This summer, the renowned LD's lighting design hit the road, as Kinky Boots began its first national tour. Included in Posner's road rig were 18 COLORado 2-Quad Zoom Tour fixtures from Chauvet Professional. The LED par-style fixtures were supplied by Production Resource Group (PRG), which also provided the equipment for the pre-Broadway and Broadway engagement of Kinky Boots.
Used primarily as wash fixtures, the COLORado 2-Quad Zoom Tours, which are powered by 14 Quad-Colour RGBW 15W LEDs, were positioned over the main area of the stage. Once the zoom feature of the COLORados fixtures was used to focus them, they were left in the same position for the entire show.
"We specified the COLORados for the tour to replace a full stage down light colour wash we were using," said Posner. "The COLORados have given us enhanced colour variety, and they eliminated the need for colour scrollers - plus there were no perishable costs. Overall, the intensity, 16-bit fade of individual colours, and colour range made these fixtures a good choice for the tour."
In addition to the Chauvet Professional fixtures, the Kinky Boots Tour rig included spot luminaires, ellipsoidals and linear fixtures. Posner, whose lighting design was nominated for a Tony Award, credits his quality rig and dedicated team with making the 2014 tour go smoothly.
"Tours in general are challenging by their nature," he said. "The goal is to replicate the Broadway experience, which is not always easy. We were able to do this on the Kinky Boots tour, thanks to the efforts and talent of Anthony Pearson, my associate designer; Jeremy Cunningham, our first assistant; Jason Badger, our moving light programmer; and Randy Zaibek, our production electrician. Darren DeVerna and his team at PRG lighting also did an excellent job helping us put together a really great touring package."
(Jim Evans)
