The show set up on the morning of each performance and had to be technically ready by 2.30pm for an orchestral rehearsal. Promoter Raymond Gubbay has long championed the use of large intelligent lighting systems to accompany the Classical Spectacular experience and expected this system to be used to its full potential with some 500 lighting cues throughout the show.
LD Durham Marenghi, who has been lighting the show for the last decade, utilised over 100 intelligent Martin Professional luminaires with 2,000 control channels as part of his new design. Illuminating the production are 16 MAC 2000s, Martin’s most powerful automated moving head, along with 16 MAC 500s, 72 MAC 600s, 12 Pro 400 colour-changers and 22 conventional lights, all supplied by Stage Electrics of Bristol.
It was clear that the lighting programme could not be created in one morning on site, so pre-programming was vital. In the past, large, expensive rehearsal spaces such as the Docklands Arena have been used, along with all the necessary equipment and crew, for one week. The show would then be worked through with the orchestra and choir layout marked with tape on the arena floor - a far from ideal method of envisaging such a large-scale production.
To make things easier, Durham Marenghi took advantage of the WYSIWYG studio at Stage Electrics’ new London office. Before doing so he worked on his 3D designs at home. The results were then presented to the client as photo quality images of different views of the rig for their approval. At this stage, sightlines were checked and the sound system was added and its position agreed.
Once given the go ahead, Marenghi transferred to the WYSIWYG studio and connected the virtual lighting system to the control desk that eventually ran the real lighting rig. Working with lighting operator John Sinden, Marenghi programmed the show over a week-long period. before finally presenting the results to the client as projected moving images, along with photo-realistic renderings of the effects. The results, as you can see, are pretty impressive, not least because the programming time for the project was significantly reduced as a consequence of the use of WYSIWYG.
