Licensing Laws - Performers and producers will no longer have to obtain an entertainment licence to stage shows during the day with an audience of up to 500 people after regulations were relaxed. Following an amendment to the Licensing Act, entertainers can now present plays or dance shows, which includes street performances, between 8am and 11pm without a licence. Performances outside of these hours and for larger audiences will still require a licence, as will dance shows of a "sufficiently adult nature" according to Hugh Robertson, minister for sport and tourism.

Previously, groups had to apply to individual local authorities to secure a licence before they could stage these shows. Louise McMullan, head of Equity's general secretary's department, said, "This change is intended in the first instance to free up places like community halls and venues in your local

UK - Marl International this year celebrates its 40th anniversary. The company has now supplied more than 500 million LEDs, many in assemblies designed and manufactured by its 100-strong British engineering and manufacturing team based in Ulverston.

Commenting, Adrian Rawlinson, managing director at Marl International, said, "Marl, a pioneer in the technology, is ideally positioned to ride the crest of the LED wave. The secret of our success is that our products are designed, assembled, tested and shipped from one manufacturing complex in Ulverston. Marl continues to invest in its business, recently spending £270,000 to double manufacturing output and speed up the delivery of prototypes. Our manufacturing strength is such that customers are now asking us to design and build other electronic systems for them that don't include an LED light." The company directly a

Canada - CAST Software has released the full, market-ready version of wysiwyg R31, the new and significantly updated edition of its industry standard lighting design and pre-visualisation suite. R31 is available for download now from the Members Only Area of the CAST Soft website.

Bruce Freeman, Chairman of CAST Group commented, "CAST is delighted to release the full version of what is the most groundbreaking new edition of wysiwyg in a number of years. We're very proud of the exceptional new features in R31, of which there are many.

!We paid close attention to suggestions and requests received from our Members and, in response, the wysiwyg development team has given them exactly what they want - tools that will help them thrive in today's fiercely competitive production design market by making them more professional, more productive and more profitable. This is CAST's ma

UK - West Wales has a new theatre. Partly funded by the Welsh Government and including the refurbishment of a listed chapel alongside a 504 seat auditorium and 100 seat Stiwdio Stepni , Y Ffwrnes will be run by Carmarthenshire County Council to provide a cultural and creative centre, offering space for community and professional events.

The theatre is set to achieve a BREEAM 'excellent' rating for environmental sustainability and is a key player in the regeneration of Llanelli. Y Ffwrnes is expected to attract some 70,000 visitors and provide new full and part time employment for 35 people.

GDS UK dealer Northern Light were commissioned to install a complete sound and lighting package for Y Ffwrnes. The consultants specified that the contractors installed the GDS Stage Manager's Console and CueSystem cue lights. The need to meet the exacting standards of environmental sustaina

USA - The Inno Spot LED from ADJ is powered by a 50-watt LED source. This compact intelligent moving head blasts stunningly brilliant gobo/colour effects on walls, ceilings and dance floors for a truly spectacular lightshow at any nightclub or venue, says the company.

Along with its 50 watts of LED muscle, the Inno Spot LED is loaded with features that add to its wow-factor. The Inno Spot LED can also be operated with a DMX-512 controller (10 DMX channels) to unleash any of its abundant features, which include six rotating, replaceable gobos; eight colours plus white; Gobo Scroll mode; Gobo Shake effect; 3-facet prism; pulse and variable speed strobe effect; and 0-100% dimming.

A manual focus and separate color and gobo wheels add to the versatility of the Inno Spot LED. With a 17° beam angle and 540° pan/270° tilt, this brawny moving head will fill an entire room

Belgium - Barco LiveDots, a Barco company has introduced the V14m, a 14 mm pixel pitch transparent LED display - with 4,300 nits brightness and a contrast of 6,000:1. Designed for the rental and staging market, the brand-new V14m is a lightweight LED display that is easy and safe to set up thanks to its special magnetic V-lock.

It offers rental companies the flexibility to use the V14m both indoors and outdoors and, thanks to its low weight, it allows them to build large dynamic video backdrops on stage, as well as side screens on lightweight trusses. The V14m is available now for commercial distribution.

"We are proud to expand our V series LED display with a sixth member," says Carl Rijsbrack, CMO of Barco LiveDots. "With the V14m, rental companies can create large backdrops for both indoor and outdoor stages, whether straight or curved. What's more, it's also

Australia - Mildura's new $8.7m Arts Centre boasts a theatre with a 40 percent increase in fixed seating (450 seats), with capacity for another 100 portable seats, and a 60 percent larger stage.

The new, much larger arts centre will attract more acts to the district as the previous arts centre, which had served the district for more than 40 years, had been too small or inadequate for some acts given the size and quantity of material they required on stage.

Other features of the new state-of-the-art facility include a 15m tower above the stage, to improve management of curtains, lights, scenery and backdrops during performances.

Jands designed, manufactured and installed the all-important safety curtain for the Mildura Arts Centre Theatre including related mechanical components with the specified mechanical, structural and control features.

The 3,000kg safety curtain, appro

UK - Kent- based lighting rental specialist RML has recently made a large investment in Robe moving lights to service its busy ongoing schedule, which includes a wide selection of shows, events and high profile TV series and programmers.

RML's diverse clients are involved in all aspects of the entertainment industry and are forever keen to embrace the latest designs and innovations from all manufacturers. "Keeping our doors open is the key to keeping our finger on the pulse," says RML's operations manager Steve Wells.

The purchase of new LEDWash 600s, LEDBeam 100s and MMX WashBeams - all from Robe's Robin range - has been in direct response to this.

Wells continues, 'As Robe's profile and products continue to go from strength to strength we felt it was absolutely the right time to invest in the brand ... and it's been a great success."

He adds that Robe has

USA - Seminal power trio Rush is back on tour in support of their latest release, Clockwork Angels. Recently inducted into the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame, the band is rewarding fans with a vastly different setlist and show than was featured on the Time Machine tour. In similar fashion, lighting designer Howard Ungerleider created bold new visuals with High End Systems Intellaspots and a host of other fixtures to punctuate the steampunk inspired themes of Clockwork Angels.

Howard explains, "When the band finished the recording, I had the opportunity to go in for a listen and was just blown away. I had already designed the backbone of the system; because it was called Clockwork Angels and was steampunk themed, I decided to create something angelic. Angel wings were in my design head and I wanted something in the rig to move like an angel, so I desig

France - Originally designed in 1982, the stunning Fly's Eye was the creation of American inventor and architect Buckminster Fuller (1895-1983. 31 years later, his design was realised and put on display at this year Toulouse Art Festival.

The vaulted dome of the white spherical building in Toulouse was dynamically highlighted in pastel shades, designed by Brad Koerner of Philips Lighting. Eight ColorReach, four iW Reach and 30 ColorBlast fixtures from Philips Color Kinetics were supplied for illumination, all controlled with LumenRadio's wireless CRMX Slim products.

A wireless system containing five CRMX Slim receivers and one CRMX Slim transmitter was used to control over 40 high quality fixtures.

"One of the most important elements of this installation was to eliminate the need for any control cabling. It became clear early in the process that working with cabl

France - Robert Juliat has announced the appointment of Thierry Dupont as its new export service manager.

Dupont comes to Robert Juliat with more than 30 years of experience in the entertainment industry, with assignments in France and the UK.

With effect from 1 June 2013, Dupont is responsible for providing technical assistance on behalf of Robert Juliat to lighting professionals throughout the world.

"The appointment of Thierry will help us move to the next level in terms of offering our customers the best possible service, all the way through the fixture's lifecycle," said Robert Juliat sales director, Claus Spreyer.

(Jim Evans)

UK - Richard Martin Lighting (RML) has always remained at the forefront of moving light technology and has been in the thick of all things 'TV' for almost 30 years. With recent changes in the economic climate and our Industry, it has been a great opportunity to look at ways in which the company can grow and venture into exciting new projects and aspects of entertainment lighting.

The company jumped at the chance to supply lights for the new Disclosure video F For You.

Brothers Guy and Howard make up the electro duo. Their album Settle was released last month and shot to number 1 in the album charts.

RML supplied Sharpys for the shoot which complimented the video projection that was used throughout, along with LED wands provided by Light Initiative. Simple lighting and strong images enhanced the dance music and sounds perfectly. Their music has been described as

World - Robe continues its support of innovative performance ... as a major technical sponsor of the Caravan Stage Society Inc., which presents theatre shows aboard its 30m tall ship theatre, the Amara Zee.

A diverse selection of international actors, musicians, artists and technicians work aboard the Amara Zee (the 'Caravan'). Performances are staged on the decks and in the rigging of the ship, delighting audiences on the shore or river bank with their vibrant productions as the vessel tours the coastlines of Europe and North America.

Robe SRO has now supported Caravan for two consecutive years.

CEO Josef Valchar comments, "Music and performance have been an important part of my life and I think it's vital to encourage others to enjoy and engage with the experience and positive energies. Caravan is an extremely inventive company that reaches out to so many who would ma

UK - London-based Pro System Services - leading supplier of sound, lighting and AV to events across the UK, specialising in UK Asian events - has boosted its hire stock inventory with a £60K investment into Chauvet Europe's pro lighting product range.

Pro System Services' commitment to the Chauvet brand is represented by a total of 26 Legend 230SR Beams - the 230W compact moving yoke beam fixture with a zoomable prism and motorised focus; 16 Q-Wash 560Z-LED - the best-in-class moving yoke wash with a wide zoom range and a variable beam angle; and 30 WELL 2.0 - the tri-colour RGB LED wash light run on a built in battery with 12 consecutive hour-capability.

Pro System Services MD, Brindan Sivanandan, commented, "The Chauvet products sold themselves to me straightaway - and they continue to do so. They are great quality, robust fixtures at a really affordable price. Th

UK - Production Resource Group (PRG) is holding a series of private demonstrations for industry professionals of PRG's proprietary products. This will include the most recent addition to the VX76 family of lighting control products, the V276 ON MAC, PRG's new software-only media server product, MBOX Studio, and our V-Series LED screens.

"The VX76 software application, has been an extremely successful product used with V676 and V476 control consoles on projects like the opening Olympic ceremonies of London 2012 and recently the V276 on Mac was awarded Best Lighting Product during the ABTT Theatre Show in London, in June," says PRG.

PRG Nocturne screens, are lightweight, yet rugged, purpose- designed for fast-deployment in flexible configurations and are being chosen by many touring artists this summer. They played a vital part on the Bon Jovi, Because We Can Tour

Denmark - David Ravnkilde has been promoted to director of marketing of Harman Professional's Lighting Strategic Business Unit (SBU), Martin Professional. Effective immediately, Ravnkilde will assume responsibility for all product marketing and marketing communications and will report directly to Lars Dige Knudsen, vice president and general manager of Martin Professional. David Ravnkilde joined Martin in 2004 and has held successively more senior management positions in product management and marketing.

"David Ravnkilde understands the Martin brand, has strong passion for our mission and has the requisite skillset to communicate with our community of production and entertainment professionals - listening to their ideas, understanding their businesses and providing the right ideas at the right time," Lars Dige Knudsen said. "I am pleased to see him lead our market

UK - The Cambridge University Amateur Dramatic Club (CUADC) has used a selection of ETC Selador LED fixtures on its recent production of Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida.

The ETC Selador Classic Lustr+ and Selador Desire D40 fixtures were used to provide a range of rear colour washes to the stage. Says student Mitchell Clarke, "The Selador fixtures offered so many choices and flexibility which simply would not have been possible with the theatre's existing lantern stock.

"Scenes were transformed by the almost unlimited colour palettes, with live fades used to suggest changes in time, mood and place. For once, the number of fixtures or cost of gel was not the limiting factor in this production only the lighting designer's imagination."

(Jim Evans)

UK - Fifty years after his first record contract, Joe Cocker is still firing on all cylinders. At the age of 68 the Grammy Award- winner is at the height of his powers for the Fire It Up Tour to promote the recent album of the same name.

Working with lighting designer Baz Halpin and lighting director Hunter Frith, PRG's Yvonne Donnelly Smith helped deliver an innovative show for the nine week tour.

Halpin's design successfully incorporates a diverse array of lighting tools to create a clean minimalistic show where retro meets modern. His choice of fixtures helped to cut through, as there was no smoke used in the show, the design was simple but effective and didn't need any bells or whistles.

Your eye is immediately drawn to the distinctive Skypans, seven hanging on the mid truss on moving pantographs with mirrored reflectors and a single 80 W bulb. 10 more, floor moun

Live in Scotland - Scotland's T in the Park festival has sold more than 2.5m tickets in the past 20 years, event organisers have revealed. The three day music extravaganza starts this Friday at Balado in Perth and Kinross, two decades after the first festival in Strathclyde Country Park. Headline acts for 2013 include Mumford & Sons, Rihanna and the Killers. So far, it has not sold out this year but festival bosses were still hopeful all the tickets would go.

T in the Park director Geoff Ellis told BBC Scotland the event had gone from 17,000 people a day in its first year to a capacity of 85,000. He said the move to Balado had opened up the festival to the whole of Scotland and beyond. "We do attract a lot of people from outside of Scotland. "About 20% of our crowd comes from outside Scotland and about 2% from outside the UK but the real passionate element is the Scott

UK - Around 400 Robe fixtures were on site in various areas at the 2013 Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts in Pilton, Somerset UK. Glasto is the largest and best known 'greenfield' festival in the world with a capacity of 175,000 and a truly eclectic line up of live music and entertainment over three action-packed days.

Robe UK's own Ian W Brown took his tent, clothes-pegs and wellies and got into the festival spirit, where a very iffy start weather-wise came good . . . with sunshine, soaring temperatures and sizzling expectations.

Ian spent time hanging out at some of the coolest Glasto spaces including The Park with its abundance of open air stages, late night bars, lounges and cafés, tee pee villages, art installations and 17 metre high illuminated Ribbon Tower that overlooks the entire festival site.

Supplying lighting to the main stage at

UK - By way of completing a trio of open days this July, Ambersphere Solutions has announced a London open day at their West London headquarters on Friday 19 July.

This will complete a 'tour' of open days around the country this fortnight - the first taking place at the RSC in Stratford-upon-Avon on Tuesday 9 July, followed by a trip to the South-West and the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School on Thursday 11 July.

The open day in London will allow customers to view the expanded facilities at Ambersphere Solutions, and meet the Ambersphere team behind the sales, service, support and training for Clay Paky, MA Lighting and Robert Juliat in the UK.

"As well as catching up with our team and taking a look around the programming and training facilities we have here in London, our showroom will be full of the latest kit from our exclusive brands. It will be an excellent chance for

USA - Clay Paky Sharpy fixtures proved to be country strong when they turned out in force for the 2013 CMT Music Awards at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. Lighting designer Tom Kenny used a large complement of Clay Paky Sharpys for the gala special, which was hosted by Kristen Bell and Jason Aldean.

"The CMT Music Awards is a huge event on the music calendar and gets bigger and bigger every year. It outshines every other awards show," says Kenny.

Kenny partnered with production designer Ann Brahic, who marked her fifth year with the show. "She designed a set that was a very modern scape. It went along with the theme of the show: a cross-cultural look at country music," he explains. "People loved it. Ann really understands lighting, and we have a great relationship."

Francesco Romagnoli, Clay Paky area manager for North and Latin America, add

Australia - As of 1 June, 2013, authorised Shure distributor for Australia, Jands Pty Ltd, began distributing conferencing products manufactured by Danish Interpretation Systems (DIS), a division of Informationsteknik Scandinavia Group of Copenhagen, Denmark, which Shure acquired in February 2011.

"With the acquisition of Informationsteknik, Shure has reinforced our position in the installed sound market. Together, Shure and DIS have a history of innovation, quality and customer commitment, and with our strong and dedicated network of distributors, we will deliver state-of-the-art conferencing solutions to an expanded customer base," said William Chan, managing director of Shure Asia Limited.

(Jim Evans)

Norway - A dazzling array of pure beam Sharpys, rigged in a two-tier array around the Oslo Spektrum Stadium and pointing directly at the audience, has added superstar sparkle to the final of Norwegian Idol.

Respected lighting designer, Anders Busch, specified a host of Sharpys for the closing show of the international TV show phenomenon.

"The concept for the Norwegian Idol finale 2013 was that it should not look like every other TV talent show," explains Petter Nilssen from lighting equipment supplier, Elektrik Solutions AS. "The production designers didn't want the ubiquitous supersized LED or projector screens, they wanted something different. In addition the producers wanted to have as many people in the audience as possible. In order to do this they needed a 360 degree stage."

This presented a considerable challenge - how to create enoug

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