The Netherlands - In the picturesque town of Venlo, on the banks of the Meuse River, the annual free Zomerparkfeest is more than just a festival; it's an immersive experience where music, art, and culture come together.
This year, the Zomerparkfeest unveiled its various stages, brought to life by an impressive array of lighting products from Infinity, Showtec, DMT, and Showgear, courtesy of Demo Productions from Ulestraten, the Netherlands.
As the festival’s main stage blasted off, Demo Productions bathed it in a mesmerizing glow, thanks to a dazzling array of lighting products. Headliners such as Altin Gün, Peaches, and Rowwen Hèze took to the stage beneath the illumination.
Piercing beams of light from 14 Infinity iB-2R moving heads were accompanied by 15 S

Japan - Since its world premiere in 2016, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child has been a worldwide hit in London’s West End, on Broadway, in Hamburg, Melbourne, San Francisco and Toronto.
For the latest production at Tokyo’s TBS Akasaka ACT theatre, the show’s Olivier and Tony award-winning sound designer Gareth Fry has trusted a Yamaha Rivage PM5 digital mixing system to handle a show which previously needed two mixing surfaces.
The Tokyo production features more than 150 inputs, approximately 50 microphone inputs and 80 channels of playback, with around 500 cues. The audio is routed via a Dante network, fully digital from the wireless transmitters until it leaves the amplifiers. Key to the new production is the Rivage PM series’ advanced theatre software, which offers a number of advantages to theatre sound designers.
“The Rivage PM5 combines the

UK - Chatham’s Central Theatre recently benefited from a sound system upgrade to improve the audience experience at its 1000-capacity venue. The Central Theatre, which hosts a variety of performances, from tribute acts and musicals to stand-up comedy and dance, required a sound system that would deliver clear and even audio coverage no matter the performance.
Bose Professional collaborated with London-based integrator Tateside to bring this transformation to fruition.
“Bose’s UK offices are a stone’s throw away from the theatre, so when we needed a new sound system it seemed sensible to open a dialogue with the team,” recalls Chris Stevens, technical manager at Chatham Central Theatre. “The theatre is operated by Medway Council, so we all strive to support and work with local companies where possible.”
On receiving the project, Bose Professional re
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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

Mexico - The recently inaugurated Olmeca Refinery, the largest oil plant in Mexico and one of the three largest in Latin America, has implemented several Christie solutions in its control rooms and offices, including LED and LCD video walls, video wall processors and a 30,000 lumen 3DLP projector.
Located in the port of Dos Bocas, Tabasco, the Olmeca Refinery can process 340,000 barrels per day of crude oil. The refinery consists of 17 processing plants, 56 storage tanks, 34 spheres, workshops, administrative and service buildings, and control rooms across the 556-hectare site.
The facility required a main control room to supervise and monitor oil production, several control rooms for surveillance throughout the refinery, and boardrooms to increase communication and productivity.
Video walls were critical for displaying scalable content from multiple sources simu

India - Elation has announced that VMT (Vardhaman Megatech) has been appointed as the exclusive distributor for Elation and Obsidian Control Systems products in India, effective immediately.
VMT is a leading professional audio and lighting distribution company with a strong distribution network and rich history that goes back to 1958 (parent company Vardhaman was established in 1807.) Based in Mumbai, the family-run business serves a diverse range of customers through retail, installation and distribution divisions, the latter working closely with a network of B2B dealers, retailers, and large touring companies across the country.
VMT director of sales, Jeff Mandot, expressed satisfaction in adding the Elation and Obsidian brands to their large catalogue of leading AV brands. “We chose to partner with Elation because of their reputation as a leading manufacturer of

USA - Creative Technology has announced two key promotions in its executive management team. Effective immediately, Herb Brandt has been named president of the Creative Technology Group in the US and Stephen Gray will be taking on the newly created role of senior vice president of NEP Live Events.
Brandt is a 27-year veteran with extensive experience across all of CT’s business offerings. His most recent role as chief business officer focused on the client-facing side of the business, enhancing CT’s go-to-market strategies while developing new, innovative solutions for customers.
Stephen Gray has been a part of the Creative Technology family since 1994 and has built a reputation grounded in customer service and operational excellence. He will continue in his current role as chief operating officer for CT US while he takes on the responsibilities as senior vice-pre

Europe - HOF will reduce the prices for standard truss by up to 15% as of 1 November 2023. This affects the truss systems HOFKON and HOFFORK (with the exception of the MLT series). The prices of the HOFKON 290-4 series in black will also be reduced by up to 15%.
This price reduction is a reaction to the current easing on the procurement market for raw aluminium. Both the HOFKON 290-4 series and the HOFKON 290-4 Black series are currently available from stock.
Dennis Klostermann, Co-CEO at HOF, says: "The last few years have been challenging for all of us in the industry due to the pandemic and the associated supply chain issues. We are very pleased that the current market situation allows us to pass on the more favourable procurement prices for raw material to our partners. We look forward to a continued successful collaboration."

USA - ADJ is preparing to showcase a variety of entertainment lighting fixtures, LED video solutions, and atmospheric effect generators at the IAAPA Expo (Booth #475), an event for professionals from the attractions industry. The company’s booth will feature a variety of products suitable for the attractions industry, including both regular and IP65-rated automated luminaires, static lighting solutions, LED video panels and a high-output professional snow machine.
IAAPA is the Global Association for the Attractions Industry and its annual Expo attracts thousands of visitors from across the United States and around the world. Hosted in Orlando, FL - the undisputed theme park capital of the world - the event attracts professionals from the full gamut of attraction-based businesses, including amusement and theme parks, hotels and resorts, water parks, family entertainment cen

Belgium - At a ceremony at the Brussels Expo Paleis 10, two women, Rika Coppens, CEO of House of HR, and Diane Govaerts of Ziegler, were named Manager Van Het Jaar (Manager of the Year) by Roularta Media Group’s Trends magazine, the largest circulation business weekly in Belgium, and Trends Tendence the Wallonia version of the publication.
Rika Coppensand Diane Govaerts were both praised for their forward-thinking creativity and their ability to maintain high standards of excellence.
Contributing to the success of the event was D-Dream, which provided technical support and creative vision for the evening’s activities. “We’ve been working together with Roularta Media Group for several years,” said D-Dream managing director Elke Scheirs. “This year, we were again chosen to supply all audiovisual support for the execution of the awards.”

Germany - After last year’s announcement of an exclusive free-TV partnership with the US National Football League (NFL), Cologne-based private broadcaster RTL Deutschland launched the 2023/24 NFL season with a bang. As part of its preseason, the NFL celebrated its premiere on Nitro, a special-interest channel within the RTL Deutschland network, on 12 August. The event took place in RTL’s new live studio, specially designed for NFL coverage and featuring Leyard Europe LED screens.
Initial work on the new NFL studio started in early February, with the RTL team employing the expertise of internationally renowned multi-disciplinary design firm, Veech x Veech, whose credits also include studios for media companies such as SKY News (London, UK), Red Bull Media House (Salzburg, Austria), and Al Jazeera (Doha, Qatar and London, UK).
Laurin Schmid, Leyard's sales manager fo

India - Christie has announced that its Griffyn Series RGB pure laser projectors are illuminating the façade of the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Temple for a spectacular son et lumière that pays homage to the timeless legends of Lord Krishna.
Situated in Mathura, a sacred city in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh, the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Temple is traditionally regarded as the birthplace of Lord Krishna, one of the most widely revered divinities in Hinduism. With its origins dating back to the 6th century BC, this temple stands as a site of profound importance and ranks among India’s most frequented religious destinations.
The nightly 40-minute light and sound show which portrays Lord Krishna’s life as a symbol of tenderness, patience, compassion, and love, was inaugurated by Agra’s chief minister, Yogi Adityanath.
This mesmerising presentation was

Europe - Business West, one of the UK’s largest Chambers of Commerce, and EFM Global, international logistics consultant for live events and special projects, have successfully transported camera equipment from Heathrow to Brussels and back using a digital carnet. This is claimed to be the world’s first demonstration of a digital carnet in action.
When commercial goods, such as musical equipment for a touring band, are exported temporarily, it is typically by way of ATA Carnets. Referred to as ‘passports for goods’, ATA Carnets can contain more than one hundred pieces of paper, requiring numerous physical authorisation stamps.
For a large-scale movement of goods, such as those involved in an international tour, there could be suitcases full of paper-based ATA Carnets, which need to be kept and looked after, as loss or incorrect use can incur significant delays

UK - The spectacular production of The Wizard of Oz, directed by Nikolai Foster and with lighting design by Ben Cracknell, transferred from Leicester’s Curve Theatre to the London Palladium in the West End for a summer run.
With Martin MAC Encores and VDO Atomic Dots specified in the original design, the rig at the Palladium was expanded with additional MAC Encores and with over 50 Martin VDO Atomic Dots after the compact, high output fixtures were described by the LD as being “a revelation” at the Curve.
For the West End production, the previously specified MAC Encore Performance CLD fixtures were joined by additional MAC Encore WRM fixtures, positioned both overhead and on side ladders.
“The MAC Encore Performance CLD is my go-to," stated LD Ben Cracknell, “and by swapping out [a competitor fixture] to the MAC Encore WRMs we had just one typ

Ukraine - Leoland, a 300,000sq.m sports, educational entertainment & leisure complex in Lviv, in the west of the country, has opened a new multipurpose conference concert space.
This enhances its already considerable facilities at the heart of this picturesque city. Given everything that Ukraine has been going through over the last 20 months, it is as much of a small miracle as it is a testament to the spirit and strength of all involved in the project who were determined it should be completed and immediately start further benefiting the community.
The room features 270-degree projections and is lit with Robe products including eight VIVA CMYs to cover the stage, together with 26 LEDWash 600+s and eight ParFect 150s that are positioned around the ceiling, all delivered by one of Robe’s Ukrainian distributors, Sound House, based in Dnipro.
The lights were

UK - PLASA’s Member AGM returns to the Victory Services Club in London on 22 November. The friendly members-only event is a great way to meet like-minded industry professionals and learn more about the association’s activities.
Plus, the AGM features special guest speakers and updates from PLASA members. This year’s keynote speaker is record-breaking mountaineer Kenton Cool, who has climbed Mount Everest an astonishing 17 times.
As well as soaking up inspiration from Cool, attendees can learn from renowned behavioural economist Roger Martin-Fagg, who will deliver a virtual financial forecast.
PLASA members will also report on the most pertinent industry issues, including SIC codes, carbon reduction and Europe activities.
The AGM begins at 2.30pm, opening with an official AGM presentation, and will continue into the evening with drinks and canapes. A

Full-Blown Crisis - The UK's small music venues are experiencing a "full-blown crisis" - with many forced to close over the last year, a music charity has said. The Music Venue Trust says the future of "world-beating" artists is under threat and has asked the chancellor for an extension of the 75% business rates relief introduced in April this year. It is due to come to an end in March 2024.
In an open letter to Jeremy Hunt, the charity said: "The grassroots music sector is in the middle of a full-blown crisis. One hundred and twenty-five venues have shut their doors for live music in the last 12 months, 15.7% of all such spaces in the UK. It represents the loss of 4,000 jobs, 14,250 events, 193,230 performance opportunities, £9m of income for musicians, and £59m in lost direct economic activity."
Calling the closures "an immediate economic, social, and cultural blow

World - Stage lighting rental house Christie Lites has announced a major strengthening of its global reps, welcoming five new team members to its UK, Germany, USA and Canada shops.
The addition of these new team members reflects the company’s growth aspirations in multiple sectors, including TV, special events and theatre.
London-based rental rep Alex Griffiths brings a decade of experience at the heart of the lighting industry. “I've had the privilege of collaborating with exceptional individuals and building a robust network of industry professionals,” he says. “I’m excited to harness my network and expertise in my new role at Christie Lites, contributing to the continued success of our lighting projects.” One of Griffiths’ key objectives is to expand Christie Lites' presence in the TV and special events sector.
In Germany, where Christie Lites o

South Korea - An Electro-Voice and Dynacord system is setting a new standard for house of worship sound in Korea at Grace Kwangsung Church in Gangdong-gu, Seoul.
The newly-constructed house of worship features a modern multi-purpose design and needed an equally versatile sound system to accommodate the services, worship meetings, church events and concerts that take place there. And the top priority was to ensure the utmost clarity and uniform coverage for the congregation during church services.
Won Young Kim, Kim Jin Keuk and Kim Ho Jun of Bosch (Electro-Voice and Dynacord’s parent company) worked with regional dealer and integrator dB Sound Interactive and the church leaders to specify a solution to precisely address their performance and budget requirements, all with the highest level of technical support.
After running a simulation with Preview Loudspeak

UK - Cheshire-based dBS Solutions is a full-service provider, delivering bespoke audio, lighting and production services across a broad range of clients and industries. Their diverse portfolio of work encompasses live performance, seasonal events, touring UK and international theatre, visual artists and numerous festivals.
Their recent growth, especially post-pandemic, has seen them investing heavily in new sound equipment and they are principally a Martin Audio house. Managing director Chris Bogg takes up the story:
“Over the last couple of years, we’ve seen a major increase in demand for our audio services, in particular for larger projects and that’s led to a significant expansion in our sound equipment inventory. We had been looking for some time for a device that we could use for system alignment and overall EQ, when one of our freelance engineers brought h

UK - During what has proved to be a non-stop summer of activity for SWG Events, the production company has relied on its Martin Audio PA rig.
By the time they arrived at Blur bass guitarist Alex James’ farm near Kingham in Oxfordshire, where each year the three-day Big Feastival takes place, they were able to offer visiting sound engineers - who accompanied most of the acts - a deluxe set-up at front-of-house.
With a combination of food and music spread over some 10 fringe stages, SWG Events supply audio, lighting, video and staging solutions alongside artist services, whilst deploying their class-leading audio inventory on the extraordinary width of the main stage.
According to Simon Purse, SWG Events head of audio, special care had been needed to ensure the VIP area, set off axis, was still within the coverage area of the out-fills. Fully satisfied with the c

USA - Singer/songwriter Becky G’s long list of achievements thus far includes four Latin Grammy Award nominations, four number-one hits on Billboard’s Latin Airplay Charts, and her debut album Mala Santa was certified eight times platinum.
Her first solo headlining tour, Mi Casa, Tu Casa, covered 16 cities, starting in Boston on 14 September and hit Orlando, San Antonio, El Paso, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and more. It was a big show, with a band, a DJ, and numerous guest artists. Monitoring on the 64-input stage would be a challenge, one that the KLANG:fabrik immersive in-ear monitoring solution handled night after night.
The tour’s visual production set its complex tone. Monitor engineer Lucas Pinzón describes it as “a theatre tour, but easily adaptable to arenas, that travels with a lot of scenery. In each show, Becky's childhood ‘house’ is rec

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