Dubai World Cup

The UAE’s live events calendar can be difficult to predict, with shows often springing up with very little notice. However, a few dates are set in stone every year and always bring with them the kind of large-scale production that the country has become synonymous with. One such occasion is the Dubai World Cup, which has been running annually at Meydan Racecourse since 1996 and has played host to some of Dubai’s most spectacular closing ceremonies over the years.

With the event held at the same venue each year, the main challenge for those tasked with producing it has always been coming up with something original and creative.

Ta king on that challenge for 2023 was Artists In Motion (AIM), whose Project Director, Natalie Grassick, described the “blank canvas” brief from Dubai Racing Club (DRC). “The brief was extremely open-ended,” she recalled. “We were asked to create something spectacular, energetic and – most importantly – something that had never been seen before.”

AI M was awarded the project after the company’s eye-catching work on Expo 2020’s iconic centrepiece, Al Wasl Plaza. “It was important for the client that we not only had representation here in the region but also had direct experience of high-profile ceremonystyle work,” explained AIM founder and Head of Creative, Richard Lindsay. “Expo 2020 gave us a great platform and DRC was one of a few clients who came to us off the back of it. Good work leads to good work.”

The bold Dubai World Cup concept featured a choreographed display of motor gliders performing aerial acrobatics and flying in formation around 2,000 drones, all amid an LED laser light show and fireworks, synchronised to a rousing original soundtrack. Once the creative was signed off, the AIM team immediately set about assembling a line-up of suppliers who could come together to meet the audacious brief. “You’ve got to rely on your experience and your team,” Lindsay said. “If you’ve got the right people involved, it always builds its own momentum.”

AI M’s chosen suppliers included: AeroSPARX, Al Laith, ARLD, Byrne Equipment Rental, Creative Technology Middle East (CTME), Dronisos, EFM Global Logistics, Flash Art, Gulf Crewing Company, JAM Event Services, Unified International, Unusual Rigging and Engineering, and Wicked Tents.

Reflecting on the creative concept, Lindsay explained how his top priority was to create a “connected canvas” where each element was an integrated part of a larger scene, rather than a series of disparate features.

“It’s about understanding the audience and orchestrating a show that works completely in sync, with it being obvious where to look from start to finish,” he commented. “Meydan is a unique challenge because it’s got such a long audience span and it’s important to fill the space while keeping the budget under control,” he said.

Detailed previsualisations in Unreal Engine were vital not only in helping all the various suppliers get on the same page and push the concept forward, but also in reassuring and managing the expectations of the client.

“We go to a lot of trouble visualising all our shows to a point where they are almost an exact replica,” Lindsay revealed. “When you’ve got a project like this with a lot of elements and disciplines from all over the world trying to come together in a short amount of time, the most powerful thing we can do is put together a visualisation. Unreal Engine is a great tool for both the client and the team working on the project.”

‘We needed something bigger’

Measuring in at around 100m long, the giant in-house LED screen that illuminates the home straight at Meydan Racecourse has been central to many a Dubai World Cup over the years. However, it soon became apparent in the planning phase that it would be necessary to augment the existing setup, so it wasn’t swallowed up by the sheer size of the incoming production. “It’s a very large screen, but relative to the show we were planning, we needed something bigger,” Lindsay recalled. CTME provided a full turnkey solution, including bespoke LED screens, content management, fully featured lighting, as well as a largeformat PA, audio distribution and an extensive communications package.

Th e video delivery comprised 1,400 sq m of outdoor INFiLED LED, 10 disguise media servers for content playback displaying a massive 68 million pixels and in-camera augmented reality for the closing ceremony broadcast, with three Barco E2 systems linked and used for screen management and switching.

Th e company also provided a six-camera PPU system, with 30 video engineers coming together to deliver the event. “Complexity and scale when working on projects of this size is always a challenge as there are so many companies and broadcasters involved – it’s a massive jigsaw being put together,” said CTME’s Head of Video, Tom Stocks. “It’s incredible to work with some of the most talented people in the industry.”

The biggest challenge of creating a larger canvas was that it had to be done without impacting on the day’s racing. AIM Executive Producer, Liz Goodyer, explained the brief: “With the audience onsite during the day, it was important to our client to not have the visual of intrusive structures around the racecourse,” she said. “It was vital to maintain a clear line of sight for the race caller from the main stand to the far side of the track. This meant the screen had to be held in a low position during the day and only reveal its full height just prior to the ceremony.”

AI M called on Unusual Rigging and Engineering to provide structure and rigging to support the main screen and lighting fixtures. Richard Hoare, Project Manager at Unusual, detailed how his team met the brief. “We had four engineers working full time to devise a solution that would support, lift and lower an 18-tonne LED screen, measuring 20m by 13m, for the show’s content,” he described.

“The primary header truss was Double TT Eurotruss, which sat upon the three 30m towers with 260 tonnes of ballast in total. We also used 18 two-tonne Kinesys hoists with Libra 4.7-tonne load cells controlled via Vector and worked with the screen supplier to ensure the screen could be installed quickly and safely.”

Hoare underlined the importance of safety not just in the design of the support system but also the methodology of how the system was built. “We knew from the start that we needed to incorporate load monitoring into the automation solution and have a design that allowed us to build and test nearly all the major components at ground level before being craned into location,” he stated. “To restrain the screen horizontally for wind loading, we installed a 20m by 13m truss grid that was then attached back to the three towers with six custom-designed trolleys that allowed for vertical movement while maintaining our 25m/s operational wind speed.”

Unusual was also responsible for the lifting process for a further four side screens. “Due to the clean look required by the client, the option to use a header bar or normal hoist for lifting was ruled out and therefore all the four screens needed to be ground stacked,” Hoare explained.

“This is where we were brought in – to design, supply and oversee the craning solution and reduce the installation period as much as possible,” he added. “Working with CTME, we devised a system that would allow for 3m by 10m screen sections to be built on the ground quickly with a normal header bar and then craned onto the scaffold deck structure 13m in the air, where the screen was landed and transferred across to a ground stack system.”

This allowed for fast installation and all four side screens were built in only three days. “The coordination with our engineering team to deliver this project was outstanding,” Hoare concluded. “In total, we had four engineers working across three different time zones and still we had minimal changes on site despite the fact that we were still designing elements as the towers were being erected.”

Al L aith was entrusted to supply LED screen supports, truss, PA towers and lighting troughs. The company deployed ring lock scaffolding for all LED structures and Space Truss for the construction of the PA towers.

Project Manager, Rudi Botha emphasised the smooth coordination between AIM and all other suppliers involved. “The well-organised process allowed for seamless integration of the various elements, making the entire experience a truly memorable one,” he commented.

Michael Clark, Operations Director for EPC Services, credited AIM’s “exceptional project management” for the absence of any significant challenges. “The meticulous planning and coordination ensured that all aspects of the project were executed safely,” Clark explained. “It is an honour for Al Laith to contribute to such a prestigious event, and we look forward to future opportunities to showcase our expertise in the world of entertainment and sports.”

‘I walked away with goosebumps’

The lighting element of the production was designed by ARLD’s Aaron Russ – an old hand when it comes to Dubai World Cup productions, having worked on several previous iterations of the show. “We employed a lot of new technology this time around, using a selection of fixtures from Elation Professional, Ayrton, Robe, SGM, Astera and GLP,” Russ said of the lighting setup.

While the design utilised much of CT’s extensive inventory of the latest fixtures in the market, there were two “powerhouse” fixtures that Russ was extremely keen to use – the Elation Proteus Excalibur and Proteus Maximus. “CTME kindly purchased these fixtures to facilitate my requirements,” Russ revealed. “They were the building blocks of the entire show. They can be absolutely brutal when you need them to be but also delicate down to the smallest bit of control you need from them.”

AI M’s ‘connected canvas’ concept was integral to ARLD’s lighting design. “They required a design that would tie together the drones, pyro, planes and video – the catalyst or glue to hold it all together,” Russ explained. “Every element was big – massive LED screens, thousands of drones hundreds of metres into the sky, all the pyro Flash

Art could fit and, of course, the planes. So, how do you possibly keep up with that lot?”

Russ highlighted the infield as an area that is often overlooked and can turn into “a big black void” behind the screen. “I needed to fill this space,” he recalled. “I wanted to create a reflection pond kind of look to mimic the drones in the sky. This was achieved by completely random placement of 60 SGM P6 wash lights around the infield. There was no symmetry, no obvious shape to it – I think I told the LX team to throw lawn darts and place a fixture wherever one landed!” To broaden the stage further, 50 Elation Proteus Excalibur were placed in clusters running the back straight with a few more set midway into the infield. “Excalibur are incredibly powerful beam lights that punch through the pyro and drones, so they didn’t get lost in the background,” Russ explained.

Moving downstage, the screens were surrounded by a selection of CTME’s lighting arsenal including Robe Forte, Ayrton Karif LT, Perseo and Diablo, GLP JDC1 and impression X4 Bar 20, and Astera AX2-100. “The front straight was peppered with 80 Robe LED Beam 350 to add some low-level texture to the track,” Russ described. “I also used 24 Proteus Maximus on the eighth-floor rooftop. Their power and optics meant I could light the entire front straight evenly from above with colour and gobo using only 24 fixtures. I am not sure this could have been done to this level with any other fixture available in the Dubai market.”

CT ME also provided the lighting control solution of two MA Lighting grandMA3 Full Size consoles and one light, all running in MA2 mode. Six MA3 NPUs were utilised to control all the parameters needed to run the show, with a full range network of Luminex products and smart distribution systems from SES also in operation.

With around 800 cues in 12 minutes, the entire show was run on timecode. “A lot of the show was programmed offsite in ALRD’s WYSIWYG studio, leaving only a few updates to focus needed on site,” Russ revealed. “We moved the WYSIWYG suite to a studio on site during the build so I could be there to answer any questions and deal with any issues promptly – thanks to AIM’s immaculate planning, there were none.”

Th e LD was pleased with the relationships on all sides throughout the project, describing AIM as “a breath of fresh air” and noting that he was

“over the moon” with the support he received from CTME’s lighting department, headed up by Sam Connolly. “Sam’s team were incredible to work with; they delivered ahead of time and with not a single system fault,” he commented. “There was a lot of mutual respect throughout the whole team, which made life enjoyable.”

Russ broke from tradition for this year’s show, moving from his usual position in a cabin at BOH to an improved rooftop FOH – a decision he is pleased he made. “I walked away with goosebumps, and that’s rare,” he reflected. “There’s normally something I spot that I feel could have been improved, but not this time. I promise, the post event comedown was real on this one!”

‘Cut through the noise’

“Sound is absolutely vital for us, so we were never in doubt that a major system uplift would be required,” said AIM’s Richard Lindsay while discussing the show’s audio requirements. With this brief in mind, CTME’s audio team, led by Head of Audio, Wissam Shaheen, deployed a d&b audiotechnik GSL and SL-SUB PA system, including four hangs of eight GSL8 in the infield, complemented by four ground stacks of three SL-SUB for low-end extension. “The results were impressive, delivering a true high-fidelity large cinematic sonic feel that matched the recordbreaking show perfectly,” Shaheen commented.

CT ME’s large-format d&b PA combined with Meydan’s in-house nearfield PA, which took care of the venue’s day-to-day nearfield requirements. Tim Cook, CTME Deputy Head of Audio, described how the two systems complemented each other. “We put our system on the far field around 140m away from FOH, which was roughly the middle of the grandstands. We took our time with the system optimisation process to ensure that the coverage was coherent, and all elements acted as one big cohesive system,” he explained. “There was a lot of work on the R1 file to make that happen.”

Des pite the long throw, the ArrayProcessed GSL system was more than capable of achieving the desired results. “It was the best-sounding Dubai World Cup I’ve ever heard,” Cook commented. “Our system delivered a lot of the low-end and it made a massive difference.”

Shaheen added: “The sound of the fireworks was huge, but the PA managed to cut through the noise. You could still hear even the spoken word very clearly and the low end gave that big cinematic feel. It was a perfect match for the show’s amazing visuals.”

As ide from the impressive sonic experience provided to the audience, the SL-Series broadband cardioid dispersion pattern also effectively controlled noise spill to the BOH, creating what Shaheen described as a “serene and pleasant” environment for the technical brain of the show. “BOH was a very sensitive operational area, so to be able to walk behind the PA and have a pleasant conversation was a big bonus for everyone,” he recalled. “It’s so cool to have such massive power in front of the PA and then behind it you could be fooled into thinking it’s nowhere near show-level.”

For control, CTME deployed a DiGiCo Quantum 338, utilising an OptoCore loop of six SD-Racks and SD-Mini Racks to cover the widespread I/O requirements. “We added approximately 4km of OpticalCon Duo Fibre to the venue’s existing fibre infrastructure to distribute audio feeds across the large venue, with Luminex switches handling all the nodes,” Shaheen stated. “The end result was a reliable and rock-steady dual-redundant Dante network.”