DALLAS – For last fall's three-month KISS Alive 35 North American tour, LD Sean "Motley" Hackett used 82 Vari*Lite VL3500 Wash fixtures and 24 VL3000 Spot luminaires supplied by Epic Production Technologies to create big, bold looks. Hackett noted "as KISS began to assemble their production team for this tour, their regular lighting designer, Bryan Hartley, was unavailable due to commitments with Aerosmith and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
"I had filled-in for Bryan before on a few KISS shows back in 2007 and 2008 after serving as the lighting designer for the Paul Stanley tour in Australia. Since he had previous obligations, I received an e-mail from tour management asking if I would fill-in once again, so I accepted their invitation.
"The show design started with the band wanting a set full of video elements, and it was also requested that the lighting play a crucial element in the show design. The band gave me a great deal of latitude in selecting the lighting gear and I knew whatever I chose had to have the output to keep up with the all video elements."
The 64-foot-wide lighting rig was comprised of seven trusses with two-foot-by-eight-foot side truss to give the 106-foot stage a wider look. Hackett opted for the VL3500 Wash and VL3000 Spot luminaries after taking the throw distances and competition from the video system into consideration.
"The lighting is the frame for the big picture. It's all about seeing the band and the lights are there to make the whole show look huge," Hackett said. "After looking at all the lights in the market, the VL3500 Wash, with the Vari*Brite Mode, was the only fixture that would cut over all the video.
"Then, when looking at the throw distances, I knew the VL3000 Spot and the VL3500 Wash could be zoomed with maximum brightness for all the cues while maintaining the deep rich colors that I would be using throughout the show," Hackett added.
"There are only a few traditional cues in the show that must be done, but the rest is what I call a ‘1980's Ozzy Osbourne pub-rock rig on steroids' with intense colors and hard beams and fast strobes," Hackett said. "I have been most impressed with the color, beam and strobe capabilities of the Vari*Lite fixtures and we've been getting great feedback from all the industry people and KISS fans alike that have seen the show."
The fall tour ended Dec. 15, 2009, and Hackett appreciated being part of it.
"I first saw KISS in 1980 in Sydney and came home to tell my mom that I was going to be a roadie and make big rock shows. Today, it seems I have come full-circle. At first it was a bit weird talking to band members in full make-up and 8-inch boots that make them all seven feet tall, but after years of touring with INXS as an LD, it seems sort of normal. I had Lenny Kravitz sitting at front-of-house in New York City and I got a little nervous, as I have max respect for him, but once the first 30 seconds of the show were over, I was in the zone. It's been a great tour so far and the Vari*Lite fixtures are a big part of that success."
For more information, please visit www.vari-lite.com.
