UK - The Kings Theatre in Southsea, Portsmouth is one of those Edwardian treasures that are fast becoming a rarity in the provinces. This exquisite example, with its Italian Renaissance style of décor and façade, first opened its doors in 1907 and has seen the likes of Sarah Bernhardt, Noel Coward and Ivor Novello grace the stage. As a centre for arts and entertainment, it has served the audiences of Portsmouth and Southsea faithfully ever since.

Fast forward to 2013 and the Kings has successfully moved with the times, upgrading and modernising its facilities without losing any of its original charm and theatrical heritage, not always an easy balancing act as technical manager, Nick Benjamin explains. "The time had come to replace our house followspots - the inclusion

Brazil - DJ David Guetta completed an incendiary nine-date Brazilian tour in January, which saw Robe moving lights on the spec for most of the shows.

Guetta's lighting is designed by Jonathan 'Leggy' Armstrong - well known for his imaginative and stylish shows which have graced several leading dance acts including Basement Jaxx. The touring team works with entirely locally sourced productions wherever they play, and lighting on the road for this leg of the ongoing world tour was overseen and operated by two lighting directors - Alex 'Junior' Cerio of Smash Productions and Sam MacLaren of LightLab - both also LDs in their own right.

Between them and the video visuals produced by Ben Brett's Pilot video control system, operated by Nick Briggs, Guetta gets a dynamic world class show wherever he plays.

This is also a very exciting and refreshing way to work, fusing structured el

Denmark - Globally renowned chef Claus Meyer has recently opened The Standard, a live jazz and restaurant venue in Copenhagen, Denmark. The jazz club features a compact, self-powered Meyer Sound UltraSeries loudspeaker system installed by Kastrup, Denmark-based Stouenborg.

"The Standard has a small, powerful, and flexible system that offers excellent dispersion and reproduces sound perfectly," says Anders J°rgensen, project manager and sound designer for Stouenborg.

The installation in the 68-seat club combines two UPJ-1P VariO and three UPM-1P loudspeakers with one UMS-1P subwoofer. Performances are mixed on a Roland V-Mixer mixing console, and musicians use DPA microphones.

"We considered a number of options, but the combination of UPJ-1P and UPM-1P loudspeakers best provided the necessary audio fidelity and visual unobtrusiveness," says J°rgens

Russia - Reminiscent of one of the lighter scenes in Taratino's classic Pulp Fiction, the Pink Cadillac restaurant in Moscow city centre has exactly that, a beautiful nineteen fifties model, all fins and chrome, sat right in the middle of the room. This is the real deal; dancing, singing waiter bring burgers and milkshakes to your table in this immersive retro dining experience. Yet for all this glamour the building used to be a garage so when AE Consulting first came to remodel the room the acoustic environment was one of their primary concerns.

"We faced a real challenge," said Alexander Evstratov, AE Consulting director general. "In our line of work we focus on quality rather than quantity, so to neutralise the reverberation of the room and other unwanted acoustic artefacts, required the lightest of touches architecturally speaking. To complete the fifti

Germany - Martin Audio has confirmed the appointment of the experienced Andreas Weingaertner as its new international account manager.

Based in Bremen, Germany, Weingaertner brings more than 26 years of sales and marketing experience in pro audio to the role - covering all aspects of MI, rental and fixed installations.

"After all this time in pro audio I remain excited by the possibilities, and this has enabled me to constantly learn, not only about new products but also the changing needs of distributors and end-users," said Andreas.

"I had been approached in recent years by other loudspeaker manufacturers, but the opportunity to work for such a pioneering manufacturer as Martin Audio, was a prospect too good to pass by. They really are leading their field, with the likes of MLA.

"I'm looking forward to meeting the network of EMEA distributors at Integ

Sheffield triumphs - Sheffield Theatres has been named the best regional theatre for the second year running at the Stage Awards. The organisation, which runs the Crucible and Lyceum venues, was recognised for its range of new shows in the past season, such as its stage adaptation of The Full Monty.

The entertainment industry newspaper's 2014 awards also saw Hampstead Theatre named London theatre of the year. Michael Grandage's company was named producer of the year. The Donmar Warehouse's former artistic director was praised for his inaugural West End season, which featured the likes of Daniel Radcliffe, Jude Law and Dame Judi Dench and offered £10 tickets.

The prize for school of the year went to the National Youth Theatre, which provided free training to young people in 2013. London's Southwark Playhouse was named best fringe theatre, while the annual &q

UK - If you have ever wondered how DiGiCo's application specific software extensions work, two newly released tutorial videos make it even easier to find out.

Hosted by DiGiCo's Dan Page, the new video tutorials provide a quick and easy resource that takes you through the main points of each software extension, demonstrating that the T and B versions of the SD range are as simple to use as the original live versions.

DiGiCo's proprietary Stealth Digital Processing already gives SD console users a huge advantage in the real world. DiGiCo's T and B application specific software extensions provide additional set of tools, for theatre and broadcast respectively, that are normally reserved for much more expensive consoles.

T software is available on the flagship SD7, SD10 and SD9 consoles, making the same powerful functions that are used in the West End and on Broadway accessible

featured content

OPUS X4 PROFILE – the most powerful LED moving head from Cameo to date

The OPUS® X4 PROFILE is the new flagship model from Cameo and is among the most powerful LED moving heads on the market. Equipped with a 1,400-watt LED white light engine, this spot profile moving head produces an enormous light output of 50,000 lm, providing powerful spot and gobo projections on even the largest stages and much more.
www.cameolight.com

UK - Building on the success of previous years, Paradigm AV report an outstanding response to their high-brightness screen technology, geared specifically for the educational segment, at this year's BETT Show 2014.

According to sales manager, Dave Stephen, a more minimalist approach this time out paid dividends, resulting in a more direct communication with the customer and clear, unambiguous messaging.

Attention was mainly focused on the dnp 92in STS Ultra Short Throw, in 16:10 aspect ratio, used in conjunction with a super widescreen Epson EB485W projector (0.27:1 throw ratio), and 100in Supernova Core 2 display.

Here, the permanently packed stand gave visitors the opportunity to see a split screen, comparing standard screen resolution in daylight conditions, with the high visual acuity of the award-winning Supernova technology.

"As a result, we received a very good

The Netherlands - Funktion-One kicks off the trade show calendar with its fourth appearance at ISE in Amsterdam. As the British loudspeaker manufacturer prepares for more product launches later in 2014, it reflects on the preceding year, which saw the introduction of the Bass Reflex (BR) Range, PSM318 DJ Monitor and the award-winning Modular Stadium Technology (MST) Horns.

MST Horns will play a crucial role in the sound reinforcement for the forthcoming Russian Winter Olympics in Sochi which commence the day after ISE closes. Sochi's Olympic Bobsleigh Track picked up Permanent Installation Project of the Year at the Pro Sound Awards 2013 and the Bolshoy Ice Dome, home to the Ice Hockey competition, features the largest MST deployment to date.

The large format MST loudspeaker range, which has been expanded to include different dispersion options, will be on show at ISE, togethe

The Netherlands - From rental and staging, to retail, higher education, and corporate, Panasonic has presented its visual vision of the future at ISE, in Amsterdam.

Panasonic's ability to supply an end-to-end, fully integrated visual solutions system, is demonstrated across an impressive 400sqm booth, which also presents new technology that will shape the future of professional display.

Showcasing the next generation of solid state illumination projectors, utilising a laser light source, and announcing projectors and professional displays with 4K resolution, Panasonic is at the forefront of visual development and leading the market with cutting edge solutions for various applications.

Panasonic's position as a full range supplier of professional displays is strengthened with the 98" and 84" 4K LED displays, the latest in its line of large format displays.

The 4K

USA - Elation Professional invites lighting professionals to the intimate environs of PLASA Focus Nashville and Booth 429 for the opportunity to talk in depth with qualified Elation personnel and get a more thorough look at Elation's line of versatile lighting and control solutions. Join the Elation team 18-19 February at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium where the Elation staff will be happy to demo the latest products.

"We always enjoy exhibiting at the PLASA Focus shows because of the amount of quality time we get to spend with visitors," states Elation sales director Eric Loader. "Getting detailed feedback on our products and really taking the time to show what our products can do is often hard at the larger trade shows. The intimate format of PLASA Focus and the high-quality free educational seminars bring in customers who want to learn about new technology

UK - RUD Chains Ltd is one of the world's largest manufacturers of round steel chain components and systems, producing top quality chains and applications to suit a vast selection of working environments. RUD has held key positions in the machine construction industry for over 140 years, specifically in the areas of forming, welding, heat treatment and surface technology. RUD is known in the industry as one of the leading hoist manufacturers and suppliers for a wide range of hoist chains made from highly wear resistant round steel chains according to EN 818-7 for motor driven and manual hoists. RUD hoist chain can be supplied to suit a variety of project sizes from the smallest size - 3 x 9 mm up to the world's largest - 32 x 90 mm.

The advantages of RUD hoist chain is impressive, offering an extremely high resistance to wear due to its robust surface and depth hardness resultin

South Africa - DWR Distribution has announced the appointment of Bradley Bruchhausen who will provide sales and support to clients in Cape Town.

"Having a full time representative in Cape Town is something we always hoped for," said Duncan Riley of DWR. "It's so much easier for our clients to make a phone call and be assisted with someone who is in the area and who can help straight away." The team at DWR have wonderful Cape Town industry friends, which means that there will still be regular visits, roadshow and training. Once new premises have been found, the new address will be announced. For now, Bradley will be available on his mobile."

"Bradley has been in the industry for the past 11 years and with a lovely and easy-going nature, it has been a pleasure to welcome him to the DWR family. He came up to Johannesburg for a couple of weeks at the

UK - SGM's versatile and compact LD-5 light domes are increasingly finding favour in some of the UK's key late night entertainment venues.

Having been plunged into paper lanterns for Wonderland in Maidstone, and featured in a giant immersive display at Sanctuary in Glasgow, they are now being put to equally innovative use by two installation specialists, Andy Pound, operations director of Technical Arts Ltd, as part of Luminar Leisure's Oceana nightclub conversions into Pryzm, and by Sound Power director David Ridout as a standard fit in the large Australian outback themed Walkabout Inns.

These LED domes, with an outer diameter of just 80mm, can be used in any orientation, with a maximum number of 35 domes in a single chain. They can also be custom designed to fit any housing, and are controlled via three-channel DMX.

An example of their adaptability was shown by Pound in Pr

The Netherlands - Hitachi Digital Media Group has announced the launch of an entire new range of Ultra-Short and Interactive Ultra-Short LCD projectors. All of the new projectors offer exceptional usability and easy access to powerful features while the Interactive models feature multi-pen and PCless drawing as well as the option of finger operation.

"Through continual innovation and by listening to the voice of customers, Hitachi has delivered a whole range of Ultra-Short Throw projectors that dispense with the need to compromise performance for convenience," said Axel Kutschke, senior manager, presentation products for Hitachi Digital Media Group. "Despite the adoption of a fixed mirror, which is just one of the features that ensure exceptional image quality, these bright, high performance models are still the smallest and lightest Ultra-Short Throw projectors o

UK - 2014 looks set to be the year of the B-EYE, the latest innovation from the Clay Paky stable of moving light fixtures. The design and effect possibilities of the K20 and its smaller sibling, the K10 are best seen when the lights are in action; even a thorough study of the written documentation doesn't really seem to quite do them justice.

Exclusive UK and ROI distributors, Ambersphere Solutions were on hand to provide support and service at one of the B-EYE's latest outings - the recordings of the Jonathan Ross Show for production company, Hot Sauce and at the Graham Norton Show for So Television. All the fixtures for these recordings were supplied by Aurora Lighting Hire who have a well-established reputation in television lighting and know exactly what works best on camera.

Lee House from Ambersphere's technical sales was enthused by the B-EYE's reception.

USA - Luke Bryan has rolled out his That's My Kind of Night Tour, and Elite Multimedia Productions in Nashville is providing grandMA2 consoles as Bryan once again takes to the road. The popular country artist's new tour is named after his latest single, which has catapulted to # 1 in the country charts.

"We just concluded the Dirt Road Diaries Tour with Luke; his new tour will run from January 2014 to the end of October", says Tom Wilson, vice president of event productions at Elite Multimedia Productions.

Lighting designer Justin Kitchenman of Fade Up Design Group points out that Bryan "wants all of his productions to be big, ambitious and with lots of bells and whistles. When someone walks into this show they're walking into a party."

Bryan is at the centre of the action figuratively and literally. "We designed a 42-foot wide circle stage th

India - India commemorated the remarkable milestone of three years with zero polio cases in January 2014 with the 'India is Polio Free 'campaign, staging seven special events in major cities across the country - Mumbai, Delhi, Agra, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Jodhpur and Bikaner - on the same day.

In each of these cities, prime historical monuments were projected on to and lit using Robe moving lights and LED fixtures.

These included Agra Fort in Agra; India Gate and the Red Fort in Delhi; Hyderabad Public School in Hyderabad; the Teeli Wali Mosque in Lucknow; the Sojati Gate in Jodhpur and the Junagarh Fort in Bikaner, together with the key commercial landmark Air India Building in Mumbai.

All installations were designed by Rasesh Parekh from Mumbai based lighting company (MIET) Maya Intelligent Entertainment Technologies in conjunction with its sister company IES (Integrated Ente

UK - Entertainment lighting specialist White Light is headed to the Event Production Show February 11-12 at Earls Court 2 in London to showcase the latest lighting and effects equipment for the events industry. The company will feature new products from Core Lighting, JB Lighting, and ArKaos Pro on stand G50.

New to the show will be Core Lighting's latest product - the lightweight ColourPoint RGBW uplighter designed for quick setup and sleek presentation. CORE Lighting specialises in battery-powered, wirelessly controlled LED lighting fixtures designed for instant illumination anywhere including events, parties and productions indoor and out. Also on display from CORE Lighting will be the Point30 - available in RGBW, tunable white, and 4200K colours - and the high output, low energy Flood30, IP65 rated with a rugged casing perfect for temporary or permanent outdoor installations

Vietnam - Continuing to expand the successful Vuvuzela Beer Club brand in Vietnam, the Golden Gate Group recently held a grand opening for another Vuvuzela Beer Club on Truong Son Street, the gateway to the heart of Saigon from Tan Son Nhat International Airport.

As with the other Vuvuzela Beer Clubs, audio specialists and Van Damme cable exponents, QV Sound, designed the sound system to meet the critical demands of the Golden Gate Group's management. The sound system needed to achieve high sound pressure levels, high quality sound, and enough bass to "rock" the crowd. To achieve this QV sound used high quality Neutrik connectors and Van Damme cabling throughout.

QV's business development manager Mr Quoc Nguyen said, "We always use Van Damme cables and fittings from VDC Trading wherever possible because they are trouble free, they represent excellent value and f

UK - Following a rigorous competitive tendering process, Star Events Group has announced a three-year contract to supply all of the East Ringside Hospitality Facility requirements for the Royal Windsor Horse Show (RWHS) at Windsor Castle, for the period 2014 to 2016.

Tez Sheals-Barrett, project manager and bid team leader for this contract for Star Events said that the news is perfectly timed, as the centre-piece of the contract is the company's new VISTA corporate viewing system, which is being officially launched at the Event Production Show. Star's delivery team includes their regular VISTA partner, Centre Stage, who manufacture and install the Xenia suite system and TT Tents, who themselves have a long history with the RWHS.

Michael Shephard, MD of HPower Group, organisers of the RWHS, said, "Our brief was very challenging and Star proposed the best use of space with

Latest Issue. . .

Save
Cookies user preferences
We use cookies to ensure you to get the best experience on our website. If you decline the use of cookies, this website may not function as expected.
Accept all
Decline all
Analytics
Tools used to analyze the data to measure the effectiveness of a website and to understand how it works.
Google Analytics
Accept
Decline
Advertisement
If you accept, the ads on the page will be adapted to your preferences.
Google Ad
Accept
Decline