International News

AMSTERDAM – Dutch House DJ Fedde Le Grand performed his Grand 2016 event at Amsterdam’s 20,000 capacity Ziggo Dome in mid-March. The sold out event featured an impressive  lighting design by JJ Rotte from Dutch lighting and visual creative practice Light Image. Rotte included more than 200 Robe moving lights in the design. The lighting complemented a set design by Sightline Productions and included 43 Robe BMFL Spots, 65 Pointes, 64 LEDBeam 1000s and 48 CycFX 8 fixtures.

HANNOVER, Germany – It might be unusual for the head of a world power to pay a visit to any company’s trade show booth. But Harting Technology Group noted that both U.S. president Barack Obama and Germany’s chancellor Angela Merkel paid a visit, at the same time, to the company’s booth during the opening of the world’s largest industrial trade show, which took place April 25-29 at the Hannover Messe exhibition center.

PRETORIA, South Africa — For Mumford and Sons’ “Gentlemen of the Road” South African Tour 2016, LD Ed Warren’s rig included 26 Martin MAC Viper Profiles, 12 MAC Viper Washes, 22 MAC Quantum Washes, four JEM ZR44 smoke machines and two JEM K1 hazers.

MELBOURNE, Australia – MPH Australia is a busy lighting rental company based in Melbourne, headed by Matt Hansen (pictured here). The company has embraced Robe as an in-house brand, and now offers LEDWash 600s, MMX Spots, LEDBeam 100s and BMFL series fixtures to its clients.

LONDON – Singer / songwriter Foxes (Louisa Rose Allen), whose vocals were featured on “Clarity” by Zedd, recently toured the U.K. with a new lighting design created by Jake Vernum. Working with LD Cate Carter of Bryte Design, the lighting looks relied upon Robe fixtures included five LEDWash 1200s, six Pointes and six LEDBeam 100s. At larger venues such as London’s Roundhouse, the tour rig was complemented by house-supplied lighting including additional Robe moving lights.

MANCHESTER, U.K. – Visual production expert FIX8Group has been adding to its rental inventory under the direction of the company’s Technical Director, Nick Charalampidis. Charalampidis, who has been with FIX8Group since early 2013, is now responsible for enhancing the division’s dry hire inventory with industry-leading products, carefully selected to suit almost all requirements.

MANILA, The Philippines – One of the biggest boy bands in K-pop, EXO, have played their first two concerts outside of Korea with a high-impact lighting design by Moon Won Jun of Lite Factory for two consecutive shows in Manila. The LD used more than 200 Clay Paky fixtures supplied by PMX Trading and Technical Services, which upplied a full technical package. The lighting rig included 130 Clay Paky Sharpys, 50 Sharpy Wash 330s, 16 A.leda B-EYE K20s and a mix of 42 Stormy CC and Stormy LED strobes. The sold-out concerts took place at Manila’s 20,000-capacity SM Mall of Asia arena in Pasay, in the Manila area.

SERIATE, Italy – Clay Paky, which opened MoMS – the Museum of Modern Show Lighting last year, welcomed a delagation of teachers from schools in Italy’s Bergamo province on March 15. The delegation of teachers from a dozen schools in the region was sponsored by the provincial education authority and included the participation of an inspector from the Italian Ministry of Education.

LONDON – Organizers for the Knight of Illumination Awards (KOI) have announced that this year’s ceremony will take place at the Eventim Apollo (formerly the Hammersmith Odeon, pictured here) on Sept. 18, 2016. Clay Paky will be Headline Sponsor for this year’s event, the ninth year the awards ceremony has been staged. Other key sponsors include Ambersphere Solutions, Ayrton, ETC, FIX8Group, Hawthorn, Light Initiative, MA Lighting, Philips Vari-Lite, PLASA, PRG XL Video, Robert Juliat and VER.

LONDON — KOKO, a prominent venue for live music in London, has upgraded with Avolites’ Arena console. The venue’s head of lighting, Hannu Finnila, uses the console to control a rig that includes Robe Pointe, Martin Atomic Strobe and Chauvet Rogue R2 Wash and Spot fixtures..

HANNOVER, Germany – The Harting Technology Group, which is affiliated with Harting USA in Elgin, IL, was honored April 24 with the 2016 Hermes Award. Harting and four other companies had been nominated for the 2016 honor. Harting won for its MICA (Modular Industry Computing Architecture) mini-industrial computer. Pictured here from left are Dr. Karsten Walther, Harting IT Software Development GmbH & Co. KG, Prof. Dr. Johanna Wanka, Federal Minster of Education and Research, and Philip Harting, CEO, Board Connectivity & Networks, Harting Technology Group.