News

LONDON – For the annual Classical Spectacular at London’s Royal Albert Hall March 17-20, LD Durham Marenghi used a symphony of Clay Paky Mythos, Sharpy, Sharpy Wash, Alpha Spot HPE 1500 and Alpha Spot HPE 700 fixtures to create a dynamic lighting show. Put on by the legendary classic music promoter Raymond Gubbay, the dramatic overtures were complemented by cannons, guns and 2,000 indoor fireworks, which brought the show to a thundering finale.

LOS ANGELES – The MAC Axiom Hybrid U.S. Launch Tour will bring new gear from Martin Professional to eight U.S. cities in May and June. Starting in Los Angeles, the tour continues to Las Vegas, Dallas, Nashville, TN, Atlanta, Chicago, Wilmington, DE and ends in New York City. Featured products include Martin’s MAC Axiom Hybrid, which was also showcased at Prolight + Sound in Frankfurt, Germany earlier this month.

NORWALK, CT – Tony Award-winning production manager and founder of Aurora Productions, Gene O’Donovan, joined Theatre Projects’ staff recently as part of the company’s ongoing guest speaker series. Theatre Projects’ speaker series invites accomplished performing arts professionals to share their insights, history, and philosophy, and engage in a back-and-forth conversation with staff in order to better understand the challenges they’ve faced, the facilities they operate in, and the trajectory of the performing arts.

INDIO, CA – Steve Lieberman of SJ Lighting added an extra dimension to the DJ booth at the Yuma tent during the 17th Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival by using Geyser RGB LED foggers from CHAUVET DJ. The DMX-controlled foggers released their jet-like plumes at critical times during performances by the likes of DJ Koze, John Digweed, George Fitzgerald, Black Coffee and The Black Madonna.

NEW ORLEANS – Held March 11-12 at Mardi Gras World on the New Orleans Mississippi riverfront, the Buku Music + Art Project is one of the city’s most thriving music festivals, underscored with public art demonstrations from prevalent local and national artists. This year’s event featured EDM and hip-hop acts playing across four stages, two of which featured lighting gear from Elation Professional. Raven Production Management Group provided Elation Rayzor Q12 Zoom and Platinum Beam 5R Extreme fixtures for the Float Den and Ballroom Stages.

CHICAGO – JR Lighting Design, Inc. has added two grandMA2 light consoles to its production rental inventory. The company offers equipment sales, production rentals, integration and systems design to the house of worship, architainment, regional production, national touring, theatrical, live music, museum and educational markets.

OKLAHOMA CITY – Chris Maguire is not a guy who is known for going small. He has lit some of the biggest, loudest bands in the rock pantheon, including Ted Nugent, Cheap Trick, Foghat, Accept and Kiss frontman Paul Stanley’s Live To Win tour. But this year, he is out carrying an Avolites Tiger Touch II, plus an Avolites Quartz as a backup in his carry-on, lighting YouTube sensations 2Cellos on a tour that proves that small does not mean meek.

INDIO, CA — Major Lazer unleashed their new live show, which will be touring throughout 2016, at Coachella 2016. The EDM trio performed two sets on the main Coachella Stage, one on each weekend of the 125,000 capacity festival. The final set, on April 24, included a surprise appearance by Usher, who performed “I Would Die 4 U” and “1999” as a tribute to Prince. The rig included Robe BMFL Spots, BMFL WashBeams and ColorStrobe fixtures.

MIAMI — EDM fans came out of winter hibernation in mid-March in time for Miami Music Week. On March 17, LD Neil Marsh lit U.K.-based DJs Above & Beyond as they performed at the old RC Cola plant in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood. The gig was the largest independent party during Miami Music Week. Marsh used Elation ACL 360 Bars as part of the floor package for the DJ trio.

TORONTO – The 65th NBA All-Star Game, the first held outside the U.S., took place at Air Canada Centre in Toronto on Feb. 14, 2016. Along with the basketball action, attractions included an intro staged by Cirque du Soleil and a halftime show headlined by Sting. Lighting designer Otis Howard, of Otis Howard Design in St. Petersburg, FL, turned to Prelite Studios to help envision the show’s very diverse lighting needs.

HOLLYWOOD, CA – Chauvet Professional’s third Student Lighting Showcase was held at a new venue, the Ricardo Montalbán Theatre in Hollywood. The event, which took place Saturday, April 16, reached new heights in terms of student participation, lighting designer involvement and the overall learning experience. This year, the theme of the program was lighting music from the movies.