Having started in 1968, by a then 12-year-old Michael T. Strickland, Bandit Lites is now celebrating it 55th Anniversary. It is today a global leader in the live event industry with facilities in the U.S., Europe and Asia. This month we speak with Strickland and others at Bandit about the five-plus decades of supporting some of the biggest acts and events in live entertainment.
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Trans-Siberian Orchestra has been touring its annual holiday-themed production for 23 years but Director of Touring and Production Elliot Saltzman and Production and Lighting Designer Bryan Hartley make sure that every year is a fresh design that tops the year before. Helping them do that is special effects expert Doug Adams, President of ImageSFX. PLSN speaks with all three having just wrapped the 2022 tour.
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Entertainment Technology Partners (ETP), in concert with their brand, LMG, created and support the CoiL Learning Center, with two U.S. locations at LMG’s facilities in Orlando and Las Vegas, as well as one at an ETP studio in London. We take an in-depth look at CoiL speaking with Ormilla Vengersammy, Director of Academic Programs, and Earl Hoback, Technical Programs Manager.
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Keny Whitright, innovator and inventor, is being honored with the Parnelli Visionary Award this year. Whitright created the first color scroller using gel strings and never looked back. The innovative technology developed by his company, Wybron went on to be used in all segments of the live entertainment industry. His vision created many products that became standards in our industry over the course of his career.
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The PLSN readers have spoken and the six Regional Hometown Hero Lighting Company winners have been selected. All of these companies are now in the running to be named Hometown Hero-Lighting Company of the Year at the 21st Annual Parnelli Awards in April. We look at all 6 winners so our readers can again vote for the one Parnelli Hometown Hero-Lighting Company.
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With voting underway for the Parnelli Awards, [see the Official Ballot on pg. 47] PLSN readers have the opportunity to vote on lighting, staging & effects, and video technologies worthy of the name Indispensable Technology for the Parnelli “IT” Award. This month we have a roundup of the 18 nominated products.
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Nina Agelvis, lighting designer and programmer is this month’s NextGen making a path for herself in the industry. She has already had a rich and varied career though she is only in her twenties. Her resume includes being an electrician, a stagehand, a drafter, teacher, programmer, and a lighting designer. She’s worked in repertory theaters, live music clubs, the corporate world, and on a cruise ship.
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Florida State University’s School of Theatre and USITT have unveiled the 2023 Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space exhibits that will be presented by the U.S. in Prague this June. Also, The 1/52 Project, which offers $15,000 grants to provide financial support to encourage rising designers from historically excluded groups, has opened up applications for 2023.
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Here’s a look at two companies you should stop by and see if you are going to be at USITT.
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USITT has announced the four honorees for the 2023 Distinguished Achievement Awards and the ten Young Designers, Managers and Technicians (YDMT) award winners. The USITT Awards bring attention to those who represent the best entering our industry, support creative work, recognize lifetime achievement, and celebrate research. PLSN is happy to spotlight and recognize all of this year’s winners.
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PLSN catches up with the esteemed Screens Producer Laura Frank, who has a new book out, Real-Time Video Content For Virtual Production & Live Entertainment. It is an engaging read, in which Frank looks at the different layers of an ever-evolving discipline; offering historic context while encouraging the reader to see future possibilities of virtual production with new eyes.
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After British rock guitarist Jeff Beck died unexpectedly on Jan. 10, 2023, Debi Moen touched base with three lighting professionals, David “Gurn” Kaniski, Michael Keller, and Chris Stuba, who were all involved with Beck’s last tour. They share their thoughts with Designer Watch about working with the rock legend.
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