Hawthorn was tasked with providing the full technical production of the Hay Festival. A major part of the technical provision was a significant lighting remit. The remit included artistic stage lighting, architectural lighting and general site and work area lighting. Hawthorn also provided the power requirements for the whole site, and included the power for all lighting.
The provision included the lighting for nine stages, used for reading sessions, panel discussions and literary performances in the daytime, and musical performances on the larger stages in the evenings. Hawthorn provided Clay Paky Alpha 800 spots, GLP Impression X4 moving head fixtures, Chauvet LED Par Cans and iPix BB4 wash units, Selecon fresnels and Source Four profiles. Working neutral lighting was provided in each of the 10 venues for the auditoriums within 10 marquees.
They also provided architectural site lighting that covered the walkways throughout the site. They were lit with festoon lighting to give a bright and even coverage and provide safe access. A mixture of 500w and 1kW flood-lights were used to light the outdoor grassed areas. Outdoor par fixtures and outdoor birdies washed in differing colour spectrums were used to up-light tress and highlight specific planted areas to create set architectural pieces.
Site lighting was also provided for bars, offices and the main entrance were lit using metal halide globe fixtures to reflect the modern feel of the structures. Large 400w halide fixtures were used in back the catering areas. Back of house site lighting and toilet lighting was also provided in the form of white metal halide floods.
In the more intimate areas of the Restaurant and Festival Bookshop, Verona chandeliers were used to create an up-market feel whilst in the adjacent public areas, white globes created a safe and well lit addition to the site lighting.
(Jim Evans)
