Russia - Blueberry Rain Sound (BBRS) and its Moscow counterpart, LiveSound, have carried out a QSC systems installation at the Children's Performing Arts Theatre of Moscow, based around a WideLine 8 line array system.

The theatre officially began in 1989, commencing with Children's World, a group who developed a unique sound for that era, thanks to complex arrangements and skilled vocal technique. With financial and administrative assistance from several foundations, the theatre was able to stage its first musical, which premiered in January 1990.

Alongside its stage productions, over the years the theatre also developed its own recording label, putting out many albums of young, up-and-coming performers -some of which enjoyed both critical acclaim and mainstream success.

Forme

UK - Customers heading to the new flagship store of leading sports fashion retailer, JD Sports are in for a big surprise since digital interactive specialists Handy AV provided an advanced moving media display inside the store at London's Oxford Circus.

JD Sports pushed boundaries with Handy AV, placing customers within a completely immersive, fast moving digital environment, enveloping both floors of the store.

The imaginative design - which takes in the high footfall stairwell and ascending escalator - was created by Handy AV's managing director Aubrey Wright, working closely with the client and their in-store designers.

The brief was to show advanced mobility; Handy AV's solution has been to fire images along six seamless plasma screens, following the line of the diagonal escalator up to the first floor, and to provide a further portrait column of eight plasma screens, wh

Australia - Klotz Digital has confirmed an expansion of its sales partnership with Amber Technology whose Australian branch will act as distributor for XENON and AEON products in Australia.

"To appoint Amber Technology as Australian distributor for these products made perfect sense after Amber Technology's sweeping initial sales success in New Zealand", says Patrick Salloch, general manager of Klotz Digital Asia Pacific.

"It showed us that we could adopt a similar business model in Australia. The sales figures of the Xenon and Aeon products were very encouraging in Australia last year and we hope we can take these figures to new heights by appointing a leading, trusted and well established broadcast distributor in Amber Technology."

(Jim Evans)

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Indochine X PixMob Fan Immersion

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's - 40 thousand LED pixels on a ceiling!!! Indochine's whirlwind tour transports fans to another level of the live experience - immersing them from floor to ceiling with PixMob's X4 wristbands, and an LED ceiling made entirely of its NOVA Minis! With the vision of Indochine's creative team, PixMob used its LED fan-technology to turn attendees and venues into an ocean of effects, and a starry sky of LED magic. Très très cool!

Read more about the Indochine tour in the latest issue of LSi

USA - Located on the New Hampshire shoreline within an hour's drive of Boston, Mass, the historic Hampton Beach Casino, built in 1899, remains a leading attraction in the New England resort area, while the adjacent Casino Ballroom, added in 1927, has received a major redesign of its audio and lighting systems, including the addition of a new loudspeaker system based on Meyer Sound's Mica compact high-power curvilinear array loudspeaker.

The main system is comprised of two arrays of eight Mica cabinets each, augmented by a pair of MSL-4 horn-loaded long-throw loudspeakers for side-fill. Six 700-HP ultrahigh-power subwoofers provide low end. Ten MJF-212 high-power stage monitors and a 600-HP compact high-power subwoofer comprise the primary stage monitoring system, with a pair of CQ-2 narrow coverage main loudspeakers flown as side-fill monitors.

A Galileo loudspeaker management

Germany - Three new major product ranges from the Turbosound stable are making their European debut at Frankfurt ProLight&Sound, aimed at both the live sound and fixed installation markets.

Flex Array is a medium-scale professional sound reinforcement system that combines elements of Turbosound's patented point-source system with well proven line-array technology, resulting in a one-box-fits-all loudspeaker product suitable for a variety of venue types.

By simply changing the orientation of the cabinet, one enclosure type is capable of being used in either line-array or point-source configurations. The ability to rotate the mid/high waveguide within the enclosure gives additional flexibility of use from only one type of box.

The all-new Flex Array system has been designed from the ground up, resulting from a three-year development cycle closely related to the development of

Sweden - The history of Sweden's Royal Dramatic Theatre (or Dramaten) is a long and complex one. Originally established by King Gustav III in 1788, after an eventful 120 years the theatre moved to its present home in 1908, the Art Nouveau building in Nybroplan, Stockholm.

Since then, Dramaten has gone from strength to strength and recently its six stages (five in-house, one at the satellite Östermalm site) have undergone a major refit with Yamaha audio equipment.

Yamaha DME24N, DME32 and DME64N digital mix engines feature at the heart of the main stage system, with DM2000 and DM1000 mixing consoles, AD824 and DA824 converters and a range of power amplifiers, including ten PC4800N, six P2160, three PC4801N and two PC2602M which drive a combination of Meyer and L-Acoustics loudspeakers.

"At the heart of the main stage is a bespoke temperature-controlled amplifier room, w

UK- With nearly 1,000 staterooms and an interior style that evokes the elegance of a bygone age, the high-profile new cruise-liner, Cunard's Queen Victoria, has embarked on its maiden world cruise after a lavish naming ceremony at Southampton Docks in December 2007, presided over by The Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.

Blackout played a substantial role in staging the event, working for Robbie Williams Productions with production designers Stufish. Ala Pratt, designer at Stufish reports: "The Stufish design for the Queen Victoria naming ceremony stage invoked the luxury of a Victorian-style theatre. Blackout helped to create the atmosphere by providing drapes for the Royal and VIP areas, the main tabs plus the blacks, and gauze used for the final reveals.

"The red velour stage curtain was stencil painted with a gold lower border, and was inspired by

Hungary - Having only recently taken on the distributorship for QSC Audio products in Hungary, Interton Electroacoustics has already provided QSC system solutions for a number of diverse venues across the country - including the first phase of the College of Nyíregyháza's upgrade.

The city is located in the north-east of Hungary, where Interton - working alongside general contractor, Strabag Inc- has designed the complete audiovisual system for the multi-purpose, 1000-capacity auditorium, including the room acoustics.

In order to create a system that fulfilled the many requirements, project manager Zoltán Horváth constructed a CobraNet network between the stage and the studio, and between the studio and amplifier room, where QSC's new PowerLight 3 amplifiers are monitored and controlled via the company's Basis 902zz, operating under the QSControl.net platform.

A second B

UK - Two major TV productions - the 2007 Sports Personality of The Year (SPOTY) and the 2007 Royal Variety performance - utilised Catalyst digital media servers to drive their video content. In both cases, the Catalyst was programmed and operated by Ian Reith, who provided his server along with comprehensive content collection.

The Royal Variety Show was staged at Liverpool Empire Theatre, produced by ITV Productions and presented by Philip Schofield and Kate Thornton. It featured performances from Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Bon Jovi, James Blunt, Seal, Katherine Jenkins, Got Talent winner Paul Potts and numerous others.

Lighting designer Al Gurdon and producer Glen Middleham both specified Catalyst onto the project, so Reith supplied his Version 4 server to feed images to a front projection screen, a main upstage video wall and also to Barco MitTix panels.

The majority of the con

USA - The entertainment industry has again named Bandit Lites as 'Lighting Company of the Year'. The awards ceremony took place on 7 February, 2008 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles and closed out the 2008 CIC Convention.

Bandit general manager, Dizzy Gosnell was there to accept this honour on behalf of Bandit Lites. Bandit has been named 'Lighting Company of the Year' 16 different times through the years. "This was made possible by the tremendous global Bandit family. Please accept my most sincere thank you and offer my thanks and congratulations to all the staff worldwide," commented Bandit CEO, Michael T. Strickland. "This is the perfect start to our 40th Anniversary."

(Jim Evans)

UK - A.C.'s Lighting and Audio divisions have been appointed the stage equipment suppliers into the new South Bank Arts Centre at Bedford College.

A.C. Lighting's initial introduction to the Arts Centre came after on-site training for Bedford College on an existing WYSIWYG set-up. The £6 million Arts Centre, which is part of a £60 million redevelopment plan for the College, provides students with a bright and inspiring stage for their talents, and brings together all course creative disciplines under one roof.

The new state-of-the-art facility, which officially opened its doors in November, comprises of a fully equipped studio theatre, a TV studio, video and audio control, along with sound recording suites.

Lighting equipment includes Martin MAC 250 Krypton moving lights and 3000 Atomic Strobes, Robert Juliat Buxie followspots and various DTS, ETC and Spotlight c

Germany - Clockaudio will be presenting "a significant number of new products" at Frankfurt this year, many of which are additions to existing ranges enhanced by new features and functionality, reflecting input from Clockaudio's bespoke customers as well as its in-house research and development facility, says the company.

Two new mini-shotgun models are being added to the 8100 Series, offering "improved audio performance in a neat slimline design". Developed for speech purposes in a wide range of pro and live sound applications including places of worship, conference and boardrooms, both microphones are fully RF protected against interference from GSM devices.

A new series of desk/ table top and floor-stand wireless systems has been added to Clockaudio's CW9000 UHF multi-channel radio microphone system. They can be used in multiples, for example, where the

UK - London's Arcola Theatre, one of the UK's leading independent venues, has installed a hydrogen fuel cell to power its café/bar and selected main house shows. The fuel cell operates almost silently, producing nothing but electricity and clean water.

The 5kW fuel cell system takes pride of place in the foyer of the theatre accompanied by displays describing the benefits and challenges posed by this ground breaking technology. The prominent location of the fuel cell and the challenge of relying entirely upon it provide both a powerful educational tool and a source of motivation for reducing energy use.

The first show to be powered by the fuel cell, Simple8's The Living Unknown Soldier, produced by Strawberry Vale, may well be London's premier ecologically sustainable show - the environmental impact of all aspects of the production have been minimised, including

The Netherlands - Record numbers of exhibitors and attendees are reported by the organisers of Integrated Systems Europe 2008, which took place at Amsterdam's RAI Convention Centre at the end of January.

A total of 22,199 attendees (up from 16,269 in 2007) were drawn to 481 exhibiting companies (up from 363 last year) during the show's three days.

Reflecting on the speed with which ISE has risen to prominence, Mike Blackman, managing director of Integrated Systems Events, said: "ISE 2008's exhibition area of 38,500 gross square metres is ten times that of our inaugural show in Geneva - just four short years ago."

Also broadening markedly is the geographical make-up of ISE's attendee base. Once seen primarily as a show for Northern Europe, ISE now attracts substantial numbers of visitors from across the continent and beyond. Italian attendance was up almost 40% on 2

Oman - XL Video supplied 150sq.m of Martin LC40 screen - the largest configuration of this surface to date - as a large format, big pixel LED solution for the opening of the new Lexus Cars showroom in Muscat, Oman.

XL was working for production company Live Communications. The Martin LC40 was specified due to its light weight and transparent properties, allowing viewers to see into the showroom whilst off, then provide large video canvass when in operation.

XL Video's brief was to fill the interior of the showroom window with a semi-transparent LED screen, showing a series of high-impact 'Wow factor' images for the reveal moment of the show. Once activated, the screen went on to show a series of graphics and video content supplied by the client and delivered via a Catalyst digital media server.

David MacIntyre, Live Communications' technical production manager states: "

Sweden - RC4 Wireless, a Toronto-based manufacturer of wireless low voltage dimming systems and DMX distribution, have launched a new W-DMX enabled product line called W-DIM. The W-DIM products bring W-DMX connectivity to a complete system for low voltage battery operated lighting, motors, and more, say the companies.

The first W-DIM for W-DMX product will operate from 6V to 30VDC and provide four outputs of 200W each in a small and compact package. W-DIM uses a high-efficiency switching power supply and high-frequency PWM dimming resulting in minimal heat and power loss. Dimmer outputs feature thermal and overload protection and under most fault conditions individual dimmers will disable themselves until the problem is corrected.

"We are very excited that RC4 Wireless has joined our rapidly growing W-DMX OEM programme with their W-DIM product. Battery operated low voltag

South Africa - Over 50 Robe 700 Series moving lights have been specified for the new Lyric Theatre at Gold Reef City Casino in Johannesburg, South Africa by Denis 'Hutch' Hutchinson, one of the country's best known lighting designers.

The 1100 capacity Lyric Theatre is part of the new 66 million ZAR casino complex. Hutchinson was asked onboard as lighting consultant by the theatre's management team headed by Richard Loring, and he's also LD for the first production to be staged there, a run of the hit musical Hairspray.

The 24 Robe ColorWash 700E ATs, 24 ColorSpot 700E ATs and 6 ColorWash 750AT Tungsten units were supplied by Robe's South African distributor DWR Distribution.

Hutchinson first used the 700 Series and the 750Ts on Soweto Story and was very impressed with the light output, which enabled him to wash a large stage with just eight ColorWash 700E ATs

UK - The Soundcraft Vi Series will now support multiple stageboxes. This means that a digital patchbay can be created, where the engineer can select the 64 inputs to a Soundcraft Vi6 (or 48 on the Soundcraft Vi4) from a selection of inputs available on any of the connected stageboxes. So, for example, with two stageboxes connected there are 128 inputs to select from, with three there would be 172 and so on.

The Vi Series stagebox is the main input/output interface for the system, with up to 64 mic/line inputs and 32 line outputs available, or AES/EBU digital cards can take the place of mic/line I/Os.

The Vi Offline Editor software, Virtual Vi, will be downloadable free from the company's website from March, and can be run standalone in any location, and the file transferred at any time. All routing, naming, EQ and dynamic settings and so on can be pre-configured offline.

(Ji

UK - With 138 points, Summit Steel has once again broken its own record for the number of load points rigged in London's Royal Albert Hall for Cirque du Soleil's new show Varekai, which is making its UK debut at the venue.

It's the seventh year that Summit has installed the rigging infrastructure for a Cirque production in the venue, and this one has been particularly challenging because of the sheer scale, complexity and the amount of spreader trusses needed to ensure that the show rigging could be hung in exactly the right places.

Summit project manager Chris Walker led a team of 12 riggers who started work on Boxing Day following work completed by an overnight crew of five riggers in the run up to Christmas, who took care of the pre-rigging and proof testing of the anchor points.

The main crew worked in two split shifts in order to get everything finished and ready

Dubai - The Elegante club housed in the prestigious Royal Ascot hotel in Dubai is the latest venue to benefit from a state-of-the-art sound system driven by no less than 11 C Series dedicated installation amplifiers from Lab.gruppen. The entire system, which also features a powerful Avalon loudspeaker system from EAW, was designed and commissioned by Middle Eastern systems integrator, Dubai-based Smart Vision LLC, with support from Lab.gruppen/EAW distributor, Executive Audio.

With a capacity of over 1,000, the Elegante club has been designed as a multipurpose entertainment venue. According to Oussama Mansour Abou Faraj who manages Smart Vision, Elegante is a unique venue, boasting a "one-of-a-kind light and laser grid, state-of-the-art liquid nitrogen Kryogenifex effects systems and of course, the absolute best sound system design and technology. It all combines to make fo

Italy - During the Notte Bianca (White Night) in Rome, monuments, historical buildings, museums, shops and theatres come to life, hosting shows and other events often at unusual times of day.

At the last edition (on 7 September 2007), over 1,000 artists from all over the world transformed the city, with poetic installations, such as that at Palazzo della Civiltà, one of the symbols of the city's EUR district.

The building hosted the Tribute to Mark Rothko in three parts; an impressive 'son et lumière' show thought up by photographer Ottavio Celestino and dedicated to the American expressionist painter. Exploiting the characteristic arches of the building as a "die", lighting designer Raffaele Cerri installed a SGM Palco 3 fixture at each window, in order to fill the interior with colour and make the outline completely visible from outside.

On a "virtu

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