El Monstero stays fresh with Maverick Pyxis
- Details
Drawing on a cast of up to 75 characters, the annual tribute show in St. Louis has been coming up with novel and enthralling dramatizations and set designs every year since it was started by members of different local bands in 1999. True to form, the 2017 rendition of El Monstero sparkled with a lively and fresh-looking stage presentation, thanks in no small part to a convention-defying lightshow designed by Chip Self that featured a collection of Chauvet Professional fixtures, including the new Maverick Pyxis.
“This is my third year of designing for El Monstero, and with each show I take pride in doing something new and different that exceeds the aesthetics of what we did previously,” said Self, the owner of Logic Systems Sound and Lighting. “I’m grateful to Kevin Gagnepain and the El Monstero team for having faith in my judgment and giving me enough design control to be able to try new ideas and equipment. To an extent, this show is R&D for us. I'm constantly trying to push the envelope and do something new.”
Among the things that helped Self push the envelope this year was the addition of the Maverick MK Pyxis. Introduced earlier this year, the new moving head has a centre 60W RGBW pixel surrounded by a ring of nine 15W RGBW LEDs. Self took advantage of this distinctive configuration to create some special looks for his lightshow.
“The Pyxis is like a spice that adds a special flavour,” said Self. “It brings an element of surprise to the design, allowing me to create something the audience isn't expecting. That can be very powerful when done well.”
In addition to the Pyxis units, there were 24 Maverick MK1 Spot fixtures in the rig. Self brought in 18 of the spots in his system and hung them on vertical ladders between the center seven vertically-oriented video wall panels. The remaining six units are a part of the Pageant house rig and were flown over the stage.
For wash lighting, Self relied on the 26 Rogue R2 Wash fixtures in his rig, positioning 12 of them on the vertical ladders between the video walls, and hanging the remainder on the horseshoe truss in the centre of the stage.
Adding a special touch to this year’s show was a scene that had band members gathered around a campfire singing a few acoustic songs. To evoke a mellow backyard look during this performance, Self dimmed the stage lights and had a starry night video on the LED wall, while the light from six strings of Chauvet DJ Festoon hanging fixtures twinkled over the audience.
(Jim Evans)
