REGIONAL ROUND-UP

IDOLS SA

ROBE AND ASTERA LIGHTING FIXTURES FEATURE EXTENSIVELY ON THE SPECTACULAR 16TH SERIES FINALE.

Pretoria State Theatre’s 640-seat Drama Stage hosted the finale of Idols SA, complete with a lighting design by Joshua Cutts of Visual Frontier and technical production delivered by Dream Sets for SIC Entertainment.

While the show would normally decamp to the 3,000-capacity Carnival City Big Top Arena in Johannesburg for the finale, this year everything remained at the State Theatre, and while accommodating a strictly limited audience of 250, the visual elements of the production were also expanded, with an additional 120 Robe moving lights added to the rig.

While the Idols Live Show rig features a number of Robe luminaires – including six BMFL Blades, 16 LEDWash 800s, 16 Pointes and 16 ColorWash 2500s – for the final, a further 120 Robe moving lights were added for max impact.

A total of 24 MegaPointes were loaded onto six custom-built dollies, which could be wheeled around the stage and positioned anywhere to instantly create different architecture and structural looks. “The more I use them, the more I like them and still find new effects,” Cutts said of the fixture. “It’s an outstanding beam and spotlight source, with the colour mixing adding whole other level.”

Twenty-four ESPRITES were flown above the stage and in the side wings, unleashing another layer of lighting. “I was amazed at the compact size of the ESPRITE for the power and number of features – very impressive,” Cutts declared.

Eight out of a total 24 Tetra2 moving LED bars proved ideal for edging the top and bottom of the upstage 10m by 4m LED screen, with the other 16 placed along the edge of the stage in the footlights position, giving three distinctive lines of piercing Tetra2 beams and some great interactional effects. A further 48 Spikies were rigged on five steel frames also on dollies and used to create columns of light 2.5m high by 1.5m wide in different locations onstage.

Two BaseStations controlled two Robe BMFL WashBeams located at FOH and the third system was connected to four BMFL Blades on one of the back trusses, used for tight and neat rear spotting on the theatre stage. Cutts worked with his associate Andre Siebrits, who programmed and operated the MA Lighting grandMA2 full size console, which was running with a light as backup and an MA OnPC for visualisation, with a healthy 32 universes of DMX feeding into the system. A Green Hippo Boreal+ media server running via the console dealt with playback content for the LED screens.

The LD also devised a selection of special visual treatments, some of which were based around utilising Astera Titan Tubes, which were deployed on three different shows. Describing the fixtures as “great bang-for-buck”, Cutts explained why he was so keen on the fixture. “They are a bright, vibrant and easy-to-use wireless solution,” he commented. “They look great on camera, the colours are cool, while the AsteraApp on your smartphone works brilliantly for both testing and standalone setups.” Photos: Duncan Riley www.robe.cz www.astera-led.com

MISS SOWETO 2020

INSANE SOUND AND LIGHTING PROVIDES A TURNKEY TECHNICAL SOLUTION FOR THE HYBRID BEAUTY PAGEANT.

For the fourth consecutive year, Vimal Rawjee of Insane Sound and Lighting was appointed to supply the full technical for Miss Soweto. Hosted at the Soweto Theatre in Jabulani, Johannesburg, the event took a hybrid format, being recorded for television and with 100 guests in attendance.

Having not worked on a large-scale production since the start of the pandemic, the experience was a mixed bag of adrenalin and nostalgia. “I was scared but excited,” commented Rawjee. “It has been a while! But I have a good team of guys who always step up and make my craziness happen. This really was a milestone.”

The equipment used on the event over the past four years has grown from two 6,000-lumen projectors to now include over 200 LED panels. “While we are the main technical supplier, we sub hire from Bass Mechanics and ShowQuip, which is my way of spreading the love, and we are also responsible for the set design, content and the running of the show,” Rawjee explained.

Lighting equipment included 12 Robe ESPRITE LEDs, eight LEDBeam 150s and four Martin by Harman MAC Quantum Wash fixtures, and 212 LED screen panels, which were used for a striking backdrop. An MA Lighting grandMA2 was used for lighting control, while video content ran off a Green Hippo Karst media server.

Having only recently purchased the Robe ESPIRITEs, this was their first outing. “They were not stage shy!” Rawjee said of the fixture. “They did an amazing job and added so much to the production, even cutting through the LED panels. We didn’t get to use them to their full potential, but lighting designer, Shaniel Lallao was as impressed as I was.”

Another integral piece of kit to the production was the Green Hippo Karst media server. “Thanks to Mfundo Masikane who ran the AV, and Dylan Jones from DWR Distribution, we were able to use the machine to its full potential,” Rawjee said. Jones added: “This was not a simple setup, with all the LED screens, left, centre and right, making a single canvas. Vimal had an interesting approach to making a panoramic background for the event. Each part of the show had a different look. The idea really worked well.”

Working at The Soweto Theatre was very different to previous years, with all safety precautions in place due to the pandemic. “I have to commend Lebugang Mnisi, the theatre’s Technical Manager, who was so helpful and full of vigour with his ‘get it done’ attitude,” said Rawjee. With some of the theatre’s crew self-isolating, the Soweto Theatre called on the Roodepoort Theatre’s Melony Eksteen and Ntombikayise Tshabalala to assist. “I would have these two at my side at any show – they were so helpful, enthusiastic and made my setup much easier.”

The entire team put in extra effort, pleased to be able to work. “Shaniel was super enthusiastic to be behind a desk again, while the Bass Mechanic supplied an LED screen. Crewsaders Event Crew really pushed hard, and within five hours we were loaded out.” Rawjee also thanked Ramesh Singh and Darlington Kwanda, “who worked extremely hard to make the set and technical come together”, as well as the entire DWR Distribution team.

Reflecting on the event, Rawjee concluded: “Sometimes we have to juggle between clients and budgets, our crews and suppliers. Do what is best for your people and make sure they have enough to live decent lives. While it’s great to put on these shows, my reward is knowing that I helped so many others survive another month and that is what makes me proud to be Insane.” Photo: Vimal Rawjee / designerphoto.co.za www.insanesound.co.za www.dwrdistribution.co.za

SOUNDS OF VICTORY

CHAUVET PROFESSIONAL FIXTURES LIGHT LIVESTREAM FROM HARARE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE CENTER.

Blessing Bero and his team at Events Evolution utilised a number of CHAUVET Professional fixtures, including the Maverick MK2 Spot, Rogue R2 Spot and Rogue R2 Wash for gospel singer Janet Manyowa’s recent pay-perview livestream from Harare International Conference Center.

Drawing on the versatility of these fixtures, Bero balanced the demands of lighting for the event’s pay-per-view livestream audience and the limited number of VIP guests invited to the launch. “Our primary focus was on the livestream viewers, but we also wanted to create a dynamic show for those who were present,” he commented. “This required a degree of flexibility from our relatively small rig.”

Since Bero had only a limited number of fixtures at his disposal, each unit was called upon to perform multiple functions and cover wide areas. “We needed a consistent, even field of light across the main performance area,” he explained. “Although we had only four MK2 Spots, they were able to provide us with this coverage perfectly, giving us excellent light levels for the lead singer and the backup vocalists.”

To highlight Manyowa as well as individual band members during solos, Bero relied on four Rogue R2 Spots, while he coloured the stage with 24 Rogue R2 Wash fixtures positioned on four truss totems, as well as above the video wall backdrops and on overhead upstage truss. “The amazing zoom coverage of the Rogue washes gave me big looks,” he recalled.

For Bero and his team, the chance to create big looks in front of a live – albeit very small – audience for a superstar was a welcome relief after months of a pandemic lockdown. Photo: CHAUVET Professional www.chauvetprofessional.com www.eventsevo.co.za

STAGE AUDIO WORKS BOLSTERS SALES TEAM

INTERNAL RESTRUCTURING AT STAGE AUDIO WORKS CREATES NEW SALES ROLE.

Stage Audio Works (SAW) has appointed Lee Thomson to the newly created role of Projects Sales Manager, with Mike Summerfield taking on the post of Distribution Sales Manager. The move follows the decision to restructure the sales operation into two distinct verticals – namely Projects and Distribution – to better serve both markets.

The Projects team will look after markets served directly by SAW, including houses of worship, themed attractions and casinos, sports, and performing arts. The Distribution team will manage corporate AV, education, retail, broadcast, plus rental and staging companies.

“Separate teams will allow us better focus on the specific needs of each vertical, which are quite different,” explained Group CTO, Nathan Ihlenfeldt. “As part of this new organisation, we’re thrilled to welcome Lee Thomson to head up the Projects sales division. Lee brings a vast amount of experience and expertise to the SAW family, especially within the worship market, which has been a key growth area for us over the past decade. The Distribution team is in the capable hands of Mike Summerfield, a valued member of our crew who has been with us since 2012.

“While COVID-19 has presented an incredible challenge to our industry, the diverse market positioning of our group of companies has proven resilient,” he continued. “The restructuring provides us with better market focus and the addition of Lee enhances our vast solution knowledge and implementation ability. We are also stating our commitment to our integrator and rental partners by ensuring dedicated internal resources to deal with their needs in a meaningful and relevant way. The future looks incredibly bright.” Thomson added: “I am excited to join a progressive, forward-thinking company with an immense amount of talent, a vast and comprehensive product offering, and years of world-class project experience. With my 20plus years of experience in the pro AVL space, I can add significant value to the SAW offering, especially in the house of worship market.” Photo: Stage Audio Works www.stageaudioworks.com

Robe Forte

ARRI S60-C