Belgium - Lighting and visuals specialist Luc Peumans of Belgium based design practice Painting With Light, has created the visual concept and designed video and lighting for the highly anticipated new theatre production of Ben X.

The ground-breaking show is based on the award-winning book and 2007 movie directed by Nic Balthazar (also author of the book) about a boy with autism who escapes into a fantasy computer game world to escape bullying. Directed by Frank van Laecke, it opened on 13 September at the Stadsschouwburg Theatre in Antwerp.

Peumans was asked to work on the show by producers Musical van Vlaanderen (Musicals of Flanders), and was delighted to be involved with helping create such a cutting-edge, intricate and highly emotive stage show .... With the addition

USA - Audio-Technica, currently celebrating '50 Years of Passionate Listening', reports that it is the vocal microphone of choice for legendary performer Barbra Streisand on her current Back to Brooklyn North American tour, spanning the US and Canada.

Streisand opened her tour, in support of her new album titled Release Me, at Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Centre on Monday, 8 October 8.

(Jim Evans)

UK - The US band Neon Trees requested a dual FOH/monitor Allen & Heath iLive digital system for a recent performance at a private function in central London hosted by Universal Music.

Formerly a grand hotel, the venue 8 Northumberland Avenue is now a conference and functions facility. The gig was held in the Billiard Room, and also featured a set by British performer, Ellie Goulding. Sound Hire provided the PA for the event, sub-hiring the FOH/monitor iLive system, comprising two iLive-112 Control Surfaces with an iDR-32 and iDR-48 MixRacks, from the SRD Group.

"iLive was very straight forward to set up. I emailed the show files for SRD to pre-load, and the systems were sent straight to the venue. Neither my FOH nor monitor techs had used iLive before so it was a relief to find it so easy to hook the systems up with just the one Cat 5 cable between rack and surface. In fa

featured content

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

UK - Every October, London dawns the colour pink. From pins and ribbons, to billboards and taxicabs - pink can be seen all over the city. It's all part of an international campaign to raise awareness of breast cancer, those affected by it, and the preventative care available for many.

This year, even the city's landmark buildings joined the campaign, as Buckingham Palace, Tower of London, and Nelson's Column in Trafalgar SquareLondon went pink in support of Breast Cancer Campaign's Action Month. Entertainment lighting specialist White Light was asked to illuminate the iconic architecture in pink for the 1 October launch of the campaign's month of events and activities.

By dotting London's skyline with pink landmarks, Breast Cancer Campaign, the UK's largest charity devoted to breast cancer awareness, aimed to get people talking about the cancer which kills 12,000 women in the

USA - Escondido, California based Southern California Sound Image, a leading provider of audio systems for touring and installation applications globally, has recently doubled their inventory of Adamson's E15 Line Source System. Sound Image was one of the first American companies to invest in Project Energia, and in less than one year they have doubled their rental inventory. Historically Sound Image also carried Adamson Y18, Y10 and T21 systems in the hire stock.

Jesse Adamson, director of marketing and sales comments on the acquisition, "Sound Image is a strong Beta partner and a leader with Adamson in the USA. We are extremely happy with their contribution to Project Energia. Their positive feedback and consistent push with our product is invaluable."

Dave Shadoan, president of Sound Image explains, "The E15 is gaining popularity quickly amongst touring engin

USA - The iconic Golden Gate Bridge turned 75 this year, and DPA Microphones is supporting local San Francisco artist Bill Fontana in honouring the landmark's anniversary. With a video camera and seven DPA Reference Standard 4006A Omnidirectional microphones affixed to the bridge, Fontana is streaming and capturing six months' worth of sound and footage for a live video and sound portrait titled Acoustical Visions of the Golden Gate. He also relies on a Sound Devices 788T multi-track digital audio recorder to capture the audio.

Fontana, who commemorated the landmark's 50th anniversary in similar fashion, has been a long-time DPA Microphones advocate. He selected the highly praised DPA Reference Standard 4006A for the 75th anniversary project for its true-to-life sound reproduction and its ability to withstand all San Francisco weather conditions.

"I think DPA micro

UK - Paul Brewis has joined Studioking Ltd as international sales and business development manager for both Carlsbro and Studiomaster brands.

Brewis brings 12 years of experience with Marshall Amplification and a wealth of industry and international artist contacts to the newly created role. His brief is to develop and implement completely new market strategies for the Carlsbro and Studiomaster brands to establish them as major players in the MI and pro audio industries.

Speaking on record for the first time in his new position, Brewis stated, "In terms of our ongoing approach to the market we are starting with a completely blank canvas. At this stage I'm not going to go into the detail as to what we are going to be doing or how we are going to be doing it, except to say that the planned innovative changes and strategy will encompass all market sectors and price points -

USA - Audio-Technica, currently celebrating "50 Years of Passionate Listening," supplied microphones used on both candidates and the moderator at the 2012 Vice-Presidential debate 11 October at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky.

Products used included A-T's Engineered Sound® ES935ML6 MicroLine Condenser Gooseneck Microphones on Vice-President Joe Biden and Republican vice presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan. Two AT898cW Subminiature Cardioid Condenser Lavalier Microphones with 5000 Series wireless were used for moderator Martha Raddatz. Audio-Technica's BP4071 Line + Gradient Condenser Microphones were used for room ambience. Backup mics at the event included AT898cW wireless lavaliers and AEW-T5400 handheld transmitters with 5000 Series wireless for the candidates, and AT898 wired lavalier mics for Raddatz.

Larry Estrin, of Best Audio in Studio City, CA, serv

Australia - A Martin Audio OmniLine system has been specified and installed at Central Railway Station in Sydney, the largest in Australia, to conquer a speech intelligibility problem that has persisted for years.

The Country Trains Concourse, measuring 110m x 60m x 10m, and with a challenging RT60 time of 5.5 seconds in the mid-band, has long defied attempts to get intelligible announcements heard by commuters. Over the years many brands have successively tried and failed to tame the inherent reverberation caused by a combination of terrazzo floors, sandstone and plate glass walls and a high arched steel roof.

Last year Glenn Leembruggen, principal of Acoustic Directions, became the latest specialist to do battle with the acoustically hostile environment.

Since acoustic treatment of the inside of the roof was ruled out as being financially untenable, two members of the Acou

UK - Heaven Club, located underneath Charing Cross railway station in Central London, recently got a spicy retrofit with Chauvet.

Angus Chinn, installations manager for Utopium Lighting with headquarters in Bristol, specified eight Chauvet Professional Q-Wash 560Z-LED wash fixtures, which light the performers on stage and shoot bright beams toward the crowds.

"We replaced some aging Chauvet Professional Q-Wash 575 lights that were becoming too expensive to run and maintain and brought in the powerful Q-Wash 560Z-LED ones, which fit very well in the venue," Chinn said.

Featuring a wide zoom range, the Q-Wash 560Z-LED stands out on the stage and brings a modern look to the old feel of the club. The calibrated high intensity RGBWA Cree LEDs ensure a uniform wash, excellent color rendering and a vast color palette, animating the venue with vivid hues.

"I had bee

UK - Neil Hunt from Leeds, UK based Zig Zag Lighting supplied a production lighting design, equipment and crew - including a full rig of Robe moving lights - for the main and second stages at the 2012 Bingley Music Live Festival, held over three action-packed days at Myrtle Park in Bingley, west Yorkshire, UK.

Headliners included The Charlatans, Razorlight and Nero, who were enjoyed by capacity audiences of up to 15,000. Zig Zag has been involved in the event - which initially started around 21 years ago as Music At Myrtle Park - from the start.

Hunt chose Robe moving lights - a mix of Robin 600E Spots, LEDWash 600s, LEDBeam 100s and ColorWash 575 E AT Zooms - because he needed robust, versatile lights that were also inherently durable for outdoor applications.

(Jim Evans)

Australia - Brisbane's state of the art nightclub The Met has announced its Main Room is 'astounding' customers, following the installation of Clay Paky's Sharpys.

The Met, located in the city's Fortitude Valley, is a huge purpose-built nightlife venue that 'prides itself on offering the latest in lighting and sound technology'.

Four Clay Paky Sharpys are now wowing the club's customers. Two Sharpys are positioned at the top of the onstage LED screen and two are located either side of the DJ booth.

"Their beam is awesome and I love their colours and their speed," says Pete Smith, The Met's technical director. "Everyone is amazed with the lighting effects and the kids refer to them as 'those searchlight things' as they are astounded at the amount of light that comes out of such a small fixture.

"Sharpys really cut through and are something different in a

UK - TV lighting's Chris Rigby, Gurdip Mahal, Ross Williams and Nick Edwards have joined forces to create Aurora Lighting Associates Ltd, with the expanded company extending its broadcast lighting influence with a string of popular TV programmes featuring on the busy Autumn TV schedules. In order to fulfil commitments to the increasing number of shows and broadcast channels the company is supplying, the Aurora team has made a significant investment in the company inventory.

Top of the list of significant purchase have been more than 80 Clay Paky Sharpys. "They are the first Clay Paky purchases Chris Rigby, founding owner of Aurora has made for a considerable time," says the company. "He still on occasion goes out with his trusty Goldenscans which can often be seen on 'Later....with Jools Holland'!"

"As a new venture we needed to make sure our stock lev

USA - British motorised track solutions specialist Triple E is gearing up to launch its pioneering SDRIVE system at LDI Las Vegas with Rose Brand, Triple E's American distributor.

Triple E's Managing Director David Edelstein will unleash SDRIVE, a track mounted motor for moving stage curtains, for the first time outside of Britain at the annual LDI show on the Rose Brand booth number 1029, 19-21 October 2012 at Las Vegas Convention Centre.

The American launch follows a hugely successful UK premiere of SDRIVE at Portsmouth's magical King's Theatre in September.

"SDRIVE is the result of demand from the industry and our distributors for a budget motor aimed at smaller venues," says Edelstein. "It's easy to specify and easy to install, and is designed to motorise both straight and curved systems and will be available off the shelf."

It's thought the SDRIVE,

USA - Wireless Solution Sweden AB is ready to show LDI 2012 visitors its full range of new products along with plenty of Swedish hospitality. Wireless Solution will be exhibiting in Booth 2007 with distributor A.C.T. Lighting.

Wireless Solution will be showing its new innovations and products including the W-DMX G4S software and the BlackBox MK2.

The W-DMX G4S platform is a step change in the popular G4 software, packing improvements across the board. From smarter Adaptive Frequency Hopping to greater resiliency, W-DMX G4S keeps even the most demanding show running. G4S also brings new RDM functionality as standard in the entire transceiver line (F-models), with full, tested compatibility with the W-DMX BlueBox RDM controller and all other leading brands. Use RDM to monitor your lighting rig, set-up DMX addresses and personalities, and much more. With custom RDM commands, you

USA - This year's LDI exhibition will mark 21 years of business for Southern California based truss and structure manufacturer Total Structures.

In order to celebrate the achievement the Total Structures LDI booth (number 126) will have a celebratory theme throughout the show and they will also be personally acknowledging the 'Top 21' customers who have helped them establish their market leading position during that time.

Making his LDI debut for Total Structures will be Eastern sales executive Don Halchak, who joined the company from Mountain Productions earlier this year. Halchak is based in Wilkes Barre, PA and supports all of Total Structure's north eastern customers as well as developing their growing sales of Columbus McKinnon and associated lifting products.

As well as exhibiting at the Las Vegas Convention Centre event Total Structures are also holding an outdoor str

USA - On show for the first time at LDI and after receiving an outstanding response at PLASA 2012, Dirty Rigger's new Rigger's Tool Pouch is set for another hugely successful exhibition, says the company.

The new slim-line rigger's tool pouch offers six inner pockets secured with a full width drawstring netting and hook & loop closure flap. Manufactured using extremely durable, high quality nylon, providing outstanding flexibility and durability.

The Rigger's Tool Pouch comes complete with three D-ring attachments for easy linking of accessories and a long-handle screwdriver opening on left side pocket.

(Jim Evans)

UK - A few months ago, entertainment lighting specialist White Light teamed up with lighting manufacturer Coemar to announce the opening of the Coemar LEDko Challenge UK, a chance to win a package of Coemar's acclaimed, innovative Reflection LEDko LED lighting fixtures. The competition invited individuals and groups across the UK to submit a short video or storyboard showing their outdated lighting rig and explaining why they would benefit from an upgrade to Coemar LEDko fixtures for their theatre space.

Submissions were accepted through mid-September and the entries were judged by White Light staff. On30 September, as part of White Light's Amateur Theatre & Schools Open Day, the winner was revealed to a crowd of more than 120 visitors. Richmond upon Thames College won the coveted prize with their creative video submission and will now receive six Coemar LEDko LED fixtures to re

USA - Prism Projection has expanded its RevEAL line of LED products with the debut of three new luminaires - Profile Junior, Studio.3 Fresnel, and Studio.UV. With its largest product launch to date, Prism will be debuting the fixtures in North America at the LDI 2012 show in Las Vegas.

The RevEAL Profile Junior is a compact 10,000 lumen LED profile spot that initially offers three models-3,200K, 5,600K, and tunable (2,800-6,000K) white light-all in a new compact design that is compatible with existing industry-standard lens tubes matched with high output performance. The Profile Junior, along with the original Prism RevEAL Profile, are designed for use in many applications including long throw front of house lighting positions. The RevEAL Profile Junior is an exceptionally powerful instrument in a compact form factor.

Also being introduced is the new long throw lens accessory

USA - After taking last summer off, the Dave Matthews Band is back on the road with a North American tour previewing their upcoming album, Away From The World. The tour features 16 Clay Paky Sharpy fixtures specified by the band's longtime lighting designer Fenton Williams and supplied by Theatrical Media Services Inc. of Omaha, Nebraska.

"Sharpys are quite new to the market so the units we have were all purchased brand new for this tour," says Pete Franks of Theatrical Media Services, who serves as system crew chief on the road. "Everybody really likes the unique look of the Sharpys. They are evenly distributed and mounted vertically on the video screen surrounds upstage of the band - part of the scenic elements instead of hung on a conventional horizontal truss. They replaced all of the ACL-type lights we used in the past."

Franks says the complem

UK - The TiMax Soundhub matrix server found itself at the heart of the London 2012 Olympic Park this summer when it was deployed in the Coca Cola Beatbox "experiential showcasing" pavilion, to control a multi-channel soundscape system distributed around the interior.

The Beatbox was Coca Cola's celebration of Olympic Achievement: an exhilarating experience through synchronised audio effects collected by sampling the sounds of Olympic athletes in training around the world. Visitors touched, stroked, scratched or just waved at large rectangular 'interactive cushion' panels on the outside of the structure, each equipped with a sensor to detect these triggers and a transducer to play back the audio samples from a central server.

As visitors descended a spiralling interior ramp into the depths of the cylindrical building, a distributed system of compact Void speakers enve

Latest Issue. . .