GEORGE EZRA

THE BRITISH SINGER-SONGWRITER BRINGS A VERSATILE SHOW DESIGN ON THE UAE, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND PORTION OF HIS TOUR.

Fresh from an extensive UK arena tour in support of his latest album, Gold Rush Kid, George Ezra headed east for the Australia and New Zealand leg of his tour, squeezing in a one-night-only performance at Dubai’s Coca-Cola Arena on the way. Accompanied by a seven-piece band and backed as ever by his loyal touring crew, Ezra put on a typically slick, upbeat performance – much to the delight of the adoring UAE audience, who last saw the artist at his sell-out 2019 show at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

With the touring party spending just over 24 hours in Dubai before heading Down Under, this was the very definition of a flying visit. However, despite the tight turnaround, Production Manager Jake Vernum was only too happy to welcome TPMEA into the production office for a chat ahead of the show. “It’s been a busy year for George with UK festival season followed by an extremely successful UK tour,” began Vernum, who has been equally busy this year, working with Ezra as well as Fatboy Slim, UK-based Pearce Hire and even finding time to pick up the prestigious Production Manager of the Year award at the TPi Awards 2022. “It’s been a whirlwind,” he laughed.

Like George Ezra’s previous tour in support of his second album, Staying at Tamara’s, this latest touring campaign is centred around the theme of travel. However, that’s where the similarities end, as Vernum explained, the new record is “more about the journey than the destination”.

He added: “The initial brief from George was partly inspired by Bob Dylan’s The Rolling Thunder Revue and was based around traditional theatres. Our Show Designer Cate Carter took a very theatrical approach to the designs, which emphasised the use of set and video rather than lighting. Hence, we toured our mountain facia system in the summer to replicate and compliment the album artwork.”

Describing Carter as “fantastic”, Vernum praised the designer not just for her creativity but also for her ability to create a production that can expand and contract according to the venue. “I always say to any designer that the show needs to be scalable,” he commented, adding that Ezra himself was also pivotal when it came to the creative. “George is very engaged with the creative side of the tour and everything you see in the show stems from his own or Cate’s vision.”

While the design for the UK run featured the production’s take on a traditional proscenium arch – created by Set Stage using 52cm truss supplied by UK Rigging and adorned with 30 GLP JDC Line fixtures – as well as a giant ROE Visual CB5 video wall, for the Dubai, Australia and New Zealand gigs, the show was condensed into a more tour-friendly package, with a custom backdrop being utilised in place of the arch and video elements. “We are happy with the condensed design,” said Vernum. “It’s a strong foundation for the next leg of the tour and we will bring it with us into some venues in 2023 when we need to.”

In lieu of the natural frame provided by the arch, the production commissioned ShowTex to create a set of three blue StretchVelours drapes.

The UK run featured the production’s take on a traditional proscenium arch – created by Set Stage and adorned with 30 GLP JDC Line fixtures. Photo: Luke Dyson.

“I enjoy working in this part of the world. The UK tour had its challenges, but this is a challenge in many different ways.”

Jake Vernum, Production Manager

“We had these made in Europe especially for this leg of the tour and we ship them along with our backline,” Vernum revealed. “They’re a different effect to the arch, of course, but they mask the printed backdrop nicely and create a relatively similar feel while being much easier to transport.”

‘THE FINER DETAILS’ When asked about the challenges of operating in unfamiliar regions, Vernum was philosophical. “We’re quite flexible if certain substitutions need to be made. As long as we’re getting kit that we’re happy to use, it’s fine – we need the show to work for everyone,” he shared. “I enjoy working in this part of the world. The UK tour had its challenges, but this is a challenge in many different ways.”

The PM went on to explain that while there were fewer moving parts and a much smaller touring party to take care of on this leg of the tour – 18 people instead of 65 on the UK run – the most challenging aspect was the added level of detail required in advancing shows in different regions. “I spend a lot of time advancing these shows and I spec them differently and with a lot more detail,” he revealed. “There are a lot of finer details that we carry within our own systems such as timecode lines and subs for the band, which we don’t need to think of when we’re touring everything. However, because we’re working with different local kit every show, the detail must be there to make sure that all these nuances are taken care of. It’s no use rocking up on show day and asking for a timecode line to be put in, as it adds time and cost.”

The tour’s supplier of choice for the Dubai show was MediaPro International, which provided an extensive equipment package including lighting, audio control, cameras, trussing and

rigging, as well as an assortment of backline, with the production utilising in-house PA and IMAG screens. “We do quite a lot of work inside Coca-Cola Arena and it’s an easy venue to loadin,” opened MediaPro’s PM, Jordan Gomes. “The in-house team is used to the way we work and they know they don’t need to hold our hands throughout the process because we use our standard procedures and processes.”

Describing the touring party as “a pleasure to work with”, Gomes was very pleased with the overall delivery. “It was a one-day build inside the arena and it went very smoothly without any hiccups,” he told TPMEA. “We did a lot of prep in the warehouse. All the split boxes on stage were marked, the in-ears were prepped, and the desks were patched, so it was as close to plug-andplay as possible,” he added. “That makes it a lot easier when you get on site. It means you’re not working long hours at the venue.”

The nearest thing to a challenge Gomes could pinpoint was the fact that the tour’s custom-made drapes were brand new, so it took some time to get them hung as desired. “The drapes were fresh out of the bag, so they took a little adjustment,” he recalled, stressing the need for speed when it comes to load-out. “We’re here on standby in case of any issues throughout the show,” he said. “And we will spring back into action on the out. My priority is to make space so they can load out everything they need quickly.”

Unusual Rigging & Engineering supplied the house rigging for the George Ezra concert. Unusual is the contracted house rigger for the Coca-Cola Arena and the company recently renewed its contract with the venue. For the George Ezra gig, they worked with MediaPro, installing all the rigging points for the show, allowing the client to come in with their chain hoists and connect everything. The team of Unusual riggers remained on site until the rig was at working height.

‘LIVELY FOR A POP SET’ The lighting rig for the Dubai show included Robe BMFL Blades, Spiiders and Mega Pointes, along with GLP JDC1s, TMB Solaris Flare Q+, Kupo fourway Molefays, Film Gear 2Kw Tungsten Fresnels, LSC Redback Dimmers, and LED battens. Control came from an MA Lighting grandMA3 full size console, with a grandMA2 light as backup.

“All the lighting elements are the same as the European run, apart from a slight scaling down,” Vernum confirmed, describing the setup. Lighting Director, Chris Taylor was pleased with the level of fixtures available – as well as the cooperation with MediaPro.

“This is the first time I’ve worked in Dubai, but it’s been a great experience,” he commented. “When you’re using multipart fixtures such as JDC1s and Solaris Flares, it becomes very important to get the right kit, as substitutions can really affect the look and feel of the show.”

According to Taylor, the biggest challenge on this leg of the tour is adapting from a show design that incorporated a large central LED screen to one based around two backdrops. “We’ve gone from a content-based show to having a choice of two backdrops – the mountain backdrop displays whenever George plays his new album, and we have a gauze around 1m in front that comes into play whenever he moves into older material,” he described. “We’re seeing it for the first time here, so it’s been a learning experience getting the right distance between the screen and the gauze.”

Aside from rigging the gauze and backdrop correctly, the tweaked stage design brought with it the opportunity for lighting to take more of a central role in the show. “The UK arena show was designed in such a way that any beam work was

kept well away from the giant LED screen, but with that gone for this leg, we’ve now got a big hole where the screen was, which needs to be filled by the lighting,” he explained. “It’s been a fair bit of extra work, but we will use something along these lines for our B system next year,” he added, keen to stress the importance of planning for the future.

In terms of personal design highlights, Taylor pointed to the “nice beamy magenta and cyan vibe” achieved during Paradise, as well as a sequence in the middle of the show that transitions between Saviour and Did You Hear the Rain?. “Saviour is a red number, which we’ve made quite toned down and floor based, then we go into Did You Hear the Rain?, which is essentially a heavy rock song – it’s pretty lively for a pop set,” he noted.

“I’ve been working with George for a long time and the band have reworked a lot of the slower numbers where previously some members of the audience who aren’t mega-fans may have lost engagement slightly,” he added. “It’s certainly not a show where you would sit on your hands and watch politely.”

While the LD was excited to head to Australia and New Zealand, he concluded by sharing his wish to return to the region at some point in the future. “It’s a shame we’re not hanging around a big longer as I would have loved to see some more of Dubai, but there’s so much going on over here, I’m sure we’ll be back soon,” he said.

‘THE CRUNCH OF AN SPX990’ After guiding Ezra and his band through an extensive soundcheck, FOH Engineer, Mike Timm was next to chat to TPMEA, stepping out from behind a DiGiCo Quantum 338 to offer his take on the tour so far. “The UK leg was fantastic – it gets better and better as time passes,” he beamed. “It feels like the audience has grown and matured with George over the years, which is nice to see.”

Standing at FOH and gazing upwards at the vast swathes of seats inside Dubai’s Coca-Cola Arena, Timm laughed as he compared this venue to the last date on the UK tour in his hometown of Sheffield at the Utilita Arena – which is used to stage ice hockey matches most weekends. “I always forget when we play Sheffield that the ice is still under the floor, so you need to wear two pairs of socks… It’s certainly a bit different today!”

And the pleasant Dubai temperature was far from the only difference for Timm, who has become accustomed to touring with a large arsenal of outboard gear, which has evolved over the seven years he’s been with the George Ezra party. “I use analogue and UAD plug-ins to add some character and depth,” he revealed. However, with weight and cost in mind, Timm opted to run a more compact setup using LiveProfessor and Waves – and he will switch to a DiGiCo SD12 for the Australia and New Zealand leg, which will be trucked from show to show.

“If I was starting this gig today, I could do 90% of what I want within the Quantum 338,” he admitted, adding that he still carried his “trusty” two Yamaha SPX990 and one SPX2000 for this show. “They give so much character. I grew up with analogue consoles, so the crunch of an SPX990 on the snare is something I can’t get out of anything else. It’s nice to have them.”

Timm has been a DiGiCo fan ever since “the early days touring with George when we would just use whatever the house consoles were. The DiGiCos always stood out,” he recalled. “By the campaign for his second album in 2017, I got to carry my own console; the monitor engineer at the time was a DiGiCo guy as well and we decided to share a rack to make things easier – and I fell in love with it from there. I love the workflow and how flexible they are.”

The FOH Engineer’s setup includes “quite a lot of automation in the mix – little things like mutes that mean I don’t have to think about it live, so that come showtime, I’m concentrating on listening and sitting the vocal bang on.” Photos: Ob Panakal, Luke Dyson www.georgeezra.com www.mediaproav.com