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Illustration by Andy Au

“The Great One” and Stage Lighting

A good LD lights where the guitarist is supposed to be. A great LD lights where the guitarist is going to be.

I recently moved from Las Vegas to Canada for a number of reasons. One reason for moving is the current political climate in the U.S. Canada has proven to be very polite and rather pleasant. I moved to a small community where my services as a concert lighting director might not be in high demand. Belle River does not have any casinos, convention centers, ballrooms or arenas. But it does have hockey rinks — lots of them.

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Nook Schoenfeld, Editor, PLSN

The Little Things in Life

Last month I crossed the pond in search of the latest toys in the lighting, video and staging world, as I do every April at the Prolight + Sound show in Germany. I saw some new products, but what I noticed most were a lot of companies rehashing old fixtures with newer ones that featured a new function or different light source. Lots of clever ideas to modify existing technology. But none of that jumped out as fresh and innovative, other than a couple items.

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The townfolk of Gander rose to the challenge of helping the stranded passengers. Real trees flanked the wooden floor, wall and furniture. Photos by Matthew Murphy

Light from the Trees: ‘Come From Away’ on Broadway

During the chaos and confusion of the 9/11 attacks, American airspace was closed, and many flights were diverted back to their point of origin or to other destinations. In one specific scenario, 6,700 airline passengers on 38 flights landed in the town of Gander on Newfoundland. Gander only has 10,000 residents, and over the next few days, the resilient, resourceful Canadians showed their unexpected guests hospitality, shelter and care in a way that surprised and moved many people. The new Broadway musical Come From Away celebrates those random acts of kindness in the wake of a horrible tragedy.

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WrestleMania 33, an epic thrill ride for more than 75,000, was a live production masterpiece. Photos by Todd Kaplan

WrestleMania 33

The “Ultimate Thrill Ride”

On April 2, more than 75,000 fans converged at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida to cheer on their favorite wrestling Superstars in the “Showcase of the Immortals” known as WrestleMania.

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