Hungary - Lightware Visual Engineering has announced the launch of Lightware Academy, its new free certified e-learning resource for students and professionals at every level who have a thirst in specialising in the AV market, and gaining or advancing their knowledge of the entire industry.
Based on Lightware’s core principles of openness and knowledge-sharing, Lightware Academy is open to everyone - customers or not - and provides industry-leading content curated by a breadth of seasoned professionals in the area.
Participants can enrol in more than 10 courses, organised into three core categories:
Traditional AV: Focused on the use of hardware components, such as audio and video cables, switchers, and matrixes, to transmit and switch audio and video signals between devices.
AV-over-IP: It involves the processes behind sending audio, video, and other si

The Netherlands - Obsidian Control Systems has announced that Controllux BV has been named the exclusive distributor of Obsidian products in the Netherlands. The agreement, which went into effect on 1 July, 2023, covers Obsidian’s full range of lighting control products, including the company’s growing range of Netron data distribution devices.
Founded in 1968, Controllux is a leading full-system integrator for professional lighting and operates in the key markets of theatre, broadcast & film, entertainment, and architectural. The company has grown over the years to add audio and architectural lighting to its portfolio, evolving into a one-stop-shop for system integration.
Controllux distributes a wide range of brands and is delighted to have added Obsidian Control products to its offerings. “As we’ve transformed from a sales company to a full support sys

UK - Sound Technology, UK distributor of Martin Professional, Robert Juliat and Macula Systems has announced the appointment of Sadie Naylor as key account manager in an expansion of the company’s Professional Lighting Division.
Sadie joins from Encore, where she began her career in 2008, gaining knowledge working in various departments before spending the last eight years in product sales and becoming product sales manager.
Sadie will be responsible for the management of key customer accounts within Sound Technology’s Lighting Division.
“I am super excited to be part of the team and getting the great lighting brands Sound Technology work with out there in front of more customers.” said Sadie.
Steve Fay, Sound Technology managing director comments: “We’re delighted to welcome Sadie to our brilliant lighting team. As we continue to grow our pres

Denmark - For this year's Smukfest, the Roxx Cluster B2 FC was used on the festival's main stage as a blinder.
The mood was high at Smukfest in Skanderborg earlier this month as 40,000 guests flooded the festival grounds to experience five days of performances by international and Danish artists on the five different stages - and the odd rain shower.
Nordic Rentals, who supplied lighting for the festival's main stage, Bøgescenen, chose to use 72 Roxx Cluster B2 full colour blinders, which generated a buzz on the main stage because of the endless possibilities the fixture offers lighting designers.
The Roxx Cluster blinder made its debut last year directly on three of the biggest festival stages, the Glastonbury Festival, Rock am Ring and Rock im Park and has since found its way to many of the biggest stages in the world. The fixture has become very popular all o

The Netherlands - The Billybird Park Dragon Kingdom is an amusement park in Reuver. Since it opened in 2013, the park has continued to grow and its latest attraction is the largest play castle in the Netherlands. Designed by Amusementprof, the castle is 15m high and features a lighting installation by Dynamic, Beeld, Licht & Geluid who used fixtures from Showtec.
The original Billybird Park began as Recreatieplas Hemelrijk back in 1986. Billybird Park Dragon Kingdom is the second of three Billybird parks that exist today, each of which is constantly being improved. Opened on the 30 April 2023, the new play castle at Billybird Park Dragon Kingdom is located on top of a hill and stands 15m tall.
The castle has various rooms, different obstacles to climb and features several slides, including one that descends 12m, watched over from the highest tower by a 10m long dra

USA - Designer Tyler is a fan of the Chauvet Professional Rogue R1 FX-B with its five individually controlled RGBW moving heads. He particularly likes the fixture’s infinite pan and tilt.
When lighting multi-platinum rockers Breaking Benjamin on their North American tour earlier this summer, Veneziano stopped himself from using this feature at points during the band’s 90-minute, 17-song set. “I love the infinite pan and tilt, but I didn’t want to over-use it and become predictable,” he explained. “My plan was to save theses looks for key moments to maximise their impact.”
There were plenty of such moments in the band’s performance, as they rocked the crowd with ‘their heart-shaking base, crunchy guitar riffs and thunderous percussion’. When they did, Veneziano was ready with his 12 Rogue R1 FX-B units, which, like the rest of the rig, was supplied

UK - PLASA Show once again returns to Olympia London to showcase the future of live entertainment technology. From 3-5 September, the expanded show will set the stage for 239 brands, 112 educational sessions, and the meeting of thousands of industry professionals. Free tickets are available until 31 August, after which the price will increase to £15, then £20 on the door.
Lighting professionals can look forward to meeting Artistic Licence, Astera, Ayrton, Chauvet Professional, Claypaky, Elation, ETC, GDS, GLP, MA Lighting, Martin, Robert Juliat, ROXX, SGM, TMB, Vari-Lite and more leading brands. Plus, headline sponsor Robe will run impressive live demonstrations on its stand throughout the show.
Pro audio professionals can connect with brands suc

UK - Ayrton will officially launch its new IP65-rated Argo 6 fixtures at the PLASA Show (3-5 September, Olympia London) on 5 September 2023. Argo 6 FX will be exhibited on Stand C11 by Ayrton’s exclusive UK distributor, Ambersphere Solutions, alongside a wealth of other innovative LED products from the Ayrton portfolio.
For the first time in its history, Ayrton is launching a weather-sealed effects luminaire that offers as much creative potential indoors as outdoors. "Argo 6 presents a minimalist design incorporating features for total protection against harsh weather with easier internal access," the company says.
A new composite alloy, reduction in thickness of the parts, an optimised cooling system, simplified lens guidance, and integration of low-density optical components, mean Ayrton has been able to reduce overall weight by 20%. Meanwhile, the placemen

UK - ETC returns to the PLASA Show with new seminars, state-of-the-art products and a games arcade area featuring the latest in lighting technology for visitors to explore.
This year, visitors to ETC's stand B29 will get a chance to experience industry leading technology in a whole new light. The Arcade will feature some of ETC’s newest lighting solutions as a part of a series of interactive games for attendees to enjoy. Visitors are invited to the booth to put their skills to the test in three different games - all whilst playing against the clock and in for a chance to win some swag!
During the three-day show, ETC product specialists will also present a series of seminars in the Seminar Theatre 1 - Lighting + Production Theatre. On Sunday 3 September from 13:00 - 13:45 BST, ETC’s senior product manager Sarah Clausen will present Hog 4 OS v4.0 - Hog’s Next Ch

USA - Bandit Lites has announced the hiring of Amy Kerestessy as the director of human resources. She will be responsible for implementing policy and procedures, onboarding new hires, managing employee engagement, assisting with record keeping as well as other duties.
Kerestessy initially began her career in nursing, working her way up to a Level 1 trauma nurse. She later transitioned to managing medical practices, pursued an education in business and business management and became certified through SHRM and Labour Law.
“I finally found what makes me happy,” shared Kerestessy. “I truly can help people in their lives, by assisting them with getting jobs, with issues at work, and even personal things that people entrust me with; that is life changing that I can help someone so deeply that it affects their whole life in a positive way! That is why I am in the HR f

UK - Robert Juliat will be exhibiting at PLASA 2023 with its exclusive distributor for the UK (England, Scotland and Wales), Sound Technology on stand C22.
The stand will feature Robert Juliat LED products, focusing on RJ’s award-winning Sully 4C profile and Fresnel fixtures and Tibo HE in the generic ranges, Dalis 862 variable white and Dalis 864 4-colour Footlights, and RJ Arthur LT 800W LED long-throw 4°-10° followspot. Robert Juliat’s real-time position-tracking system, SpotMe, will also be presented.
Sully 4C Profile (650SX 4C), which won the 2022 LDI Award for Best Debuting Product in the Lighting category, is a 4-colour (RGBLime), 200W LED profile that delivers perfect whites and high quality saturated and pastel colours and is also a swift and economic solution to convert RJ 600SX tungsten fixtures to LED.
Sully 4C Fresnel (315LF 4C) is a compact fi

UK - Obsidian Control Systems (Stand D50) will show a host of new innovations including the modular NX1 lighting console and latest ONYX software, as well as the world’s first IP65 data distribution range and other Netron data distribution devices.
The latest software expansion of the popular Onyx control platform will be available to view and test drive. Featuring NDI Video Input, Realtime audio analysis and Beat Sync, this updated version enhances workflow across Obsidian’s various console and PC solutions, such as the popular NX1 in combination with the NXP expansion wing and NXK portable keypad add-on.
Visitors will have a chance to demo the NX1, Obsidian’s scalable, full-featured lighting console that has propelled the Onyx platform's popularity to new heights. A compact, motorised fader wing, the NXP, as well as a small USB-powered control surface for ONYX

UK - Elation will present an exceptional line-up of new lighting tools at Olympia. Discover how Elation continues to push the boundaries of possibility in the world of entertainment lighting. Visitors to Elation Stand D50 will be some of the first in the UK to see the latest cutting-edge luminaires in the company’s Proteus, Fuze and KL lines, along with other innovative lighting solutions designed to elevate the live entertainment experience.
Highlights in the market-leading Proteus IP65 series include the new Proteus Radius, a high-intensity Beam FX fixture with solid state phosphor-converted light engine, and Proteus Odeon, a framing profile fixture with an industry-first completely variable CRI LED engine. Visitors will also be some of the first to see the Proteus Hybrid MAX, a compact IP65 hybrid fixture and the upgraded big-brother of Elation’s ground-breaking Prot

UK - “A picture without a frame is like a soul without a body,” wrote Vincent Van Gogh, who knew a thing or two about creating beautiful visuals with colour and motion. The team at Chauvet Professional readily embraces the philosophy of the impressionist, which is why they’ve built their innovation-rich PLASA London stand around the theme of Frame Your Stage, Bringing Immersion Into Frame.
Lighting designers who visit the company at Stand D10 will find an extensive array of new Chauvet Professional fixtures, along with ChamSys consoles, that will help them create compelling visual cores, which, after all, are the essence of framing, in their productions. Leading the way in this regard are additions to Chauvet Professional’s, wildly successful Maverick Storm series.
Occupying a key position on the stand will be the new Maverick Storm 4 Profile, a compact

South Africa - Johannesburg-based Norwood Productions has invested in some of Robe’s most compact fixture ranges to further the company’s growth - starting with LED Beam 100s and now also including LEDBeam 150s and LEDBeam 350s, with some Spikies on order.
The Robe purchases - eight of each fixture - are appropriate for the current size and scale of the events they are providing with technical production.
Norwood Productions is a relatively new business, founded five years ago by Chris Norwood who has previously worked in the industry for other companies. In this short time, the company survived through the pandemic, which also inspired new ideas and provided impetus to reach out in new directions. Currently, around 90% of their business is dedicated to delivering high quality corporate and industrial events, brand activations and product launches, with around 10%

Italy - Prolights products illuminated the Innamorato Tour of Blanco, the young artist riding high in the Italian music scene.
Following the success of the Blu Celeste Tour, boasting 35 sold-out dates, Blanco has once again astonished his fans with his inaugural stadium tour, securing his position as the youngest Italian artist to perform on these prestigious stages. The concerts took place at Rome's Olympic Stadium and Milan's San Siro Stadium, where the singer delivered an overwhelming performance, paying attention to every detail and presenting a setlist that encompassed the best of his repertoire, accompanied by a visually stunning scenography.
To ensure a captivating visual experience, the rental company Mister X Service employed 106 Astra Wash19PixIP and 138 Sunblast 3000FC Prolights fixtures to illuminate the stage. These fixtures orchestrated a sy

USA - Things never got “routine” for the Beartooth production crew this summer. The Loudwire and Metal Hammer award winners’ 37-city tour has included a wildly mixed bag of shows, as they’ve moved from headlining their own appearances, to supporting bands like Breaking Benjamin and Disturbed, with a healthy sprinkling of festivals thrown in.
“It was just kind of all over the place on this run,” said the band’s lighting designer Dan Michie. “This made it critical to have a floor package that was not only very versatile, but could also be set up and torn down fast.”
Michie got what he wanted, and more, with a versatile, easy-to-work-with rig from Squeek Lights that featured a collection of compact, but powerful Chauvet Professional fixtures. “The Squeek rig was so great for what we had to do,” he said. “It could be set up and torn down, and offsta

UK - Robe looks forward to the buzz and energy of another PLASA expo at Olympia where it will be launching three new products and debuting a new live performance concept on stands A70 & C28. Designed to create drama, excitement and anticipation, visitors will be drawn to the booths by Robe putting a real live production at the heart of the event.
Robe’s partner companies Anolis and Artistic Licence will be on adjacent stands and this area of the show floor will be a lively and interactive ‘takeover’ space where all are welcome to enjoy the tech, innovation and drama.
Products being launched at the show include:
iForte LTX WB is an ultimate long throw LED wash beam for all environments, developed for stadium shows, concerts and all events and spectaculars where serious intensity is needed over massive distances. The iForte LTX WB can create an imposin

USA - Indie folk rock band Dispatch is back touring with a lighting package from Bandit Lites. Comprised of Chadwick Stokes and Brad Corrigan, the Boston-based band were ready to release an album and tour when the COVID-19 pandemic happened. The band utilised the time to retool and deconstruct songs and released their eighth studio album Break Our Fall in August 2022.
They kicked off their summer tour with performances alongside the National Symphony orchestra, requiring lighting designer David Singleton of Datum Creative to engineer a design that could adapt to the special shows and additional festivals.
“The design came about from various conversations with the band and the band's management,” explained Singleton. “They love the look and feel of tungsten fixtures. I wanted a little more flexibility than just the tungsten look, so I went with fun unique

Germany - Situated between Cologne and Düsseldorf, the Monheim am Rhine community of under 50,000, bills itself as the “town for everyone” and backs up the claim by offering “a combination of natural beauty and urban sophistication, ancient ruins, and a thriving modern art scene”.
For three days this summer, the town’s commitment to diversity was on full display at the Monheim City Festival, a popular event that served up a spread of attractions, from art to interactive activities and, of course, a wide range of music on three stages.
At the open-air stage in the Gartzenweg, fans gathered until late in the evening to enjoy an array of performances representing different musical genres. The Stadtkapelle Monheim played pop, rock, and musical tunes. Air Flik and Micha Deutz rocked the turntables. DJ Fedde Le Grand, known for hits such as Let Me Think About I

Spain - The musical Los Chicos del Coro (The Choir Boys) production is based on the Oscar-winning film The Children of Monsieur Mathieu and premiered at the Teatro La Latina in Madrid in late 2022.
The multi-award-winning production unites renowned musical performers with an 80-member children's choir and celebrates the creative power of music. For the METjor award-winning lighting design, internationally renowned lighting designer Juanjo Llorens used Cameo moving lights from the Opus and Evos series.
The musical production directed by Juan Luis Iborra relates the contrast between the harsh realism of the dreary everyday life at the boarding school and the emotional power that arises from the friendship between the students and their music teacher. For Juanjo Llorens, the first scene of the musical sets the visual direction: "The boarding school

USA - With offices in Chicago, Nashville and Las Vegas, as a full-service provider OSA International carries a vast inventory of show production solutions.
One of the most recent acquisitions from its Las Vegas HQ has been the first tranche of 100 Fusion X-PAR 12Z, affectionately known as the ‘Oom-Par’ in recognition of its German manufacture. Powered by a 120W RGBL light source and Fresnel optic, other than its sheer power and colour palette the IP65-rated product has an 8.5° to 55° wide zoom.
According to OSA head of lighting design Duke Carlisle, aside from replacing old generic PARs in their inventory with modern LEDs it has already found favour as an installation item in a modern church and been deployed on a number of blue-chip corporate events.
“We didn’t want to do the whole retro-fit single colour and we had tried a few other options that didn

China - Lightware Visual Engineering has announced that it has entered into a partnership with Tico ZhiSheng Information Technology Co to further accelerate the company’s expanding business operations in China.
Tico ZhiSheng was established in 1994 and has grown impressively since, cementing a reputation across China as a product supplier and service provider of audio and video product system solutions, with a proven track record in integrating design consulting, equipment supply, after-sales debugging, and after-sales service. It has developed five national sales and service centres, with headquarters in Beijing and Foshan, branches in Shanghai and Guangzhou, and a joint branch and technology exchange centre in Chengdu.
"We are pleased to become a partner of Lightware in the Chinese market, responsible for the sales and promotion of Lightware's complete solutions,

UK - At this year's PLASA Show from 3-5 September in London, the Adam Hall Group will present the latest product highlights of its two brands Cameo and LD Systems on stand B13. The focus will be on the lighting solutions from Cameo, which has been nominated for one of the renowned PLASA Innovation Awards in the form of the new PixBar G2 IP65 LED Bar series.
In 2022, the Adam Hall Group's participation in the PLASA Show was all about MAILA - the ground-breaking Modular All-Round Intelligent Line-Array System from LD Systems. This year, the Adam Hall Group is turning the spotlight particularly on its Cameo lighting brand. In addition to the PixBar G2 series, visitors can look forward to the OTOS SP6 IP65 Spot Profile, the OPUS SP5+ Profile Moving Head with optimised LED engine, the compact AZOR S2 Spot Moving Head and the S2 IP65 LED Softlight Panel.
The Cameo Highlights

Latest Issue. . .