Becoming a Vampire
When you are switching to the late night shift, you also need to think about your eating habits. The body must adapt accordingly. I usually… Read More »Becoming a Vampire
Read More »Becoming a Vampire
lites and video again
This month I got to program a tour that wasn’t all hard rock music. Quite a change for me after the last 5 concert tours I programmed this year.
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PowerLift Winch Series from J.R. Clancy
SYRACUSE, NY — J. R. Clancy, Inc. said its new PowerLift variable speed 0-20 feet per minute motorized winch can minimize “bouncing” at the start or end of a move. The new winch (product number 018-P0220V) has a load capacity of 2,000 pounds. The company is also introducing its PowerLift fixed speed 20 feet per minute motorized winch (product number 018-P0212), with a load capacity of 1,200 pounds.
Read More »Stealthy, Silent Programming
In the early days of automated lighting, there was no such thing as a quiet moving light. Manufacturers began addressing the issue by using noise… Read More »Stealthy, Silent Programming
Read More »Toward a GFCI Standard
When you get tangled up in a live circuit, you can come in series contact with ground or in parallel contact with ground. Grounding can… Read More »Toward a GFCI Standard
Read More »Bonnaroo 2008
Recently I was acquired by a company based out of Omaha, Nebraska named Theatrical Media Services (TMS) to LD the comedy tent for Bonnaroo 2008. If you don’t know what Bonnaroo is then look it up. In brief, Bonnaroo is music festival that has been annually held in Manchester, Tennessee over the years. When it started it would bring bands in that were notably out of the jam band scene with an attendance of 60,000 people. Now it has evolved into a mainstream festival bringing acts like Pearl Jam, Metallica, and The Police with a force of 90,000 fans in attendance along with the jam bands still rocking out.
Read More »Controlling Multi-Part Fixtures
Automated lighting consoles are great for programming conventional lights. But multi-part fixtures can pose problems. Imagine a simple LED fixture that has three cells, each… Read More »Controlling Multi-Part Fixtures
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The Massive Mass – Pope Benedict XVI at Yankee Stadium
Some baseball fans might say Yankee Stadium is already a place befitting worship. But as one of the highlights for Pope Benedict XVI’s six-day visit to the New York area in April, the hallowed baseball grounds needed to be transformed into an open-air cathedral including an altar, a performance stage and no billboards or other advertising in sight. Along with the need to be prepared for inclement weather and to operate under strict security measures, those involved needed to coordinate the efforts of hundreds of crew members, set everything up within a two-day time frame between ball games, and take extraordinary measures to avoid trampling on the grass.
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Jill Scott at the Fabulous Fox
Jill Scott wanted elegance. LD Martin Thomas, as set designer, lighting designer, and lighting programming, delivered. Scott’s Live Soul tour had a lot of elegance, plus a lot of heart and class, when it rolled into St. Louis river city one recent rainy night. The sold-out show was well worth trudging through the wet weather, as the R&B singer provided a powerhouse of great music and showmanship. Scott is far from what all too often passes for a pop star these days: she’s a woman of experience and talent, and effectively and sincerely connects with the audience.
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Infusing “Cat” with New Life
Broadway revivals have become so commonplace that a creative theatre team must think outside of the box and indulge in new ideas to make an old chestnut both exciting and refreshing for modern audiences. Debbie Allen’s interpretation of Tennessee Williams’ Pulitzer Prize-winning drama Cat on a Hot Tin Roof — starring Terrence Howard, Anika Noni Rose, James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad — faced such a scenario. Beyond its powerhouse casting and acting and the overstated aspect of having an all-black cast, the show is a rarity these days: a three-act, three-hour show with one main set that does not change. Set designer Ray Klausen was up to the task of invigorating the look of the show to fit Williams’ cynical tale of a family whose sibling brothers — one an injured alcoholic and former athletic hero, the other a corporate lawyer — and their spouses are tussling over the inheritance of Big Daddy’s massive Southern plantation.
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Jay-Z and Mary J. Blige in the Heart of the City
When Mary J. Blige decided to embark upon a solo tour, her production manager wanted Justin Collie of Artfag, LLC to be the designer. Over the course of several weeks the tour evolved into a joint collaboration with Jay-Z. But rather than sharing design duty with someone of Jay-Z’s choosing, Collie was asked to handle the design of the entire tour. The result was their Heart of the City tour.
Patrick Dierson, who has worked with Collie on many occasions, was asked to take on lighting director duties in addition to maintaining the integrity of the design for the run of the tour. Collie had the role of “Performance Environment Designer,” and he handled every aspect of the design including scenic elements, lighting and video layout.
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On a Mission
The First Baptist Church of Marco Island, Florida, had a problem: They’d outgrown both the size and technology of their 30-year-old facility. But on a small, conservative island populated mainly by senior adults, how could the church keep to its core while also reaching out to a younger, hipper generation — at home and around the world?
“We live on an island with a lot of older people on it,” says Senior Pastor Tim Neptune. “We couldn’t ostracize them by going with this extremely new contemporary facility, but media, lighting and technical elements are crucial to delivering our message.”
Neptune knew his facility needed some serious technology.