The deal was co-ordinated by Gearhouse Splitbeam's Alistair Kilbee and DWR's Duncan Riley and is the largest sale of Vari-Lites yet to date in South Africa, and also the first purchase of the premium brand by Gearhouse.
The units were delivered to Gearhouse Splitbeam's Johannesburg office. Some will be immediately deployed on the Closing Ceremony of the 2010 Soccer World Cup taking place at Soccer City stadium, Soweto, on 11 July (LD Hugh Turner), and a substantial quantity will go straight onto the upcoming Asian tour of High School Musical (LD Declan Randall) for which Splitbeam is supplying the full lighting production.
The fixtures supplied by Johannesburg-based DWR are 24 VL3500 Spots, 24 VL3500 Washes, 24 VL2500 Spots, 24 2500 Washes and 24 VLXs.
Kilbee says: "We are driven by our clients' requests. For major theatre productions Vari-Lite has always been the fixture of choice - so with the growing volume of this type of show now visiting South Africa, it was essential to have a good stock to offer visiting productions."
In addition to being used on assorted Gearhouse Splitbeam projects, the Vari-Lites will also be available as a rental item.
(Jim Evans)
