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Rigging / Staging

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France - Kinesys' new K2 automation control system was used to fly an impressive 16 metre high spiral staircase reveal, which was the centrepiece for Karl Lagerfeld's highly visual Ice Princesses show for Chanel during Paris Fashion Week. This was staged in the elegant, newly renovated Grand Palais, just off the Champs Elysees.

Flemish rental company EML supplied sound, lighting and rigging equipment for the event which was production managed by Alain Van Isacker. The stage was a Stageco structure and the show's technical aspects - including the staircase - was conceived by Hans Willems of Stageco. The staircase was constructed by French company Devineau, with the truss tower and all the load bearing mechanical elements supplied by Stageco

The highly versatile K2 system - which EML purchased last year and debuted on the Clouseau show in Antwerp (see the January i

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UK - The Theatrical Guild (TTG) is delighted to announce that it is exhibiting for the second year running at the forthcoming ABTT Theatre Show 14th-15th June 2006.

The Theatrical Guild is the only registered charity in the UK providing help and support to anyone who works or has worked Backstage or Front of House, be it general staff or management.

Offering an extremely valuable service, TTG gives financial aid to those who are unable to work due to illness, accidents or to those who have retired.

Karen Nichols, Chief Administrator, explained: "We found exhibiting at The ABTT Theatre Show enormously worthwhile. It gave us the opportunity to meet with theatre professionals from around the country. It was invaluable meeting face to face and being able to let them know that The Theatrical Guild exists and explain how our charity can make a dramatic difference should they

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UK - Maltbury Staging has supplied many theatres, schools and numerous other performing arts venues in its history, but it is not very often that a martial arts federation approaches with a staging request.

Peter Chin, of The International Tang Soo Do Federation came to Maltbury with a request for some staging for the upcoming World Tang Soo Do Championship. He wanted to use the staging as a platform for the judges, and to display awards. It was also important that the staging be versatile enough to use in other situations, and be able to be stored easily when not in use. The staging was needed in a hurry as the championship was coming up fast.

Maltbury supplied the federation with a number of Steeldeck sections so that they could construct a presentation area. Peter Chin says: "The staging supplied to the International Tang Soo Do Federation was excellent, very versatile

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UK / USA - Cirque du Soleil has always known how to pull a crowd but never before has the company gone to such remarkable lengths as for the creation of KÀ. The World premiere at the Las Vegas MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in February 2005 grabbed everyone's attention with its stunning automated sets, special effects, elaborate choreography and performer flying.

Now, one year on, the show is still amazing its audiences. KÀ is the first show of its kind to successfully integrate advanced technologies seamlessly into a show on such a grand scale. Stage Technologies' Nomad console controls over 200-axes of automation that are an integral part of the show. The automation was incorporated so successfully that Cirque has developed new creative applications that have never before been seen in live entertainment.

Cirque du Soleil is renowned for the energy and skill of its

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UK - SPS has recently adopted an account-team organisational structure. "In doing this, it is our goal to better support our clients; to work more efficiently; and to improve the way we communicate," said MD Robin Coles.

The new structure will see an account director head-up each account team - supported by a team of account managers, project managers and technical crew. The teams are responsible for a shortlist of key clients with whom close working relationships can be developed and built upon. Closer working relationships will allow teams to better anticipate client needs, to be proactive, and to provide cost effective, intelligent solutions.

"It's a very positive, customer focussed move that will also benefit all of our people. Everyone is very excited about the changes to our way of working, and the advantages it offers at many levels," said Coles.

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UK - Lift Turn Move has appointed Dan Holme as external sales manager. Holme comes onboard LTM's steadily growing sales team, working alongside John Jones, David King, Paul Hadfield and Jenny Hobday.

Holme is already knowledgeable in the field of rigging, having chalked up three-and-a-half years at Tomcat UK. He brings a wealth of knowledge in this specialist area to LTM, plus a fresh outlook and plenty of enthusiasm. LTM's John Jones said: "We weren't in the market for another staff member, but when Dan became available we moved swiftly to appoint him. Experience of this calibre doesn't come along that often!"

Holme is now on a crash revision course in LTM's office and engineering department, getting up to speed with the current developments, before stepping out to meet the public. His main responsibilities will be on the road promoting the products and giving great

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UK - The Arena Group has launched Arena Scaffolding. The new division will compliment the other areas of the company, comprising Arena Seating, Arena Structures, Arena Scene and Arena Events, but will operate as an independent division supplying specialist event scaffolding.

Working with other Arena Group companies, Arena Scaffolding has already been awarded prestigious contracts to build substructures for the 2006 Ryder Cup at the K Club in Ireland, and will be providing the mile markers for this April's London Marathon. The company has also won a five-year contract for CTV to supply the media and camera towers at sports events throughout Europe.

Scaffolding, whilst not particularly glamorous, is an intrinsic part of the infrastructure of a huge number of modern event sites. Between them Arena Structures, Arena Seating and Arena Scene have a vast range of experience and exper

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UK - The Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA) has launched the first in a new suite of financial services designed to help member companies protect themselves against the risk of bad debts and to assist them in trading competitively in the growing global market.

The three new services - free credit checks, credit insurance facilities and a debt collection service - have been launched to minimise the risks involved in trading with particular customers and enable members to make more informed decisions.

PLASA Members can now request free credit checks on all UK companies. The service, provided by CreditSafe, allows members to request Reports on clients or business contacts. Updated on a daily basis, the Reports include financial information, key ratios, trend analysis, directors' details, payment record and a rating system classifying companies on a scale from 0 t

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UK - Cambridgeshire based flightcase manufacturer 5 Star launches its new look website for 2006, including a host of additional and updated features. The re-design has been undertaken in-house by 5 Star's technical and marketing departments, underlining the company's commitment to keeping key functions and services internal.

The Home page features colourful, easy to navigate links, which are regularly updated and have been designed to guide browsers quickly to the relevant sections of the site.5 Star's continued investment and innovative qualities are highlighted, including a new 'Technology' section, added to detail 5 Star's recently installed Solid Edge software, a world renowned 3D design, assembly and visualisation tool of which 5 Star has three 'seats'. Solid Edge is now used in production as well as providing clients with accurate virtual models of the proposed case.

The

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USA - Floating above a sea of trade show booths, Chaparral's 16' circular trussing logo caught visitors' attention as they entered the 65th Miami International Boat Show. The giant frame that carried the name of the leading boat manufacturer was part of a Global Truss America trade show booth package that Chaparral Boats purchased especially for the Miami Boat Show held Feb. 16-20 at the Miami Beach Convention Centre.

As large as a basketball court, Chaparral's 55' x 75' booth featured eight 20' columns of Global Truss Square 12" Trussing that supported a horizontal truss beam set at 10' high, which ran around the booth's perimeter. The sleek, industrial-looking display supported the lighting system that showcased eight recreational boats ranging in length from 18' to 31' displayed by Chaparral Boats at the show.

Springtree Media Group, the company that designed and const

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UK - For Stage Technologies 'education' is a key word. The international automation providers has worked with further education colleges and universities over a number of years to provide valuable training into the engineering and control technologies required for live entertainment performances.

Last month alone Stage Technologies worked with the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, the Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama and the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, visiting their departments to give lectures and show them behind the scenes at the Royal Opera House and the Prince Edward Theatre.

Martin Hazlewood, lecturer at the Guildhall, comments: "Stage Technologies has been instrumental in providing this facility to enhance the student's knowledge and understanding of automation systems. Our program has been designed to expand and take the students forward into the comp

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UK - Arena Structures, part of the Arena Group, installed its Tensioned Fabric Structure (TFS) at Wembley Arena this year, to act as a temporary concert venue during the Wembley Arena refurbishment.

The 10,000-seater semi-permanent venue, designed and built by Arena Structures to Wembley's specifications was the first of its kind built in the UK. The venue had to comply with stringent permanent building regulations in order to deliver a temporary facility with the feel of a permanent venue, which could act as a music arena.

The TFS was adapted to ensure that all of the facilities required to host concerts were available, with Arena Structures incorporating additional structures alongside the main TFS to house toilets, concessions, bars and other concert facilities. All of these structures were placed on a specially designed platform, constructed using 18 miles of scaffolding.<

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UK - Slingco has installed five CABLEnet tensioned wire grid frames, each measuring 3m x 11m, into the newly refurbished Capel Soar (Soar Ffrwdamos) multi-purpose arts, entertainment and learning space at Tonypandy in the heart of the Welsh Valleys.

The project has been co-ordinated by Valley's Kids, a local charity working with children and young people in the area. The £2.4 million refurbishment of Capel Soar is a massive boost to Valley's Kids and a major step forward in offering interactive environments for learning, working and experiencing a range of activities from football and theatre to dance, cinema and everything in between.

Theatre Technical Consultant Iain Hill from Illusion International originally thought the roof aperture would be ideally suited to a CABLEnet system and put the idea forward. He's been involved with Valley's Kids for many years, and worked

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UK - J&C Joel has designed and installed a 27 way manual purchase counterweight system for the main auditorium at the new Leeds Carriage Works Theatre.

Incorporating the historic structure of an early Victorian carriage works and old Electric Press Building, the new venue is part of a £12 million commercial development of bars, cafés and restaurants grouped around a glass-roofed courtyard. Replacing the existing Leeds Civic Theatre, The Carriage Works offers two performance spaces - the 350 seat main auditorium and a Studio Theatre - in addition rehearsal and conference/meeting facilities.

The project was managed for J&C Joel by Tony Griffiths, who comments: "J+C Joel were proud to play an active role in such a prestige city centre project."

J+C Joel manufactured and installed a full stage depth counterweight wall frame accommodating up to 37 counterwe

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UK- The Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA) has lent its name to a lobbying campaign intended to encourage the Government to rethink its proposals to introduce a 10% tax on all UK hotel bills. The proposal - part of a wider Government tax review conducted by the Lyons Inquiry - recommends that a 10% tax per night is added to the current 17.5% VAT - which means that the UK would effectively become the highest taxed destination in Europe.

PLASA believes that the proposed tourist tax (dubbed the 'bed' tax) will hit this industry from both sides: not only will it put yet another financial burden on businesses in the entertainment, event and installation sectors where business-related travel accounts for a large part of their ongoing overheads, but it will almost certainly affect tourism revenues, which directly influence the financial performance of this industry.

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UK - Blackout, specialists in rigging and drapes, worked alongside production designer, Bill Laslett and set company, Atlantic Enterprise Ltd, to create a spectacular and glamorous awards night for The Orange British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs).

Laslett explains: "Within the confines of the relatively small art deco Odeon cinema, I felt it important to produce a concept that would be in sympathy with and complement the existing architecture. The inclusion of a three dimensional steel framed voile spiral extending from within the confines of the stage out into the auditorium united both areas and at the same time gave the event greater scale and presence. With the addition of an internally lit curved staircase and a four metre bronze Bafta mask backed also with a combination of voile and mirrored panels the overall effect produced a very exiting and glamorous result.

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Greece - Summit Steel supplied all rigging, trussing, motors and draping for a massive gala dinner and awards event in Athens for the annual European sales meeting (ESM) of a leading US-based medical device company. It involved the widest ground support structure - at 28 metres - that Summit has constructed to date.

The evening was staged in the Olympic Tae-Kwon-Do stadium on the outskirts of the city, between Athens and the port of Piraeus and was attended by 1,300 guests. The ground-supported trussing grid was used for rigging all stage lighting, video and audio equipment for the dinner and preceding presentation. The low structural weight loadings of the building ruled out flying, so a four legged ground support system was used, which had to be very wide to ensure that the two downstage legs didn't interfere with sightlines to the letter-box style set.

To achieve the adequa

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USA - Tomcat USA celebrated 14 years of in depth industry training courses with another successful Hoist and Rigging Workshop in Midland, Texas. Top-notch instructors and 74 industry professional participants from all over the United States, Canada, and the UK, attended the four day workshop. This year also marked the second annual Advanced Workshop with 13 participants from around the US.

Don Dimitroff of Columbus McKinnon coached participants through the Lodestar electric chain hoist. Rocky Paulson, recently retired president of Stage Rigging Inc, stressed safe rigging techniques, while Morgan Neff of Mine Safety Appliances gave instruction on proper use of fall protection equipment. Training was rounded out by Keith Bohn's truss class. The Tomcat Design Manager course covered truss design, use and theory.

Participants received four days of power-packed, informative classes

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UK - The Technical and Production Arts department at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow will hold its Graduate Exhibition and Trade Show on 22-23 March 2006. The event highlights the latest in creative and technical thinking in the entertainment and event technology world.

A free seminar programme runs across both days, with a range of sessions including an introduction to moving lights, information on the Bristol paint range and its use across film, television and theatre, a glimpse into the world of LED lighting, a history of dimmers, how to become a lighting designer and the use and abuse of chain hoists. Visitors will also be able to learn more about the latest technologies and their applications, and take the chance to have some focused discussions in a relaxed environment.

The work of students graduating from the RSAMD's BA Technical and Productions

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Sweden - Starlight AB, one of the largest technology and service providers in the Swedish music and stage industry, has joined forces with United Audio AB, one of Sweden's leading pro audio rental companies. The two companies will start cooperating immediately, making up what it says is "the first true total service provider for the Swedish entertainment and events industry".

The company now controls the greatest resource available in Scandinavia, consisting of staff, stages, audio, lighting, and transportation services for the music industry, and will soon be able to compete on the European market while maintaining a strong local prescence. United Audio / Starlight will remain represented throughout Sweden, with offices in Stockholm, Avesta, Gothenburg, and Malmo. "The new, nationally available equipment resource, combined with the high level of competence that h

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UK - The Riccallish Allsorts, a community theatre group from Riccall, Yorkshire, began planning their 2005 Christmas pantomime early in October. An important feature was to be the new stage, for which a grant had been provided. Value for money was an obvious factor in finding the ideal company to provide the equipment. Ken Davison, of the Allsorts, requested a quote from Maltbury.

As staging requests go, this one was fairly simple. A stage was needed that could be easily assembled, but also give a professional appearance. Metrodeck was the perfect system to replace their ageing chipboard stage. Affordable and simple, the Metrodeck could be quickly assembled by any member of the group to create a professional stage, and was also easy and quick to store.

The staging provided was used in conjunction with a trussing structure and drapes to create a self-sufficient proscenium-arch

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USA - Tomcat USA is providing equipment for the long-awaited Soul 2 Soul II tour starring country music's power couple, Faith Hill and Tim McGraw. The 70-date tour kicks off in Columbus, Ohio on 21 April, 2006. The concerts will feature solo performances by Hill and McGraw, as well as a special set of duets - all performed while surrounded by a number of custom products from Tomcat USA.

The set features truss circles, including one 50ft OD medium duty circle, one 19.5ft OD medium duty circle plus one 16ft OD light duty circle. Tomcat also provided eight custom variable TAB connections for these circles and 32 custom motor pick-up brackets will help make a number of other lighting effects around those circles possible.

Speaking of lighting effects, eight custom 4ft x 6ft light frame pods will provide even more visual impact. These pods were manufactured with special tran

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UK - Slingco, the UK representative for US manufacturer Vortek's award winning rigging system, announces the UK launch of the new Vortek Point Hoist module.

The unique and versatile Vortek Point is lightweight, self contained, portable and rugged, and ideal for theatrical and entertainment type applications, says the company.

Features include a speed and lifting capacity of 0 - 180 ft/min at up to 1200 lbs of lifting capacity or 0 - 90 ft/min at up to 1400 lbs of lifting capacity - with additional load/speed combinations available. A standard travel distance (for vertical and horizontal mounts) of 65 and 100 ft is available, and the wire rope is available in both 3/16" (5 mm) & 1/4" (6 mm) gauges.

Vortek Point Hoist modules can be attached to a single I-beam (replacing chain hoists), or wheeled to a position on the grid, with dual zero fleet angle lift lines droppi

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UK - West Kirk Church, of Helensburgh, Scotland, is home to the Helensburgh Oratorio Choir. In the past, the choir made do with an old system of wooden blocks in the church as their performance area. In 2003, the chairman of the choir, Richard Hassall, decided that it was time for a new stage.

Initially, Maltbury MD Philip Sparkes visited the church to assess the needs of the choir. Tiers were required, but they would have to fit neatly between the organ and choir stalls and take account of a marble altar platform at the back. The stage would also need to store compactly, as it would have to be kept in an outhouse behind the church when not in use. The requirements were very precise.

Frequent communication over two years produced a customised Metrodeck stage. The resulting tiers fit perfectly between the existing fixtures in the church, creating a fully demountable performance

  1. Chitty's UK road trip with Stage Technologies!
  2. 5 Star supplies LED Cases for RML
  3. GearSource and Martin reach agreement
  4. In 'Bed' for a party
  5. Flying carpets in Bahrain
  6. Pharos in control at Tabard Square
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