UK - A major challenge for anyone offering further education in technical theatre or entertainment arts is being able to offer students access to the very latest, state-of-the-art equipment. In today's rapidly evolving industry, new technology can become almost obsolete within a few years. Administrators at Nottingham New College decided to take a pro-active approach to overcome this.

Technical course leader, Lucy Greaves, explains, "Our FdA Theatre Arts (Acting) students were preparing a performance of Terrorism by the Presnyakov Brothers and the FdA Theatre Arts (Technical) students were providing the technical support required for the play. The director of the performance, Phil Green who is the course leader of the FdA Theatre Arts (Acting) course requested a light

USA - Barbara Walters described Coeur D 'Alene, ID as "a little slice of heaven." The National Geographic has declared its namesake lake to be one of the five most beautiful in the world. No wonder the rich and famous from all walks of life have flocked to this idyllic Idaho city. Coeur D 'Alene's paradisiacal pleasures are evident throughout the year, but at no time does the city glitter quite so brightly as it does during the Christmas season when it hosts its holiday lightshow.

Official estimates place the number of lights involved in the show at 1.5m. This year another 14 fixtures were added to the holiday mix, in the form of COLORado 4 IP LED linear washes from Chauvet Professional, provided by AMP'D Entertainment.

Although 14 fixtures might not seem like much compared to 1.5 million points of light, the COLORados had an outsized impact on Coeur D 'Alene's fes

Germany - The B22 is a multipurpose omnidirectional subwoofer from d&b audiotechnik. The B22-SUB houses two 18" neodymium drivers in an efficient bandpass horn design producing high Sound Pressure Levels and an extended frequency response.

The B2 is well known and loved around the world thanks to the signature sonic performance and after over twenty years of service, it's time for an update. Intended for ground stacked applications, the omnidirectional B22-SUB promises increased performance, a modern appearance and improved internal cabinet bracing.

The B22-SUB is the largest d&b omnidirectional subwoofer, but when used in multiples of three and in CSA mode (Cardioid Subwoofer Array), they exhibit impressive rejection towards the rear. To increase flexibility, the B22-SUB can also be operated in INFRA mode, which extends the frequency response to supplement other d&b su

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ETC Ministar

ETC introduces the High End Systems Ministar, a game-changer in our automated lighting product line. Ministar brings exceptional versatility and performance at an affordable price point; with a compact footprint, punchy output, and a professional feature set, Ministar fits the spec and budget for small to medium-sized venues.

USA - At a star-studded award ceremony at The Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, NV during the CES 2016 show, the team from CAST Software received their second Technology & Engineering Emmy Award for wysiwyg in the Pre-Production Visualization System category of the 2015 Technology and Engineering Achievement Awards.

"We're immensely proud of this honour and validation of our team's commitment in continued technical innovation to help with TV and film productions," enthuses Dino Mazza, product manager at CAST Software.

After winning its' first Emmy, CAST Software continued engineering innovative technologies and the advancement of wysiwyg, which today is the tool of choice for many of the world's leading lighting designers as well as production and scenic designers.

"The award is recognition of wysiwyg users who use it as their go-to pre-production lighting tool

UK - The £9m three story Centre for Creative Industries at Sheffield College is now open. Audio Light Systems installed theatre, TV studio, five drama studios and a multi room music facility which are at the heart of the new building.

The Theatre boasts a Slingco tension wire grid, production lighting & sound, a large screen projection system, full perimeter drapes, theatre communications & a spacious control room.

The TV studio is kitted out with Doughty Studio Rail systems, full high-level drapes and a state of the art control room.

The five drama studios and music spaces are also packed with a generous amount of hardware & tech, providing a learning facility which can have simultaneous productions

"Doughty equipment featured heavily in this project and as usual it give the quality finish that is expected from us. Dan at Doughty is amazing," comments

Italy - The Casinò Municipale di San Pellegrino Terme has a charming, exclusive Art Nouveau atmosphere. With its majestic beauty and the ornamental richness both of its interior and exterior, it is a splendid setting - perhaps even the perfect place to experiment with lighting to enhance its elegance and bring back to mind the splendour of the Belle Époque.

Longhi Banqueting had the idea of illuminating the casino. The catering company contacted the lighting designer Giuseppe Cividini and asked him to design show lighting for the building.

"We got a lot of ideas from the technical inspection and came up with solutions for carrying out the work inside the building and on the façade. It was necessary to dim down the areas that were too brightly lit and illuminate the poorly lit parts to make them stand out at their best," Giuseppe Cividini relates.

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UK - Lighting designer Jordon Cooper armed himself with an Avolites Tiger Touch II with Fader Wing to control a series of dynamic UK 'Homecoming' gigs for alt-rock band Mallory Knox following their American tour.

"The band had been in the US for most of 2015 and wanted to create a big impact on their return," says Cooper. "The Tiger Touch II, loaded with V9, is my first choice for this type of show. I designed the tour featuring a lot of multi-cell fixtures, LED tape and effects such as smoke machines and strobes, so I used the Pixel Mapper and Key Frame Shapes features, which offer a very quick way to create effects and it gives you a lot more control on how precise they are."

The team opened each show with a giant Union Jack backdrop to mark the homecoming, and designed two large set pieces either side of stage which were based on Mallory Knox's 'MK' lo

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Strictly FX Highlights

Strictly FX was founded in 1996 by industry veterans Mark Grega and Ted Maccabee. Our expertise and knowledge of the world’s leading pyrotechnic, laser, and flame manufacturers allows us to curate astonishing live events. With over 500+ shows performed a year, there’s good chance you’ve seen some of our work!

Germany - Shure has announced that it has joined the Cisco Solution Partner Programme as a solution partner. The Internet of Everything (IoE) continues to bring together people, processes, data, and things to enhance the relevancy of network connections. As a member of the Cisco Solution Partner Programme, Shure is able to quickly create and deploy solutions to enhance the capabilities, performance, and management of the network to capture value in the IoE.

"We are very proud to be a Cisco solution partner," said Chad Wiggins, category director for networked systems at Shure. "This distinction imparts in our customers the confidence that they can easily integrate our microphone solution, Microflex Wireless, within their Cisco infrastructure."

"Microflex Wireless has been very beneficial for our users," said Brian Hayes, senior design engineer at

UK - As a membership charity, the Association of British Theatre Technicians continuously seeks to evaluate its activities and where possible expand their scope to meet its charitable aims and benefit its members and supporters.

With the UK Government investing in creating opportunities for British businesses to participate and thrive in emerging markets and with the ABTT growing at home, 2015 saw the organisation participating in new initiatives abroad, developing prospects for both individual and corporate members to visit new markets and to share best practice with fellow practitioners round the globe.

In the new Winter edition of Sightline, the Association's journal of theatre technology and design, received free by the ABTT membership, a number of these ventures are recorded.

Michael Anderson, chairman of the ABTT safety committee, writes about his visit to th

Mexico - Loto Audio has completed the first stage of a project at Mamitas Beach Club in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Ro. Mexico. The owners called on the Funktion-One distributor after they visited several beach venues in Ibiza.

Loto Audio's Ramon Salazar explains, "We started to try and make contact with the owner over a year ago because this is the best and most famous beach club in Mexico. When we found him, it turned out that he was also looking for us - the Funktion-One distributor for Mexico. He went to some beach resorts in Ibiza where he experienced that Funktion-One sound and he was amazed. In that moment, the venue and the owner committed to new, extensive project of remodeling and growing Mamitas."

Taking into account the environmental challenges, Loto Audio specified a system comprising four Funktion-One Resolution 4 speakers and two F221 double-21in bass

Europe - Award winning Swedish progressive metal band Opeth celebrated their 25th anniversary this autumn with a European tour, complete with a stunning lighting design by Mick Thornton, who has worked with them since 2005.

Mick, a respected and well established UK based LD who works with a number of high profile international artists, specified Robe moving lights after using Robe on shows for the Moody Blues earlier in the summer. For the Opeth tour, lighting was supplied by Leeds, UK, based lighting rental company, Zig Zag.

The fixture list included 10 x Robe 600E Spots, 10 x LEDWash 600s, 18 x LEDBeam 100s, LEDForce and 18 RGBW LED PARs, together with strobes and Moles, distributed across four upstage vertical towers, a rear truss and the floor.

Opeth's lighting needs to be moody, dramatic, dark, a bit sinister and definitely edgy.

Imaginative video - produced by Mi

The Netherlands - An substantial rig of over 300 Clay Paky fixtures, including 93 Stormy CC strobes, created the ultimate immersive rave on Amsterdam Music Festival (AMF).

Lighting designer André Beekmans of Eindhoven-based lighting design house The Art of Light created the extraordinary lighting concept for the two-day event, which saw a line-up of some of the biggest electronic dance music (EDM) artists of the moment including Armin van Buuren and David Guetta.

Ampco Flashlight supplied the Clay Paky kit, comprising 108 Sharpys, 15 Mythos, 96 Sharpy Wash 330, 93 Stormy CC and 15 Mythos. The festival took place in the vast Amsterdam Arena and was attended by thousands of revellers from around the world.

"We were honoured to be able to use the Stormy CC on such a large scale," says Beekmans. "We employed them to deliver vibrant strobing in a huge ran

UK - This year's PLASA Focus Glasgow takes place on 20-21 January at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre. The technology showcase will allow attendees to discover the latest lighting products, speak to industry experts and experience hands-on demonstrations. As the complete production solution specialist, White Light is once again showcasing its unparalleled range of products and expertise at the event.

Following an extremely successful PLASA Focus Glasgow in 2014, WL is delighted to be returning to the show this year. Peter Threadgold, WL's customer services director, comments, "PLASA Focus provides a fantastic opportunity for us to showcase the extensive range of state-of-the-art products we have at WL. With so much exciting change happening within the company since we were last in Glasgow, we cannot wai

Israel - Busy Israeli lighting and audio rental specialist Mor Kol is supplying Robe moving lights for the current Shimon Buskila tour, one of the country's best known and most popular singer / songwriters.

Twelve new Pointes were bought especially for the start of the tour and they join 12 of Morkol's existing stock of MMX Spots right at the essence of the eye-catching lighting scheme designed by Amit Freeman, himself a rising star on the ever-active Israeli live performance scene.

Tel Aviv based freelance LD Amit has worked with the artist for the last five years and his tours will typically last three years playing several high profile gigs per month in a variety of venues, for which the lighting needs to be adaptable and scalable to deal with the different stage spaces.

The Pointes are all positioned on the floor - dotted around in between the 10-piece band, with eigh

USA - Since its opening in 2014, Miami's E11EVEN has featured a procession of superstars from Drake to A-Trak on its stage - and that has been during normal times! During Winter Music Conference last year, the chic two-story downtown Miami club was a magnet for hip hop, house music and EDM heavies. There were so many artists slated to perform at the club that its management decided to expand stage space by booking some acts to perform up on the open, airy cabana style Rooftop Terrace over the second floor.

This decision ultimately led to a new look being created on the terrace by world-renowned club designer Michael Meacham of iDesign, using a collection of LED moving fixtures from Chauvet. "The club knew it had to create a different atmosphere up on the roof to support the acts it was bring there during the Winter Music Conference This is when they brought me in," sa

USA - More than 50 GLP impression X4 LED moving heads made a recent TV appearance on Legends: OWN at the Apollo, a four-part prime-time special featuring icons such as Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson, The Isley Brothers and Earth, Wind & Fire.

Created and produced by Ron Weisner Entertainment for the Oprah Winfrey Network, the programmes transported viewers to the Apollo Theatre in Harlem for four nights of classic soul music as well as personal thoughts on how this historic and world famous theatre has helped nurture and develop their careers.

From a technical perspective the event brought together the respective lighting skills of Matt Shimamoto (Volt Lites) and Mark Butts - both highly experienced in handling TV productions of this nature. With Shimamoto taking design duties and Butts overseeing the programming and operation, the brief was to create a rich and taste

USA - Part of the LA-based Full Flood collective of lighting designers, Matthew Firestone has been responsible for illuminating the National Christmas Tree, set in front of the White House, for the past three years.

While this year the 50ft high tree twinkled in amber and warm white, along with the various state territory lights, the performance stages featured a series of guest artists, along with GLP's new and versatile X4 Atom.

Each year America's first family attends the event, and following a countdown, the President throws the switch to begin the show, which was this year hosted by Reese Witherspoon.

In order to light the entire area, including the host stage, located in front of the tree and the White House, the performance stage, housing an orchestra from a different armed forces each year, along with an audience of around 12,000, a large inventory of fixtures was

The Netherlands - Avolites will be at on stand 8-K330 at ISE to launch its powered up new range of Ai R Series media servers and preview the feature-rich new Titan V10 software.

The company's redesigned, bespoke booth will feature a 'Media Integration Focus' area where visitors can get hands on with the latest in integrated lighting and video.

A highlight of the stand will be the new Ai R Series - Avolites' most powerful Ai servers yet, utilising a 6 Core i7 processor running at 3.5Ghz with 16Gb of fast RAM, solid state drives throughout, 1.2TB of Media Storage and benefits from up to 25% increased performance from the AMD W7100 due to twice as much GDDR5 memory and a significant increase in Bus speeds.

"We've packed the very best technology into the Ai R Series so we can be sure it satisfies even the most demanding of applications," says Avolites MD, Steve Warr

UK - Wavelength Stageco Ltd (WSL) in Redditch, UK, is a full service rental company near Birmingham with an expansion programme that continues to see the company moving into the dry hire realm of the entertainment technology industry in 2016.

As an important piece in that strategy, WSL has invested in Elation Professional lighting products over the past few months, a list that includes Elation SixPar 200 LED PAR lights, Colour Chorus 48 LED battens and Opti Quad Par LED colour changers, as well as Platinum Beam 5R, Platinum Spot 15R Pro and Platinum Wash ZFX moving heads.

"The quality of the Elation product is extremely good," stated WSL managing director Glen Brazil on why he turns to Elation lighting. "We've been buying Elation for the last four years, originally with Platinum 5R Beams and now with some of the newer product, and I'm glad that we have. It's b

UK - The new ID24 super-compact loudspeaker, the smallest ever made by Nexo, has been installed for the first time in Bristol, UK. Working as under-balcony-fills in the 2000-seater Hippodrome theatre, 24x ID24s are a vital element in the high-specification system brought in by London-based Orbital Sound for a specific production. Orbital Sound is the first rental company in the world to deploy the ID Series, used in Bristol alongside two other Nexo systems - a STM M28 modular line array for main PA, augmented by Geo M6 compact line array modules for upper balcony. With a view to forthcoming rental projects, Orbital has ordered ID24 cabinets in black and white. In Bristol, they have been installed as fills under the two large balconies, as well as stageside for front-fill. Orbital MD Chris Headlam describes the ID24 as "a latest generation product from the modern era of loudsp

China - Hangzhou, the capital city of China's Zhejiang Province - a growing e-commerce hub on the country's eastern coast - is set to host the 2016 G20 Summit, and is preparing with a series of infrastructure projects.

The Hangzhou Grand Theatre (HZGT) was awarded approximately 7.5m Yuan (about £790,000) to upgrade its stage lighting system, 11 years after the theatre opened with an ETC lighting system. ETC's Chinese dealer, Hangzhou YiDaShi Lighting Equipment Co. Ltd. (YiDaShi), supplied the theatre with ETC's latest innovations, including Source Four LED Series 2 Lustr luminaires, Eos Ti and Gio lighting control consoles, and a Sensor power control system.

The 55,000sq.m HZGT is made up of five venues: the 1,600 seat Opera House; a 600 seat Concert Hall; a 400 seat Multifunction Hall, an open air stage; and a 700 seat Cultural Square. As an international performing a

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