Lighting

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Germany - The musical Ich Will Spass! currently playing at the Colosseum Theater in Essen, is a return to the more carefree days of the 1980s. Written and produced by Stage Entertainment, Ich Will Spass!(I Want to Have Fun!) features a giant, multi-coloured Rubik's Cube illuminated using Martin LC Series LED panels.

Used as the main set piece throughout the play and made of nine columns that can fold apart to make it twice as wide, the Cube is positioned on a revolving platform that rotates 720 degrees so the audience can see into it. The Rubik's Cube acts as the central and only set piece in the production with all the action taking place in and around it.

36 Martin LC Series panels are used to light the Cube in traditional Rubik's Cube colours (red, orange, yellow, green, blue and white). Positioned 10cm from a Plexiglass screen that surrounds the panels

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UK - LiteSwitch is a control interface, conceived with one aim - operational simplicity. Allowing control of up to 96DMX channels and 60 lighting scenes, LiteSwitch can be programmed to create and manage complex lighting environments, yet access to them is so simple; at the touch of a single button.

Additional features such as daylight sensing, PIR (Person In Room) and calendar triggers are all included in the compactLiteSwitch package, ensuring total control of the lighting environment with simplicity. LiteSwitch is designed and manufactured in the UK by Litestructures, and is available through a network of approved distributors.

LiteSwitch is launched at the ARC Show, Earls Court 2, London , this week.

(Jim Evans)

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Germany - The Trade Fair Tower in the heart of Frankfurt Main is considered one of the most exclusive and attractive venues in the Rhein-Main region. With eight meeting rooms, two lounges and a bistro, the Trade Fair Tower offers plenty of room for the most diverse events: conferences, roadshows, , main assemblies, incentive events, or after-work parties.

Since the beginning of 2008 PDM Light & Sound has been the official technical supplier to the Frankfurt Trade Fair Tower Service GmbH. PDM manages the existing audio-visual technology already installed in the building, and provides additional equipment and professional support as the need arises.

"We're happy that the Frankfurt Trade Fair Tower Service has chosen us to be their long-term partner," states Fred Jung, managing director of PDM Light & Sound. And Carsten Krause, sales manager for HK Audio Concert Sound a

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UK - Martin Locket has been appointed chief executive of Production Resource Group UK, which encompasses PRG's four European brands - PRG Lighting, Essential Lighting, PRG Distribution and Summit Steel.

Richard Williams takes the role of chief operating officer & chief financial officer within the group and will be working closely alongside Locket to coordinate, drive and grow the UK businesses.

Locket also retains his role as managing director of Essential Lighting, which became part of PRG in 2008. Williams has been finance & operations director of PRG since 2005 and he will also stay closely involved in the running of the Group's flagship 168,000sq.ft Longbridge operation.

PRG's UK businesses operate as a network of specialist brands, focussed on a particular market sector or area of technical supply. The group currently operates from four UK locations and employs 200 sta

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Germany - MA Lighting has dropped the prices for its grandMA pico, grandMA micro, grandMA ultra-light consoles and for the MA NSP (Network Signal Processors). The 20% discount refers to the recommended international retail prices and is valid until the end of April 2009.

"This is not a regular Sale, says Michael Althaus, managing director of MA Lighting International. "Although grandMA2 will be available soon, the grandMA 'series 1' consoles are not terminating or being discontinued. This special promotion is an MA Lighting economy programme to help overcoming challenging times and to offer our customers innovative, value stable and future oriented tools at a most attractive and competitive price for mid-size consoles."

(Jim Evans)

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USA - Lighting for a concert video shoot featuring Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana performing eight songs to be aired in the promotion of her upcoming album release and mega-hit Disney Channel series was designed by Lee Rose of Design Partners.

Held outdoors before a live - and very vocal - audience at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine, CA, the concert was performed on a full stage set created by Tom McPhillips of Atomic Design . One of Rose's lighting challenges was to add excitement to four pieces of scenery used to surround video columns on the stage. "Tom (McPhillips) had come up with a set design that included four video columns," said Rose. "The surround to each column was a piece of scenery that looked kind of lonely."

Wanting to tie this scenery into the show's colour and movement, Rose positioned six Impression LED moving heads from Elation Pr

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Australia - Last year the Sydney Opera House hosted Le Grand Cirque which turned out to be the highest grossing show they had ever had. UK-based Storm Lighting was re-invited to design the lighting for the return tour which ran this January at the Opera House. The design was by Pete Kramer with guidance from an old colleague of his Gavin Norris, now a full time production manager for the opera house.

The show was a tricky feat due to the high rig trim height and weight loading restrictions of the listed building. Fortunately, for the first time, Kramer had Vari*Lite luminaires in his rig. "In this situation, with the high trim height, I think the Vari-Lites were definitely the best fixtures for the job," he remarked. "We really needed the VL3000s for their brightness and throw, but also due to the restrictions on the roof, we could use fewer of them. I've f

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UK - MilTec (UK) has announced the release of the XL250 from PR Lighting. Features include a 14-22 degree motorised zoom lens and a motorised iris. In addition to the zoom and iris, the XL250 has the following features: seven interchangeable, indexing rotating glass gobos, 10 interchangeable static gobos and a three-way rotating prism; 12 interchangeable colours; high quality gobo morphing; Independent16-bit dimming and 0.3-13fps strobe/shutter mechanism.

The powerful LCD menu system allows for easy setting of DMX address, sensor fault diagnosis and DMX signal monitoring. The display can also be programmed to switch itself off after a suitable time so that it cannot be seen by the audience during a show.

DMX control is via three and five pin XLR connectors, with three operating modes- 14, 18 and 22 channels.

The XL250 is designed for use in the professional stage, TV and ren

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UAE - Martin Professional Exterior 1200 Wash colour changing luminaires are being used to visually enhance the lengthy, anterior façade of Abu Dhabi's Khalidiyah Shopping Mall in the United Arab Emirates. Combining with Martin Exterior 600 colour changers, the Exterior fixtures project a series of multi-chromatic shades onto the building's modern Islamic architecture.

Rising from Abu Dhabi's bustling new city centre, Khalidiyah Mall is a high profile shopping centre whose architectural design combines the traditional with the contemporary. The Mall's concept goes beyond shopping to embrace leisure, entertainment and dining, and includes landscape features like fountains and a summer gardens.

Keeping in line with the Mall's intent of boosting the economic profile of Abu Dhabi, an eye-catching exterior lighting scheme was sought. "We wanted to do something different that w

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Slovakia - Robe moving lights were in action on the Slovakian launch of the new Audi Q5 car which was staged in the ex-Cvernovka (fabric) factory in Bratislava, and produced by Promea for Porsche Interauto Slovakia.

LD Tomas Lecký specified Robe for his moving lights, which were rigged on a combination of flown trusses and an 8m high ground support system measuring 24 x 10m that was installed onto one of the derelict factory's old halls. The off-beat location was transformed into a highly atmospheric temporary showcase area in which to reveal the various Q5 models.

He used a total of 10 Robe ColorSpot 1200E ATs, 16 Robe ColorWash 1200E ATs, 12 Robe ColorMix 575 ATs and four Robe Scan 575 XTs. There was also a large LED video wall in the hall.

The Robes, along with all the other lighting and audio equipment for the show was supplied by Q-99. Lighting was programmed and run f

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USA - The entertainment industry has again named Bandit Lites as 'Lighting Company of the Year'. The awards ceremony took place on 30 January 2009 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. Hosted by Comedian Jeff Garcia, the event also featured notable celebrity presenters such as Steven Adler (of Guns N Roses), Steve Harwell (of Smash Mouth) and Davy Jones (of the Monkees).

The awards ceremony closed out the 2009 CIC Convention. Held at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, the annual three-day event seeks to facilitate the exchange of ideas between key decision makers, enhance the flow of information among professionals, and make a positive contribution toward enriching the concert industry's health.

Bandit chairman of the board, Michael T. Strickland and general manager, Dizzy Gosnell were there to accept this honour on behalf of Bandit Lites. This is the fourth

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USA - The Joint Training Initiative of The ESTA Foundation and USITT has announced Eos Console Training for Basic/Intermediate Programmers. This two-day course, offered 1 and 2 June 2009, is designed to help beginning and intermediate level programmers advance their professional proficiency with the Eos console. The course will be held at the Century Theatre at Electronic Theatre Controls in Middleton, WI and will be conducted by Anne Valentino, Eos product manager and Steve Aldrich, southeast field project coordinator.

This event is limited in size and will be open to ESTA and USITT members only. Sessions will be hosted and co-produced by ETC. Attendees should have prior experience with automated luminaries and a general familiarity with lighting consoles (Eos experience is not necessary). In addition, they should have working knowledge of the DMX 512 communication protocol, fi

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USA - Best known for his smooth, dynamic vocals and romantic ballads, Luis Miguel has been one of the most popular singers in Latin America since the early 1980s. During his career Miguel won four Latin Grammy Awards, five Grammy Awards and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at the age of 26. Down to the present day he has sold approximately 100 million albums. Currently Miguel is on tour accompanied by a lighting design from Danny Nolan and a grandMA system.

Nolan said: "Luis Miguel's show design is made up of a large 80' x 30' back low-res panel. In front of the low-res is a 20' x 15' HD LED screen with Barco MiTRIX modules across the front of all the stage. In the air there are several arc trusses with 92 x pixel pars, 80 x moving lights, e.g. 23 x Vari*Lite VL3000 Spot, and two truss spots. Everything is controlled via fibre optic cable by a grandMA full-size

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Americas - Mexican pop superstars Los Temerarious continue their tour of the US, Central and South America with over 120 shows planned for 2009 and a lighting design by Fabian Boggino that includes over 80 Robe moving lights. He has worked for Los Temerarious since 1998 and this is their first tour in three years.

Equipment for the US legs of the tour is being supplied by Paradign Production Services from Florida, and Robe fixtures were originally recommended to Boggino by Paradign's George Valdez, who also programmed the show with Boggino, using a grandMA full size console.

"George is the principal of Paradign and a very knowledgeable LD in his own right," states Boggino. "So I completely trusted his judgement when he suggested I use Robe's ColorSpot and ColorWash 1200E AT units for the first time". Once Valdez had demo'd the fixtures, Boggino was very imp

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Europe - ETC's Unison Paradigm building control system is now shipping in Europe, just months after it was named Best Debuting Product at the LDI trade show in Las Vegas in November.

Part of the Unison range of control products, Paradigm brings sophisticated and green-minded technologies to theatre house and foyer lighting control as well as rehearsal spaces, offices and even the external lighting of entertainment facilities.

ETC's associate architectural product manager Bryan Palmer says: "A truly comprehensive lighting control system, Paradigm is not only able to run scheduled events, provide local controls and support manual overrides, but can go well beyond, automating control functions, allowing automatic overrides for events and holidays and adapting to individual users and uses."

Paradigm activates sophisticated houselight looks at the touch of a button, run

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UK - PLASA's forthcoming AGM and Members Lunch is expected to attract a strong turnout in June, on the back of another influential year for the organisation.

PLASA's momentum is certainly growing: its membership base is expanding, its range of services is strengthening and its member networking events are increasing, making the AGM and Members Lunch an important event at which members can come together to discuss solutions and approaches to the current situation.

PLASA is highly active at an industry-level too: its political policy continues to give the entertainment and installation technology sectors a strong profile in Government circles and the organisation is about to announce the next stage in its skills strategy, focusing on the development of a portfolio of qualifications designed to enhance the skills-base of the sector.

It is also just a few months away from the la

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Belgium - ADB Lighting Technologies has launched the latest in its line-up of memory lighting control desks, the Domino series of theatre desks, following its successful premiere at the JTSE expo in France.

Designed to be flexible and intuitive for both professionals and novices to use, the Domino elegantly combines all the functions of a theatrical console, allowing fully automated control, required for theatre and Studio lighting, in a new lightweight ultra-modern casing whose compact footprint will readily fit into the tightest control rooms, says the company.

The four-strong series is available as Domino 24, 48, 48XT and 96XT versions.

Aimed squarely at the large mid-range controller market for theatre, medium to large venues, convention centres and more, a major feature of the Domino is a dedicated theatrical playback fader pair, along with a large number of physical su

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UK - Following the enormous success of the Chroma-Q Color Block LED fixture with rental companies and end users alike, the manufacturer has combined the product's core elements of modularity and versatility with new single colour RGBA optics, 530 lumens output (almost double the original model) and theatrical grade dimming to create the Color Block 2 fixture.

With its radically increased colour palette and high CRI (colour rendering index) of 90, the Color Block 2 fixture can create both vibrant, bold colours and subtle, theatrical hues, the manufacturer says. "Combined with its built-in variable colour temperature capability, even flesh tones look natural, satisfying all but the most critical eye".

The four large, camera-friendly LED cells offer performers less glare and provide single colour output, virtually eliminating the colour separation shadows normally synon

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USA - Clay Paky Alpha Beam 300 fixtures are currently on tour with AC/DC. Upstaging, Inc. supplied all lighting for the tour, which includes 48 Clay Paky Alpha Beam 300 fixtures, in addition to providing their Chicago facility to erect the entire rig in house for pre-programming. Lighting design was done by Patrick Woodroffe and Dave Hill. The design places the Alpha Beam 300s all over the stage, with 12 across the front of the stage, 12 on the backline and another 24 on the upstage truss.

Lighting director and co-designer Cosmo Wilson remarked, "We actually started out with 24 Alpha Beams, but were so blown away that we doubled them and now have 48. What is most impressive is the brightness. Also, I am a big ACL guy, and these are stunning for that purpose, the fact that I can make the beams tighter and smaller is excellent. I love that I can have gobos in a wash light! Th

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UK - PR Lighting has launched a new LED moving head wash light, the XLED 590. Using Osram's Diamond Dragon LED, one of the world's brightest single-chip SMT LEDs (offering up to 250 lumens), each head contains 90 high power 5W LEDs (30 x Red, 30 x Green, 30 x Blue). The average lamp life is 100,000 hours.

PR Lighting states that the light output closely resembles that of a conventional wash light containing a 1200W discharge lamp, with the advantage of excellent colour mixing and high uniformity of the white beam. The standard beam angle is 22° but 10° and 35° options are also provided.

The XLED 590 comes with ten preset fixed colours. Other features include: colour temperature linearly adjustable (3200°K-10000°K), with four preset fixed colour temperatures (3200K, 5600K, 7200K and 10000K); smooth dimmer; strobe from 1-25 fps; 540° pan, 270° tilt (8

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UAE - Dubai's latest mega-project, the Atlantis Hotel, hosted a lavish opening party in November. This one-night celebration for 2,000 elite VIP guests including actors, musicians and politicians, was set to be the most expensive private party ever staged. According to press reports, the cost was estimated at around $32 million (£16 million). The firework display was planned by Grucci's, which also organized the displays for the Beijing Olympics. Lighting Designer Raymond Thompson used a grandMA to run the show.

Multiple Clay Paky Alpha Spot HPE1200 and Alpha Wash 1200 moving lights, plus 150 ETC Source Fours were used for the light show. Syncrolites were also scattered around the hotel making it a light show to remember. A giant HD video projection sequence visualised the story of Atlantis, featuring the rising of the mythological city from the Arabian Gulf.

Cory Fitzge

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USA - Element Labs has appointed Steve Simard as sales director for North America. The appointment forms part of Element Labs' continued growth strategy. Simard brings to Element Labs over 10 years experience. Prior to joining Element Labs, he spent over 12 years refining his skills in the fields of display technology integration and project technology, working closely with retail developers, building owners, brands and advertising agencies alike.

A graduate of Kennedy Western University's business program, Simard consolidated his skills and industry expertise in various positions with technology firms such as Barco and Saco Smartvision. He will be based in Atlanta, Georgia.

(Jim Evans)

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UK - City Theatrical has provided more SHoW DMX equipment to specialist lighting contractor Howard Eaton Lighting for Cameron Mackintosh's new production of Oliver! now playing at The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in London's West End.

SHoW DMX is used on the production to provide DMX control to dimmers and smoke machines mounted on a large scenic flying piece, which would otherwise have entailed a complex and troublesome cable run to the already crowded theatre flying grid.

For many years, WDS Wireless Data System, SHoW DMX's forerunner, provided London's West End shows with wireless DMX, and the new technology of SHoW DMX is rapidly establishing itself in London, on Broadway, in Las Vegas, and in other venues around the world.

The production lighting designer for Oliver! is Paule Constable, and the senior production electrician is Gerry Amies. Lighting equipment

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Turkey - Thomas Cook's award-winning annual conference took place in Antalya, Turkey in December 2008. The two back to back conferences catered for over 2500 of Thomas Cook's managers from across the business, over a six-day period.Produced and staged by drpevents, part of the DRP Group, the conference included spectacular outdoor welcome evenings, a Strictly Come Dancing competition, two closing ceremonies featuring singer Candi Staton, and two prestigious gala dinners, which included award ceremonies.

The Strictly Come Dancing evening was one of the highlights of the conference as staff that were paired with professional dancers got the chance to compete with their colleagues from all over the business. A week of full auditions were staged at drp studios in the UK.

Ian Ruhback, senior technician from drpevents explained the lighting for the conference: "So

  1. Barnes Charity Ball for Under Tree Schools
  2. Martin LC Series backdrop for CNBC Arabia Studio
  3. LSC at the Australian War Memorial
  4. Robert Juliat lights New England Patriots Hall of Fame
  5. AC/DC gets charged up with grandMA
  6. Compulite's Vector Greens run Dancing on Ice
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