NEW YORK – For the Big Apple Circus's recent Dance On! show under the Big Top, Scharff Weisberg provided lighting, audio and video equipment for a new entrance tent in Lincoln Center Plaza's Damrosch Park. The entrance tent, designed by David Rockwell of Rockwell and Associates, "exponentially increased our front of house space," said Scott O'Donnell, vice president and general manager of the Big Apple Circus. To make the most of that extra space, the circus looked to Scharff Weisberg to make it a fun and functional area. "We've had a long association with Scharff Weisberg – they know us and what we do as an organization. We don't just come to town with a show, we bring our venue with us and create everything from the ground up. Scharff Weisberg understands our needs and gives us great advice and support."
One of the purposes of the entrance tent was to give circus-goers a more detailed first impression of the Big Apple Circus.
"We're not just a performance, but an institution as well," O'Donnell noted. "We're a non-profit that works in clown care and has Circus for All and Circus After School programs – we do a lot of community outreach. The video screens we positioned at either side of the tent rotunda were very cool and were well received by our patrons and clients. They enabled us to do messaging before and after the show."
Scharff Weisberg provided two Christie 10K projectors for a pair of projection screens provided by Moss. A QLabs Pro system played back content via a Macintosh computer.
Scharff Weisberg also provided 124 Philips iW LED blasts for ambient light in the tent. Eight Vari*Lite VLX fixtures added movement and color in the rotunda. An array of ETC ellipsoidals and dimmers were on hand for custom Big Apple Circus graphics, with templates for texture and for concession lighting. An LEX power distribution was also used for utility and tent heating.
Scharff Weisberg also provided audio gear for the general entrance tent sound system and projection audio for the video screens as well as a live audio feed from the Big Top.
The entrance tent also served as an event space, with a VIP lounge and two additional lounges that could be rented for private parties and meetings.
"Everything went very well," O'Donnell said. "We had a very exciting season. A program that aired on PBS last fall gave the Big Apple Circus more exposure, and a lot of people came to the show who have not been to the circus for years."
At the Big Apple Circus, Jon Batz was lighting coordinator. BAC handled the installation and design collaboration for the tent.
At Scharff Weisberg John Healy and Barry Grossman were the project managers. Chris McMeen, vice president of sales, headed lighting and video technical design. Drew DeCorleto, John Ackerman, Scott Schacter, Dennis Alfonso, Hector Vega and Patrick Denny were the support team.
For more information, please visit www.scharffweisberg.com and www.videoapps.com.
