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Stevie Nicks ‘Live in Concert’ Tour 2022

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PRG and Upstaging supplied the lighting. Photo by Steve Jennings

Production and Lighting Designer Travis Shirley and industry legend / Tour Director Marty Hom have been trying to find a project to work on together for the past few years. When Stevie Nicks’ team started to put together the current 2022 Live in Concert tour, it was a natural evolution and the perfect opportunity for both of them to make something happen.

The tour was initially set up and routed as a headlining festival tour, so while management didn’t give Shirley any specific creative guidelines, he knew the parameters of the design needed to be something appropriate for what a headlining festival artist would carry. “However, as time closed in on opening night, several headlining solo shows were added in between festival dates, thus becoming a full blown tour,” Shirley says. “While the design has already been approved by Stevie and her team, we had to rework the design and logistics slightly, as unlike the festivals, these solo shows had no local production to accommodate our supplemental festival design. At the end of the day, we ended up with a full production design where certain elements of that are brought into the festivals.”

Pantographs provided a tool to change the scenography. Photo by Steve Jennings

From day one, Shirley knew he wanted a period-specific lighting look, something that could perhaps pay homage to the length and long success of the artist, all while being able to provide him with some modern tools to change the stage scenography throughout the show. “I originally was hoping to put the various Fresnels on marina-grade Manila rope on DMX-controlled spools, but as the design progressed, we were slightly worried about wind and the amount the Fresnels would sway around. Curry Grant from PRG and I discussed, and we landed on the pantographs as an alternative, as they also provided me with a tool to change the scenography all while keeping the movement fluid and constant in the elements.”

The LED wall used ROE Visual CB5. Photo by Steve Jennings

Being a no-haze show definitely changed Shirley’s approach in the way he structured and layered the production design. “I knew that in addition to the large LED screen I needed some sort of backdrop that I could texturize to create some depth in the system. While the backdrop is the backbone on the design, I knew the pantographs would also be a key component in really giving some layers to the show. I added several internal truss toners to the pantos which allowed me to use them as scenic elements. All of the elements, paired with the beautiful face of the 5kW and 10kW Fresnels, really transformed the stage into Stevie’s gypsy wonderland.”

Artwork enhances the aura of the artist that is Stevie Nicks. Photo by Steve Jennings

PRG was the lighting vendor for the tour; however, John Bahnick and the folks over at Upstaging were the creatives behind retrofitting these “gorgeous” 5kW and 10kW Fresnels with modern day lighting, the LD says. “I’ve had my eyes on these fixtures for quite some time, as I was going to put them on another tour before Covid cancelled most of the touring business. PRG and Upstaging came together to deliver the vision and we couldn’t be happier with the partnership.”

Jeff Claire handled video director duties. Photo by Steve Jennings

Head Programmer Chris Smith yet again delivered and assisted in bringing his design to life, Shirley says. “With a no-timecode show, we found ourselves merging old and new programming techniques allowing us to deliver the quality of cue structure you’d come to expect in a show of this caliber. Our assistant LD Chad Smith was out there keeping an eye on the show, and babysitting me as I have been taking the show out myself as LD. It’s great to be back behind a desk, but I couldn’t do it without the support of Chad and the team. Jeff Claire was cutting a beautiful show as the video director, while Bill Leabody is keeping the tour rolling as the production manager.”

Lighting was all about creating mood. Photo by Steve Jennings

Shirley credits all of the vendors as being instrumental in turning out a successful tour. “We were fortunate enough to have several weeks of production rehearsals in Los Angeles before the tour kicked off. While that time is something we have grown as an industry to appreciate, it’s not always there. We did find ourselves perfecting and evolving the show constantly. Stevie and the band were extremely involved in setlist updates and updating arrangements, so the time was very well spent getting the whole production mounted and fine-tuned.”

He admits, “Most people including myself would be surprised to see that I am out operating one of my designs, as I haven’t had the chance to do this in years. But I have to tell you, I am loving it! During the pandemic I realized how truly blessed I was to be able to create and design for a living, to be able to make a living doing what I/we love is such an extraordinary and valuable thing for many of us. I thought going out on tour and really allowing myself to enjoy the craft that we’re so blessed to do was something I had to do. And boy, was I right. I still get those ‘go house lights’ goosebumps every night.”

Nicks just announced more dates for the fall leg of her tour, set to run to Oct. 28 in the U.S.

Stevie Nicks Live in Concert Tour 2022

Production Team

  • Production/Lighting Designer: Travis Shirley, Blank Wall Creative
  • Lighting Programmer: Chris Smith
  • Lighting Directors: Travis Shirley, Chad Smith
  • Video/LED Director: Jeff Claire
  • Tour Managers: Marty Hom, Allan Tate
  • Production Manager: Bill Leabody
  • Production Assistant: Elisa González
  • Rigger: Chris Regan

Vendors

  • Lighting: PRG North America/Rep. Curry Grant
  • Lighting: Upstaging Inc./Rep. John Huddleston
  • Video: Screenworks/Rep. Danny O’Bryen

Gear

Lighting

  • 2          MA Lighting grandMA3 Console
  • 44       Claypaky Sharpy Wash
  • 36       Martin MAC Viper Performance
  • 24       Portman P2 Hexaline
  • 32       TMB Solaris Flare Jr.

Video

  • ROE Visual CB5 40’ x 24’ LED Wall

More photos by Steve Jennings: