time immersive spatial audio, and also paving the way for imminent exciting new advanced lighting and media control capabilities.
Further innovations from the OutBoard stable can be seen on other stands at this year’s show. AC Rigging on Stand G53 will represent LVx & DVx hoist controllers, showing the new LV2 CASE portable product alongside the popular digital RCX SMART Remotes. On Stand D3 with SES, Data Strategy showcase OutBoard’s PAT-4 and CAB-5 robust electrical safety test units with the industry’s favoured equipment prep and test platform, QC-Check.
The OutBoard team looks forward to seeing you at stand J5 for demonstrations of TiMax SoundHub and TiMax TrackerD4, so you can experience first-hand the insightful workflow and flexibility that set these systems apart fro

UK - From stand D3 with SES, at this year’s PLASA Show, Data Strategy will showcase the extensive benefits of the industry’s first choice electrical and cable safety inspection solution, the QC-Check workstation.
Anticipating an extension to the summer festival season’s conversational theme of cable identification out on site, Data Strategy’s Iain Roche will be on stand ready to discuss the benefits of simple labelling solutions, as well as the latest rental system integrations and QC-Check’s most popular add-on modules, including the PowerCheck distro testing, LOLER inspection and SimplyPATS integration software.
Integration with equipment hire software is central to QC-Check’s role in embedding practical safety inspection solutions into the heart of the warehouse process. Data Strategy is progressing two new and interesting integrations that will allow more hire companies and venues to easily fulfil the statutory requirements to ensure electrical appliances and equipment are always safe to use.
QC-Check systems are installed in major film studios; production companies both large and small (PRG, Creative Technology, Adlib, White Light and Entec); various theatres including the Royal Opera House and the National Theatre, and recently, via Star Live, played a central role in testing equipment ahead of the King’s Coronation and many high-profile festival stages across the UK this summer.
QC-Check is a networked, multi-user application that controls Out Board’s PAT-4 (single or 3-phase in 16A, 32A & 125A ratings) to deliver P

Germany - Holoplot has announced the expansion of its US presence with the appointment of James Bobel as sales manager for North America.
With decades of sales and technical experience and a proven track record of building relationships in the commercial AV integration market, Bobel will be responsible for fostering relationships with US customers across all business sectors and identifying new markets.
“I’ve worked in the professional audio industry over the past two decades for integrators, and manufacturers. I have a genuine appreciation and passion for technology, and the opportunity to join Holoplot was impossible to pass up,” says Bobel.
“What gets me up in the morning is working with designers, engineers who are trying to do something that hasn’t been done before,” Bobel concludes. “The audio industry craves innovation but requires extensive education to embrace this new era of technology and sound. Holoplot provides the much-needed inspiration and also serves as an invaluable source of knowledge for the industry's transition into this exciting space.”

UK - Backup has announced well-known industry figure, Koy Neminathan, as a new trustee of the organisation and head of its Ambassador Programme.
Koy, who is business development director at Elation Professional and PLASA manufacturer’s representative, is no stranger to the demands and pressures of the live entertainment industry. Following the events of the COVID-19 pandemic, he saw the very real challenges the industry faced, and vowed to put the needs of others before himself.
“I felt like helping others was what had to be done, it was such an important thing for me,” says Koy. “You’ve got to help those who can’t always help themselves and, particularly during the pandemic, I felt it was imperative to do what I could to support our industry at a time where people were struggling in so many ways and mental health became a massive issue - people were suffering in silence. That’s what led me to think about joining Backup.”
During the pandemic, Koy worked with the #WeMakeEvents campaign, an initiative that was set up to raise awareness of the lack of support for freelancers and companies within the entertainment industry, by helping coordinate the campaign across 40 countries and continues to work for the good of the industry today.
Discussions surrounding his potential involvement with Backup began back in March 2023, when fellow Backup trustee, Paul Robson, approached him looking for a fresh, young mind to join the organisation. “I’ve always respected the charity and the individuals behind it, so I thought, why not? Let’s

Hungary - In 2023, the city of Veszprém in Western Hungary and the Bakony-Balaton region is holding a year-long programme of events and celebrations as the European Capital of Culture. The Grand Opening of the festivities took place on 21-22 January under the title Come shine with us!, a spectacular event with lighting design by Balázs Varga. The LD illuminated the occasion using 120 IP-rated lighting products from Elation Professional.
January weather in Hungary can be freezing - it is the coldest and snowiest month of the year in the country - with temperatures often between 0° and -10° Celsius. “The rehearsal days and programming days were freezing and there was snow on show day,” stated Balázs, co-founder and managing director of Hybrid Production of Budapest.
“It was extremely hard on the fixtures because the equipment was outside for seven straight days,” he said, expressing a bit of surprise that the Elation products worked so well throughout the entire event. Despite the harsh weather conditions and constant exposure, their durability and performance exceeded his expectations. “In fact, we changed out just one spare, which is a great ratio.”
Some 120 Elation Proteus Excalibur, Proteus Maximus and SixBar 1000 IP were used for the event. The lighting gear, all IP65 rated, was supplied by Motion GmbH of Germany while Elation’s Hungarian distributor Luminis provided lighting support.
Balázs says that he was excited when invited to create the lighting for the event, as a show of this type had never been done bef

UK - For more than 15 years, Oxford’s Event Production Services has been a major fixture at Truck Festival. In 2023 EPS provided sound and lighting for five of the eight stages. For the second year running sound systems in these spaces were entirely based around Nexo products, from the Geo, P+ and ID series, with control surfaces from Yamaha.
Highlights included This Feeling and Rockin’ Chair stages, which both utilised Nexo Geo M1210 and MSUB18 with cardioid subwoofers; and The Tap Room, with a compact but potent system of Geo M620 and MSUB18. All systems were ground stacked but still offered consistent coverage and audio level across the spaces, with all the M12 systems running in active mode.
Robert Nisbet, managing director of EPS, reported flawless operation from the Nexo systems. “Having bought into Nexo in large quantities over the past five years, our team are experienced in the deployment of their systems. The integral rigging systems make both flying and ground stacking simple and quick, and sonically they sound stunning - and consistent across all the range.”
Amplification for all stages was provided by Nexo NXAMPs. Monitor systems were Nexo P12 throughout, with a pair of IDS110s utilised as drum fill sub. ID24s were positioned as stage lip-fills for Rockin’ Chair and This Feeling.
Production manager for Truck Festival, James Phillips of Method Events, has experienced Nexo at Truck before: “It's my second year working with EPS although they've worked on Truck for many years. Their friendly team on site are excellent at

UK - Sam Fender played two homecoming shows at St. James’ Park in Newcastle with lighting designed by Sam Tozer - also the show’s creative director - and equipment supplied by event technology specialists, Adlib, including 11 x Robe Fortes running on five RoboSpot systems.
Tozer has been working with the artist since he re-started playing live after the pandemic in 2021. Working alongside him was lighting director Luke Avery, who was heavily involved in the design process, together with set designer Flora Harvey. Video content was created by UDC.
Sam’s overall vision for these shows was to make the lighting look epic, large scale and ‘industrial strength’ to cover the dynamic range of Sam Fender’s music.
The Fortes were all rigged on the front truss and utilised for spot lighting, key lighting and specials. “I needed a very reliable and stable remote follow spotting system for the task of key’ing the band,” explained Sam.
He wanted a stage left and a stage right spot for every band member to give even coverage across their bodies and faces, and this setup was a good example of how the RoboSpot system can be used flexibly and creatively.
The RoboSpot BaseStations were located behind the stage, and operated by local crew, and the Fortes were used throughout the set. Each RoboSpot operator was allocated a band member and stayed with them. Harry Williams was spot calling, and all the fast blackouts and other special effects utilised on the Fortes were programmed and executed from the main grandMA3 lighting console.

UK - Based in the heart of the West Midlands with a satellite office in North Wales, sound production company CS Audio has made an initial investment in Outline’s Newton FPGA processor, supplied by UK distributor CUK Audio.
“The unit had been on my radar for a while thanks to the industry ‘buzz’ it has generated - some products quickly develop a reputation for simply being the right tool for the job and Newton is definitely one of them,” says owner Paul Hatt. “It quickly became obvious that it was way ahead of any comparable product and ideal for our needs. Its ease of use, dual redundant PSUs and connectivity options, all in such a compact package, made it a very simple decision to invest.”
Paul continues: “It has become our go-to choice for our FOH drive rack, using Dante as the primary network with AES backup, and it works so well with our inventory of Martin Audio loudspeaker products. It’s already been out on tours with Groove Armada, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Soft Cell, Emma Bunton and Belinda Carlisle, plus we used it for The Alarm’s 30th anniversary show up here too. My crews really like it because it’s reliable, the control software is excellent and it’s everything they wanted. Also, James [Lawford] from CUK Audio was incredibly helpful, managing to get us product on time during the supply chain problems that have affected the whole industry.”
One of Paul’s freelancers, James Jewry, was PA tech on the The Alarm show and adds: “Newton is a superb bit of kit for the heart of any audio system. The workflow and speed o

UK - With a presence across 25 countries and a total of 135 establishments, Vapiano Restaurants understands the integral role that ambience plays in customer satisfaction and engagement. Essential to this ambience is quality audio with appropriate music.
Vapiano enlisted the services of installer Marquee AV to upgrade the audio system in their Paddington restaurant.
After reviewing the client request and specifications, Stacey Tough, project director at Marquee AV, contacted Audiologic regarding the supply of the audio system. Through discussions with Paul Simpson, business manager at Audiologic, 11 x Ecler Drop 6 pendant loudspeakers and three Ecler Arqis SB10i subwoofers were specified for the project.
Paul Simpson explains: "The Ecler Drop6 2-way pendant speaker suits this setting perfectly. It boasts a 6.5" woofer and a 1" silk dome tweeter, along with a 70/100V line transformer offering power options of 60/30/15 and 7.5 watts. These selections are available in both high and low impedance levels. Crafted from reinforced ABS with fibreglass, the speaker offers a sleek design, completed with a paintable grille, ensuring effortless integration into the environment."
The Ecler ARQIS SB10i wooden subwoofer reinforcement cabinet offers a compact format, stylish aesthetics, sound quality and long-term reliability, featuring a 10" LF driver and internal LPF with 2 frequency settings. The ARQIS series has been specifically designed to fulfil permanent installation requirements where a perfect balance between sound performance and architectural/int

UK - JBL Professional and UK distributor Sound Technology will be showcasing the latest JBL Portable and Performance Audio loudspeaker solutions throughout the PLASA Show on their main stand C22, and with a series of audio demonstrations in the Gallery Suite 2 on the Gallery Level.
The showcase will include one of the UK’s first showings of the JBL VTX A6, which brings flagship VTX A Series performance to a subcompact form factor, and the newly shipping JBL SRX 900 system - a series of powered line arrays and subwoofers addresses the growing need for affordable, scalable small and medium-format professional sound-reinforcement solutions. The new powerful and intuitive JBL Performance control software for SRX900 will also be demonstrated.
In addition, attendees will hear the latest addition to JBL’s portable PA family, the PRX 900 Series, together with the high-power all-in-one PRX ONE. Also demonstrated will be the newly-released version of JBL’s Pro Control app for the fully revamped JBL Portable PA range.
Demos take place every 30 minutes in Gallery Suite 2. Although registration isn't required, spaces are limited and we recommend securing your place. Plus, attendees who register in advance are automatically entered into a draw to win a pair of AKG headphones.

UK - Artistic Licence, now part of the Robe family, goes back to its rock 'n' roll roots, with a line-up of rack-mount splitters and its gateway range. From the signature 'skinny rack' octoboxes to the channel-dense, feature-rich dataLynx range, a spectrum of budgets and technical needs are catered for.
The Artistic Licence stand would not be complete without some of its popular DIN rail mount products. This year sees the arrival of a new addition to the bestselling railSplit range, in the form of railSplit quad.
This new DMX/RDM opto-splitter features all the functionality of the railSplit RDM, with two key differences: Data connections are all RJ45 plus there are four (not six) outputs.
Also in the news, Artistic Licence has revamped the railFlip, with a new style case and markings. railFlip is a modular A-B switch for DMX512 that supports four universes. Its primary purpose is automatic switching between a primary and backup lighting controller. It can also be used to switch between different lighting control positions.
Since winning the PLASA Gold Innovation Award in 2019, sunDial quad - a trailing edge mains dimmer designed for dimmable replacement LED - has become AL’s highest selling product. This year, it will be driving the new HolyPATT and MolyPATT Robe fixtures on Stand C28.

USA - By any measure, the numbers for the Dead & Company final tour of 2023 are impressive. Although among the top-grossing acts since its first tour in 2015, with this year’s outing the band shattered all of their previous totals. Across 28 shows in 19 cities, according to Billboard Box Score, Dead & Company grossed $114.7m and sold 845,000 tickets.
However, the magnitude of this final leg of “the long, strange trip” must be measured by more than hard numbers. It marked the coda of a resilient cultural and sociological phenomenon - launched by the Grateful Dead - that has spanned nearly six decades and three generations. Appropriately, the tour’s significance as a milestone of Americana was recognised in a lavishly illustrated 2,500-word feature in The New York Times.
As has been the case since the outset, Dead & Company was again accompanied by a Meyer Sound reinforcement system provided by UltraSound, LLC, and for the second year, the core of the system was powered by Meyer Sound Panther large-format linear line array loudspeakers.
As with last year’s tour, the Panther-based system adapted to a mix of large venues, in this case, one indoor arena, one college football stadium, nine MLB baseball stadiums, and 14 large outdoor pavilions. Each venue type required significant adaptations of the base system, but fortunately, the relatively light weight and compact size of the Panther loudspeakers made the changes quicker and easier.
“The change from Leo family boxes to Panther came in particularly handy for the dela

USA - World Cup champion Lionel Messi created shock waves when he passed up offers from better-known clubs to sign with the struggling Inter Miami team.
Anticipation was high when the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner suited up for his first game on Friday 21 July, but Messi, still recovering from an exhausting travel schedule, had to sit on the bench for the first 54 minutes. Then, with the sell-out crowd standing and cheering wildly, he entered the game and proceeded to score the winning goal.
A few days before, the player was greeted at the team’s DRV Pink Stadium in Fort Lauderdale with a welcome celebration.
Helping to create the heady atmosphere was a bright, bold, and colourful lighting design from José Laria, lighting designer Andres Albornoz and the entire team at LPS Production that drew on the intense output of over 100 Chauvet Professional IP65 rated fixtures.
Lining the 100ft-long runway that Messi and his family walked down to greet fans and transforming the stadium with aerial effects that worked in concert with pyro displays, the lighting set a mood that was ‘New Year’s Eve, Super Bowl halftime, and world championship celebration all rolled into one’.
“Our goal was to create a set that looked like big and award-show like,” said Gerardo Rodriguez, of the LPS team, which included, in addition to production manager/lighting designer Andres Albornoz, programmer Nesmar E. Medina, and crew chief Anthony Bolano.
“Andres created a beautiful set that allowed us to develop this look quickly (the crew had eight hou