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Rigging / Staging

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UK - Star Events Group reports that Phil Broad, winner of several Rigger of the Year awards, is to relinquish his shares in Star Events Group and revert to self-employed status with immediate effect.

Broad was one of the founding partners of Star Rigging, which subsequently merged with Star Hire to form Star Events Group Ltd in 2003. Since then, he has been trying to balance the constant demand for his services at gigs with the increasing responsibility that came from running a division of the expanding Star Events Group. As there are not enough hours in the day to do both, he has opted to go back to working independently on his own projects, the company says.

Maddy Sheals, HR director for Star Events Group, told us: "It is clearly easier to find someone to manage a division of the company than to find another Phil Broad, and we'll be looking for a suitable manager in due

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UK - For the first time, a Stage Technologies' Illusionist control desk, designed specifically to make automation accessible for plays and small venues, has been used to automate a West End production. The new stage adaptation of Agatha Christie's legendary bestseller And Then There Were None used the new product to provide simple and cost-effective control for the Art Deco sets designed by Mark Thompson.

The show opened in the West End's Gielgud Theatre in October last year and runs into the middle of January. The tale of crime is told against changing scenes with lounge sofas, coffee tables, dining room and patio furniture moving on automated trucks, sliding quickly and smoothly into position to completely changing the setting for the drama.

Stage Technologies' Illusionist control desk has been installed in many fixed venues in the UK and America but this is the first

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Spain - Barcelona was the destination in November, for the team from scenic contractor Stage One, when production company, Crown Business Communications, brought them on board to build the set for Renault's Annual Dealer Conference 05.

Stage One's work included; building the core set for the main presentation area, masking flatage for the dining area and stage backing for a smaller presentation area.

Nick Murtagh designed the main set with a core emphasis on smooth, flowing lines, and Stage One was thus firstly tasked with constructing four juxtapositioned oval stages of varying heights, each carpeted in a different colour and with a painted facia. The company then built a series of white filled cloth flats, providing a backing for two rear projection screens, and a central logo panel.

The seamless nature of the set was emphasised as the central logo panel curved down

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UK - Arena Seating closed a successful year with over 100,000 people sitting on their seats at events through December. The milestone was crossed amidst an incredibly busy December with 100,003 people sitting on Arena Seating at events during the final month of the year. The range of events highlighted the diversity of Arena's products and logistical expertise.

In December, Arena Seating's well known red tip-up seats accommodated music audiences at the last of the shows at the temporary Wembley Arena Pavilion whilst fans also enjoyed Rod Stewart, The Foo Fighters, Coldplay and Duran Duran at the series of sold-out concerts at Earls Court.

Nearly 20,000 seats were supplied to a festival of Islam at and several school Christmas concerts and Christian celebrations of Christmas also employed Arena Seating. On the sporting front, boxing was the order of the day at ExCeL where 13,50

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UK - Appointed by Jack Morton Worldwide, Summit Steel supplied eight of their 10m high SmarTmasts for London's "Heroes" New Year's Eve event staged along the Thames.

The SmarTmasts were used to hang seven V-DOSC and two dv-dosc cabinet line arrays supplied by Delta Sound. These were strategically placed along the Victoria Embankment in a sound scheme, designed for Jack Morton by Jim Lambert of Delta Sound, and used to amplify the chimes of Big Ben above the excited hubbub of the crowd as the 60 second pre-midnight countdown began. The PA was also used to amplify pre-show music and announcements before the spectacular fireworks, lighting, and projection kicked off on the stroke of midnight.

Summit's SmarTmasts are one of the most popularly used event PA mast structures in the UK. Delta specified SmarTmasts because they offer the most versatile solution to meet the log

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UK - When the prestigious Radley College embarked upon a major project to develop a new theatre, they planned a blend of the traditional and modern; a proscenium arch stage and orchestra pit, with the added versatility of a demountable stage extension/pit infill. After seeing Maltbury's work at nearby Abingdon School, Radley's bursar, Richard Beauchamp, invited Maltbury to propose a solution.

The result was an orchestra pit that could be used to house extra seating tiers, or be filled out with decks and used as a stage extension. Early consultation between Maltbury, the school and the contractors, allowed vital decisions to be made and acted upon, say Maltbury, who advised that a series of bespoke Metrodeck units were the ideal solution to the theatre's needs. Sets of legs allowed the decks to be taken to different levels, giving the traditional theatre greater versatility. A be

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Sweden - Slingco has installed a CABLEnet tensioned wire grid system into the main auditorium at Helsingborg Theatre in Sweden - giving safe and flexible access to the overstage/above auditorium roof space. It's the first tensioned wire grid in Sweden.

Helsingborg was also the first town in Sweden to open a municipal theatre in 1921. Originally housed in a theatre built in 1877, its current building opened in 1976. Helsingborg Theatre is one of the leading producing and receiving houses in the country.

Rochdale-based Slingco - developers of CABLEnet, the leading product in its genre - was visited by architects Peder Lindbom and Torsten Nobling of Stockholm-based AIX Architects at the PLASA Show in 2004. The pair were leading a major refurbishment programme for the theatre, and were very interested in utilising the CABLEnet technology.

Discussions started in early 2005. Sling

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Tomcat went "a little bit country" with the announcement of its new Nashville office, due to open in 2006, headed up by Max Wilson. Combined with the company's depot at United Staging in Connecticut, the Nashville office will enable the company to get closer to its customers, says president Mitch Clark.

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Total Structures' CFO Peter Johns was on good form at LDI. Following a tough time for the company, business is on the up again, and at the time of the show, the company was undertaking a major motor show build for Ford at the Cobo Hall in Detroit which, incredibly, is the single biggest job TS has ever done. Johns also reported that Kleege Industries has bought its fourth roof system from the company, which it will be using for the Coachella Festival in California. Other big projects for the company recently have included the provision of towers and a massive 8" steel cable spanning 210ft - all to suspend a small speaker cluster above an amphitheatre - at the Getty Villa in Malibu . . .

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Staging Dimensions showed its Pixel Panels, modular interlocking deck pieces with programmable LED technology. The company now also handles the Soft-LED curtain from Main Light Industries.

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As we reported in the news last month, Stage Technologies' main announcement at LDI was the opening of a permanent US office in Las Vegas, to be headed by Kevin Taylor. Having contributed extensive stage automation expertise to the major Cirque du Soleil show KA at the MGM Grand (see L&SI May 2005), and with other major projects ongoing, the US office is a timely move for the company. John Hastie commented that the US office is also involved in some film work (the UK office has too - the latest Harry Potter movie being an example). As to LDI, 'pretty quiet' was the verdict.

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XLNT gave the official US debut of its Cyberhoist/InMotion 3D motion control system, winning LDI's Rigging Product of the Year Award in the process to add to its PLASA Award for Innovation, won in 2004. The system's two main elements are the InMotion 3D programming and control software and an unlimited number of CyberHoist intelligent motors. The dedicated DataMotion Ethernet network and PowerMotion power distribution system complete the package.

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Show Distribution revealed that it has supplied to Tait Towers the biggest Chainmaster Variolift system in the world, for the current Jon Bon Jovi tour. The company also has gear out with the Foo Fighters (due to be covered in depth in L&SI, February 2006) and other music acts.

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Columbus McKinnon had its new manual inverted chain hoist, the Hurricane. Available in one-ton capacities, the Hurricane's hand wheel cover rotates 360° for hoist operation in any direction. Also new from CM was the ProCommander Control System, which offers motion control of electric chain hoists, with up to 96 motors, which can be controlled singularly or simultaneously.

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On the Rose Brand stand, UK manufacturer Triple E showed 3Way, aimed at venues with lower budgets but with the requirement for a robust, medium-duty track, fulfilling the need for an easy-to-install, simple-to-operate system. Rose Brand also showed Crystal fabric sculptures, and Glassless Mirror, made of a super-reflective film stretched over a sturdy, lightweight aluminum frame.

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James Thomas showed PixelArc, a new series of self-contained LED fixtures; the PixelEight, an LED version of the classic Thomas eight-lite blinder; and holographic film for beam shaping and diffusion for all PixelRange products.

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Harlequin Floors showed Hi-Shine, its high-gloss, wet-look floor for various applications, especially those that require quick load-ins and breakdowns.

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UK - The world-renowned Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) will celebrate its tenth anniversary next week, with a joint event that will also launch Liverpool Performs 2006 - the fourth Capital of Culture themed year.

On Monday 30 January - 10 years to the day since LIPA's inauguration - nearly 250 LIPA students and graduates will take part in a gala performance at Liverpool's Philharmonic Hall.The performance will also herald the official launch of Liverpool Performs 2006 - a 12-month celebration of Liverpool's outstanding track record in the arts, sport and business - the latest in a series of themed years leading up to European Capital of Culture in 2008.

LIPA itself is one of the city's best known success stories, committed to its aim of providing high-quality teaching to prepare students for sustained careers in the industry, either as performers

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USA - PRG is pleased to announce that Tim Brennan has re-joined its operations in Las Vegas as sales and customer development executive. Brennan is tapped to develop lighting and theatrical solutions for customers in a variety of markets including theatre, television, concert touring, clubs, and themed environments.

"We're delighted that Tim has returned to PRG," says Jere Harris, PRG's chairman and CEO. "With a wealth of industry experience and resources from his days at Cinema Services and Martin Professional, we look forward to having him continue expanding PRG's business in one of our fastest growing geographical markets."

Brennan got an early start in his entertainment career by accompanying his father, Jim Brennan, founder of Cinema Services, to visit clients at television events and theatres. Before moving to Martin Professional where he was director

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Czech Republic - Robe Show Lighting has launched a range of MediaSpinner products. Combining lateral thinking and practical engineering, the MediaSpinners are designed and built to display and rotate banners, screens, flags and assorted other media. Applications include exhibitions, conferences, shows, product launches, corporate events, parties, promotions and any event requiring branding to be displayed in an eye-catching way.

The units are fully DMX controllable and can be run from any lighting desk, or in stand-alone mode. A 4-digit LED display on the base enables onboard programming. Master/slave operation using a serial cable is another simple control option, running multiple fixtures through one unit.

Variable speed rotation in both directions is possible, and smooth and precise movement is guaranteed with the use of 16-bit DMX. A virtually silent cooling system makes R

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UK - Software provider Stardraw.com have announced that support for Mode Lighting (UK) Ltd's Evolution system of architectural lighting control products has been incorporated into their ground-breaking new application, Stardraw Control.

Mode Lighting Ltd is part of the Mode Group of companies dedicated to the design and manufacture of electronic products principally for the lighting industry, including architectural dimming systems, electronic transformers for low voltage lighting, electronic convertors for neon and cold cathode lighting, colour-changing lighting and control systems and LED lighting systems.

Stardraw Control is a software-based application designed expressly to control systems that contain diverse products. It generates stand-alone, customized control programs that can manage and monitor any type of addressable equipment from any manufacturer using any protoco

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UK - Summit Steel is once again supplying rigging and associated support services for the Cirque du Soleil production of Alegria at the Royal Albert Hall.

It's the sixth Cirque production that Summit has put into the venue, and Alegria was also the first Cirque production which Summit were involved with in the central London venue, back in 1998.

The 2006 project involved the preparation of 104 points of rigging, for which Summit has supplied 40 of their own Lodestar motors in addition to using the house hoists.

Summit also designed a completely new rigging infrastructure, involving the installation of nearly 400m of Summit's James Thomas Supertruss. This was needed for Cirque to produce their daring, highly acrobatic production - normally staged in their own purpose-built big top - into a completely new and different venue. The Albert Hall is a challenging venu

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UK - Komedia is Brighton's leading live entertainment venue, weekly playing host to a huge variety of musicians, comedians and other performers. Because of the theatre's demanding and varied schedule, it is crucial that the interior of the venue be versatile and robust. The entire set up regularly needs a complete change around in a matter of hours.

In 2003, Maltbury supplied Komedia with an initial package of Metrodeck when the venue underwent a major overhaul. Because of the theatre's schedule, it truly puts Maltbury's popular staging system to the test. The system is regularly moved around to accommodate the widely differing performances taking place: bands such as Supergrass and The Tiger Lillies, theatre productions for all ages, poetry and stand-up. The Metrodeck system has made this task possible.

Komedia's technical manager Chris Williams says: "This is a very ver

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The PLASA Show has today launched its 2006 website. The new site carries extensive information on PLASA06, which will bring the industry live to Earls Court 1 in central London between 10-13 September 2006.The striking new website has been designed to help exhibitors and visitors quickly access everything they need to know about the show. It features an easy-to-use menu system, quick links to essential information such as the exhibitor list and floorplan and a straightforward online registration area where visitors can pre-book their tickets at the reduced rate of £9.00 - a saving of 50% on the on-the-door price of £18.00.Further essential information will be added in the coming months, including details of the seminar programme and Innovation Awards, exhibitor and visitor events, the latest technologies to be previewed and any further new initiatives being introduced at PLAS
  1. Halls hoists at seaside centre
  2. J&C Joel goes to Yehudi Menuhin School
  3. AMX adds three controllers
  4. Wireless-DMX at Nobel Prize Awards
  5. Visual Terrain Produces Organ Concert
  6. State Automation: lighting and service
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