NASHVILLE – The Grand Ole Opry House celebrated its 85th year with something better than just candles. The venerable venue was equipped with 57 brand new Vari*Lite fixtures – 16 VLX Wash fixtures, 17 VL3000 Spots and 22 VL2500 Spot luminaires. But if the new rig was something of a dream come true for lighting director Tyler Bryan, it came about in part because of the nightmarish flooding that occurred on May 2, 2010 – with four feet of water inundating the venue.
Bryan, other Opry staff members and Chris Barbee and John Jenkinson from longtime lighting supplier Bandit Lites would need to completely redesign and install the lighting system for the venue in less than six months if they were going to help the venue celebrate with a grand ole' birthday party on Sept. 28, 2010.
"We were looking toward upgrading our system at some point, but we never thought it would happen like this," said Bryan. "When the flood occurred, we lost 24 fixtures on the floor due to actual water damage, but the remaining fixtures in the air were untouched. Unfortunately, though, our rail system was damaged so we could not immediately get to the fixtures that were in the air. We had to leave them hanging until the flood waters receded and we could survey the totality of the damage, which we knew would be extensive."
Bryan and crew then confirmed their fears four days after the flood – damage by condensation inside the flooded building to what was left of their lighting rig.
"Once the water was out, and the rig was down, we took our remaining fixtures to the Bandit Lites shop to see what the interiors of our fixtures looked like. As we thought, there was simply too much water vapor damage, and it would take too many spare parts to repair them. So when we added all the damage together, it made more sense to replace the entire rig. Since we knew that we wanted our next rig to be Vari*Lite intensive, we called up Bandit and got right to work."
Bryan and lighting assistant Ken McGriff normally light 128 shows per year specifically for the Opry, but there are also venue rentals that occur for awards programs, corporate events, and private and ticketed concerts. Plus, Bryan would also need to travel with a large portion of the new rig during the Opry's annual winter run at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium. His new rig had to be versatile enough to handle all these productions, but solid enough to travel with ease.
"Most of our veteran artists typically like to keep their lighting design simple; keep it subtle," Bryan said. "But our younger artists tend to gravitate more towards what they are accustomed to on tour, which generally involves a lot of color and effects from the automated fixtures. So no matter what their preference, which location we are in, or what kind of production we are lighting, we need a rig that can make everyone comfortable."
Bryan chose the Vari-Lite fixtures for a variety of looks and effects for the Opry House's 80-by-45-foot stage, with key advantages for each fixture choice. The VLX Wash's solid-state light source combines low maintenance with "color with punch" and "a fantastic white for TV," Bryan said. The VL3000 Spot fixtures are well-suited to the 30-foot trim, and they're "tried, tested and true," he added – "powerful, durable, and a workhorse of a light." A few of the VL2500 Spot fixtures, meanwhile, are positioned on the floor and used for "their tight beams of color and gobo patterns, and then we use the remaining in the air," Bryan added. "They have fantastic color-mixing, are bright, and are very fast."
Looking back, Bryan said, "this was one of the hardest things that I have ever had to do, and it could never have happened without Bandit. I have worked with them for a number of years and they consistently provide us with tremendous service and support. I can pick up the phone and they have everything I need. You simply couldn't ask for a better dealer. They have been with me since day one, and we have never had any issues. They handled all aspects of the Opry's stage lighting, dimming and controls with regard to the renovation of the Grand Ole Opry House, and they were there with me all the way to our grand reopening.
"Getting to where we are today was extremely difficult, but after many hours of long, hard work, we made it," Bryan continued. "You would never expect a flood to bring four feet of water to your stage, but months later we couldn't be happier with the system in place. This is the rig I have wanted for a long time, I just had no idea this is how we would get it."
For more information, please visit www.vari-lite.com.
