Built in 1878 by the famous German architect Gottfried Semper, the building excels in its magnificent architecture. Destroyed in 1945, Semperoper was rebuilt in its original form complete with four balconies and a lavish interior abundantly adorned with paintings and stuccowork. Reopened in 1985, the Opera seats nearly 1300.
Theater-Architekturlicht (TAL) Chemnitz supplied the Martin lighting systems with installation by Semperoper technicians in cooperation with TAL. Jan Seeger, lighting crew chief at Semperoper, and Mathias Meyer, manager of TAL Chemnitz, first saw the TW1 at the Pro Light and Sound exhibition in Frankfurt and agreed on the luminaire's potential to open up new artistic possibilities.
Seeger explains that at a demo in late summer of 2006 the TW1 impressed with its exceptional brightness and superior beam characteristics. "In combination with the halogen lamp, the TW1's high-grade colour mixing system is capable of displaying and reproducing excellently the pastel colours used especially in theatre," he states. "The fixture's ability to stabilize the colour temperature by means of the mechanical dimmer is a great benefit as well."
Seeger cites additional advantages including productivity and cost savings. "Lighting rehearsals can be performed more efficiently since the re-colouring of individual luminaires can be omitted. Energy requirements - something to be kept in mind with investments of this dimension - is low as well. While the power requirement of the former overhead lighting amounted to 80kW, the 40 MAC TW1s make do with a mere 49kW."
(Jim Evans)
