Events

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27 November 2024

UK - The spectacular new production of the musical Mary Poppins is currently embarking on a UK and Ireland tour. Presented by Cameron Mackintosh and Disney Theatrical Group, this record-breaking show recently celebrated its 20th anniversary and continues to dazzle audiences on a nightly basis. Starring Stefanie Jones and Jack Chambers as Mary Poppins and Bert, it features a lighting design by Hugh Vanstone who approached White Light (WL), a d&b solutions company, to supply his touring lighting rig; with the company having also supplied the show’s first UK tour back in 2008.

As lighting designer, Vanstone finds himself returning to the show once again, having first lit a West End run five years ago. He comments: “When I first became involved in 2019 at the Prince Edward Theatre, it was in a ‘revival schedule’ so I had to tailor my ambitio

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27 November 2024

France - Arbane Groupe is exhibiting at the JTSE trade fair in Paris (27-28 November, Dock Pullman stand #094). The French audio manufacturer will unveil its new line array, specifically designed for large shows and events, alongside a new APG subwoofer and a design method technology.

APG, a brand of Arbane Groupe, will showcase the new Uniline Max line array system, a high-performance audio system dedicated to large-scale events and concerts. The system features the UM210 2x10” line array speaker and the UM121 1x21” subwoofer, both of which deliver exceptional audio clarity and power for audiences of up to 10,000 people. The Uniline Max is the result of over 40 years of constant innovation, collaboration and listening to the needs of the live events industry. The easy-to-use solution meets the highest level of requirements from rental companies, live pe

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27 November 2024

USA - Elation invites lighting professionals to Experience Tomorrow at Booth 2224 at LDI in Las Vegas, where visitors can ‘embark on a journey through lighting’s next frontier’. Elation is providing an immersive booth experience that will transport them to a retro-futuristic spaceport lounge of discovery – ‘a gateway to new worlds where visitors can explore Elation’s latest advancements in professional lighting’.

The spaceport-styled booth balances cutting-edge technology with mid-century aesthetics, evoking an era when excitement for the future was at its peak. Elation product experts will be on hand to help visitors explore Elation’s latest technologies via immersive product demonstrations while ‘an otherworldly light show will dazzle every hour’.

The latest innovations across the Proteus, Fuze, KL, Pulse, Limelight, S

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26 November 2024

USA - Following the success of the recent Be Seen, Be Heard event in London, the Be Seen, Be Heard community is now bringing the conversation to prominent USA trade show, LDI.  

Organised by frame:work, Production Futures, and Disguise, the positive London event was hosted at Bluman Associates, London. It brought together thought leaders, industry pioneers, and emerging talents from the world of entertainment technology and design. Collectively, they presented panel discussions and storytelling sessions. These ignited insightful and forward-looking conversations around the value of diversity in the industry and how that might be achieved sooner rather than later.  

Additionally, the Be Seen, Be Heard manifesto was conceived at the gathering – a progressive living document and a call to action that outlines steps for c

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26 November 2024

Germany - The 30th anniversary of Prolight + Sound is all about fresh impetus. From 8 to 11 April 2025, the expo will present a newly designed and expanded area for theatre and stage technology that combines four central aspects: exhibition, education, knowledge transfer and networking. Visitors can expect an inspiring platform for exchange between generations and industry experts, as well as a comprehensive range of innovative products and services.

An integral part of the concept is the ‘Theatre College’, which offers expert knowledge on relevant topics with high-quality, bilingual seminars and workshops – realised in collaboration with leading industry associations. The new Theatre Stage is the centrepiece, where presentations and the Theatre Talk invites exhibitors and the trade audience to exchange ideas. The Networking Area, with daily events and

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26 November 2024

USA - LED Studio is set to unveil its latest outdoor rental display innovation, the Vista Series, at DSE 2024 in Las Vegas next month. Visitors to Booth 3135 will be among the first to explore Vista’s advanced features, including ultra-high refresh rates, ‘exceptional’ contrast, and a modular design that enables fast and flexible installation.

The Vista Series offers a variety of pixel pitch options, ranging from P0.9 to P2.5, ensuring tailored options for a diverse array of outdoor applications and viewing distances. With a 10,000:1 contrast ratio, 99.8% DCI-P3 colour gamut, and 4,000 nits brightness, the Vista Series ensures visuals are vibrant, true-to-life and impactful. Its high refresh rates of up to 7,680Hz deliver fluid and seamless visuals, ideal for dynamic content.

Built to last, the Vista Series boasts a 100,000-hour lifetime and IP

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26 November 2024

France - Unusual Rigging has announced its participation at this year’s JTSE show in Paris, taking place on 27-28 November 2024. Visitors to Stand 092 119 in Dock Pullman will have the opportunity to meet with the team and explore how Unusual can devise creative solutions for their rigging challenges on upcoming projects.

Unusual’s attendance at the show comes as the company continues to thrive, marked by its recent 40^th anniversary celebrations and the successful opening of its new branch in Paris earlier this year. The expansion, initially as a means of preparing for the Paris 2024 Games, is also a strategic move to address the increasing challenges of working in the region post-Brexit.

Mark Priestley, project manager at Unusual Rigging, comments: “The Paris branch was opened to overcome the operational obstacles of working in Euro

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26 November 2024

Elephant Trap - Members of the House of Lords have expressed “profound concern” about the UK’s arts sector following chancellor Rachel Reeves’ autumn Budget, with one peer dubbing it an “elephant trap” for culture.

Kick-starting a debate about the impact of the Budget on arts, heritage and cultural organisations on 14 November, conservative peer Amanda Sater cited the Society of London Theatre and UK Theatre’s warning that 40% of theatres and performing arts venues face closure over the next five years.

SOLT and UK Theatre’s appeal for an urgent pot of funding to stave off these closures was snubbed in a Budget that outlined plans to increase government spending by almost £70 billion a year over the next five years – almost half of which will be funded by tax increases.

Sater called on the government to consider the impact

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25 November 2024

USA - The Obsidian Control Systems team will highlight the Onyx platform at a dedicated booth (#2243) designed to offer hands-on demonstrations, showcase the latest products, and provide expert insights into how Onyx can elevate professional lighting control for a wide range of productions.

“At this year’s LDI, we’re showcasing products in an interactive, purpose-built environment, and creating an experience where attendees can directly engage with Onyx tools,” commented Obsidian sales manager John Lopez. “We welcome everyone to get hands-on, ask questions, and meet our newest team members, Daniel Boerner and Edward Smith. Whether you're a seasoned pro or just starting out, we invite you to stop by for a talk and a hands-on demo.”

The booth provides more space to highlight the Onyx platform with an expansive video wall simulating a large-

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25 November 2024

USA - Brompton Technology is set to showcase its latest Tessera solutions at LDI 2024 next month at the Las Vegas Convention Centre – West Hall. With a strong focus on live events and broadcast applications, Brompton (#2861) will highlight its powerful HDR content capabilities, new features in Tessera v3.5 software such as Extended Bit Depth and Dark Time Insertion, and its groundbreaking TrueLight technology, which redefines standards for colour accuracy.

The Brompton booth will allow visitors to experience Brompton’s latest advancements through a dedicated broadcast and live events demo area, where comparisons between HDR and SDR content, HDR content with and without Extended Bit Depth, and features like Dark Magic, Puretone and Dark Time Insertion will be on display. Those seeking a deeper look into the potential of TrueLight can experience a speciali

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22 November 2024

UK - Rise, the advocacy group for gender diversity in the broadcast media technology sector, has announced the winners for this year’s Rise Awards.

Rise received 424 nominations from across the globe, with attendees from Australia, United States, Malaysia, United Kingdom, France, Norway and Spain, at the ceremony. Winners in 14 categories were celebrated at Troxy in London, in partnership with Sky and EMG / Gravity Media. Rise also presented a Special Recognition Award and the Rise Woman of the Year Award, for outstanding work in 2024 and significant contributions to the broadcasting world.

More than 400 guests attended the sold-out event, to recognise the achievements of winners and nominees across a host of media and broadcast technology roles. The ceremony was streamed globally on the Rise YouTube channel, supported by

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21 November 2024

USA - The 2025 NAMM Show (Anaheim, 21-25 January) will place a strong emphasis on pro audio. NAMM (the National Association of Music Merchants) has “maximised the show’s exhibit and demo space, so professionals will have their best-ever opportunity to get hands-on with the latest in pro audio technology. These new product introductions will be complemented by a full suite of educational sessions and training opportunities for professionals in live sound, recording and music technology.”

“One of the main reasons that audio professionals come to the NAMM Show is to hear the latest equipment from the biggest pro audio brands,” said John Mlynczak, NAMM president and CEO. “We are making that easier than ever before with more demo space for our exhibitors and more opportunities for our members to hear what state-of-the-art truly sounds like.”

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19 November 2024

Spain - Following a memorable 2024 event, BikeFest Spain is set to return for its fourth consecutive year, inviting cyclists from across the industry to join the 360km ride towards ISE in Barcelona. From 31 January to 2 February 2025, riders will again rally in Valencia, cycling along the Mediterranean coast in support of industry causes.

Last year’s BikeFest raised an impressive £25,000 for Backup Tech, with the goal to surpass that and more this year.

In 2025, BikeFest will expand its support to Casa Caridad Valencia, a local charity assisting those affected by recent severe flooding in Valencia. 

Following the reduction of operating costs to run the initiative, 50% of the sponsored funds raised will go directly to Backup Tech, who run initiatives such as

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19 November 2024

Sold Out - Tickets for Glastonbury Festival 2025 sold out in under 40 minutes, organisers have said. The event will be held from 25 to 29 June before taking a year off in 2026 to allow the ground at Worthy Farm in Somerset to recover. Tickets cost £373.50, plus a £5 booking fee – an increase of £18.50 on 2024.

In a post on X, Glastonbury Festival said: "Tickets for Glastonbury 2025 have now Sold Out. Thanks to everyone who bought one and sorry to those who missed out, on a morning when demand was much higher than supply. There will be a resale of any cancelled or returned tickets in spring 2025."

An automatic queue system was introduced with fans needing to be online before the start of the sale with a valid registration number. Some reported issues with the new system, with one X user saying: "I was on the booking page, clicked proceed and then

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15 November 2024

UK - Lighting designer Phil Supple utilised 56 x Astera Tubes – 40 x Titan and eight each Hyperion and Helios – to illuminate 137 windows across 57 rooms at the George Heriot School in Edinburgh, Scotland, for Where to Begin, the opening event of the 2024 Edinburgh International Festival (EIF).

This Edinburgh International Festival production was created by Pinwheel and delivered in partnership with The Macallan, for which Phil worked closely with creative agency Pinwheel under the artistic direction of Katy Fuller and co-director Simon Sharkey, together with composer Roma Yagnik and video artists, Yeast Culture.

Where to Begin celebrated the energy, vibrance and spirit of Edinburgh, Scotland’s heritage and mythology as well as the alchemy of invention, carefully blended in with a festival atmosphere evoking emotion, inspirati

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14 November 2024

Australia - Following the recent appointment of Audio Source as HH Audio’s distributor in Australia, the partners staged a two-day official launch event at Vision Studios, a rehearsal and recording facility in Perth.

The full range of HH Audio products were demonstrated to a range of audio specialists including system integrators, rental companies, retailers, installers, and contractors. Ian Wright, HH Audio global sales director for HH Electronics, offers an upbeat view:

“The event was a great success in what is acoustically a fantastic space. The team demonstrated the range to groups of visitors over the two days, rather than staging one big presentation, something which worked extremely well. I think we had 14 groups in total who were able to see all our products patched in and individually demoed or used in whatever combinations customers wan

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13 November 2024

UK - The bang was provided by the starter’s pistol as the Day at the Races themed quiz night got underway. The DiGiCo quiz night is a celebration of hire companies and the communities they serve, with all proceeds from those attending going towards their two chosen charities, Backup Tech and Stagehand, the PSA’s benevolent fund.

The Quiz represents a chance for suppliers, hire companies, manufactures and businesses to get together in a relaxed environment to connect, do badly at quizzing and most importantly raise money. The evening was a complete success with £14,000 being shared between both charities.

On the night Backup was represented by Lee Dennison, trustee and vice chair, Scott Arnold, trustee, and Sarah James, PR, all raising awareness of the way that Backup can help industry professionals and their families.

“Backup

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13 November 2024

Germany - Following the success of LEaT con 24 in Hamburg, LEaT X is returning in spring 2025 and will take place on 19-20 March at the Ofenwerk in Nuremberg. The pre-season event for the event technology industry was fully booked in record time – clear proof of the enormous demand and strong interest.

“The enthusiasm for LEaT X is overwhelming,” says Duc Nguyen, director of LEaT. ‘The fact that we were fully booked in such a short time confirms that we have hit the nerve of the industry with the compact and targeted format of LEaT X. We are delighted with the positive response and the trust placed in us by the exhibitors.”

This year, LEaT X 25 will once again be supported by leading brands from the event technology sector, who will be presenting their innovative products and solutions in Nuremberg.

Interested companies have the opp

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11 November 2024

France - Tickets have gone on sale for Showlight 2025. The much-anticipated networking event for lighting practitioners will visit Le Parc des Expositions et Congrès de Dijon in France from 19-22 May 2025 with Robert Juliat as its headline sponsor.

Traditionally only taking place once every four years, the last in-person Showlight was in 2017, with its usual quadrennial timeline disrupted due to the pandemic. An enduringly popular event, which encompasses a conference, an exhibition, workshops, networking dinners and more, Showlight 2025 offers three ticket choices to delegates: Full Delegate, Day Delegate (Papers Only) or Student.

Full Delegate ticket holders enjoy the whole event which, in addition to the papers sessions on all days, includes daily lunch and coffee/tea breaks, Monday evening’s welcome reception, Tuesday evening

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06 November 2024

Austria - The Walters-Storyk Design Group (WSDG) will participate in the bi-annual MEET (Messe für Eventtechnik und Theater) show for event technology and theatre, held at Messe Wien in Vienna 6th - 7th November. The WSDG team will not only host a booth (F2, Hall D) but also present an educational lecture as part of the event’s official programme.

As an international trade fair for event technology featuring a specialist conference for events and theatre, MEET blends technology and art with over 80 exhibitors. This event presents the latest innovations in event technology and provides a valuable platform for discussion among theatre and event managers.

WSDG's Dirk Noy along with Mario Reithofer will be available throughout the two-day event, where they will meet with clients, partners and industry professionals to discuss ongoing and future projec

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05 November 2024

UK - UKEvents, the umbrella organisation of the UK’s events industry, has announced the findings of its anticipated UK Events Report 2024. The report, compiled by Great Potential Consultancy, highlights the industry’s critical role in the economy, generating £61.653bn annually and affirming its resilience following the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Covering a wide range of events, including corporate, public, and charity sectors, the UK events industry has proved itself to be a vital economic driver, contributing not just financially but also culturally and socially. As the nation continues its recovery, the industry is paving the way for future growth and innovation.

Key findings from the report include:

Corporate events such as conferences, trade shows, exhibitions and product launches, generating £33.6bn.

Leis

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05 November 2024

USA - Wireless load monitoring brand Broadweigh has announced its presence at this year’s LDI Show in Las Vegas this December. Visitors to the show can find Broadweigh at booth #2019 where the 9-tonne load cell will get its North American debut. The team will also be giving an exclusive preview of its innovations set for release in 2025.

“This is an exciting time for the Broadweigh brand," said Matthew Youngs, marketing manager at Broadweigh. “Our innovations are developed with a deep understanding of the demands faced by today’s live event professionals. We are therefore thrilled to bring our latest solutions to LDI and demonstrate how our products support a safer, smarter approach to event rigging and structural monitoring.”

Broadweigh’s wireless anemometer will also be on display on the booth, illustrating how it enables precise monito

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05 November 2024

Japan - Following the success of last year’s event, Brompton Technology has announced its return to Inter BEE 2024. The expo will see an expanded presence of Brompton’s LED video processing technology, which will be featured on the booths of key partners including INFiLED Japan, Ark Ventures, Sony Marketing, Leyard Japan, AOTO Electronics, Innovator One Co and d&b audiotechnik.

Brompton highlights at this year’s show include the latest Tessera v3.5 features, such as Dark Time Insertion, Frame Store, Hidden Marker Improvement, as well as the recent Q-SYS plugin integration. These enhancements further cement Brompton’s leadership in the virtual production (VP) and high-end LED installations sectors.

“We are honoured to be featured on our partners’ booths at Inter BEE 2024,” says Elijah Ebo, director of APAC Operations at Brompton. “

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05 November 2024

Hammer Blow - Theatres across the country are braced to absorb yet more costs under Labour’s first Budget in office, with large tax rises labelled another "financial hammer blow” for pinched organisations. Chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves’ increase to both national insurance for employers and the national living wage has left theatre buildings saddled with potentially hundreds of thousands of pounds more in annual expenditure.

Curve chief executive Chris Stafford told The Stage: "While we actively support increasing the national living wage, this rise in cost alongside the hike in national insurance payments is another financial hammer for theatres and producers. Based on very early projections, the Budget will hit our bottom line by at least £350,000 next year. This is on top of the money we will need to allocate to implement Martyn