Taking place in the 20,000-capacity Mezaparks Stage, the show was Kings Of Leon's debut in the region, with a design centred on a vast 21.6m by 10.8m LED video wall which displayed a mixture of pre-made content and live camera feeds.
"As the Kings wanted a large video element I needed to consider which luminaires would be able to stand up to it," explains Normandale. "It was an easy choice - the VL3500 Wash and VL3015LT Spot are exceptionally bright and were able to offer tangible light against the wall, with the added bonus of the VL3015LT Spot's long-throw application."
With the show being outdoors, the powerful Vari-Lite luminaires were also ideal for performing during the pre-sundown part of the event, which saw uncontrolled levels of sunlight onstage. The VL3500 Wash luminaire has an output that exceeds 70,000 lumens and internal zoomable beam optics with either Fresnel or Buxom options, whilst the VL3015LT Spot luminaire provides unprecedented output from a 1500W lamp and offers a zoom range of 6-60 degrees.
The VL3500 Wash luminaires were rigged on sound wings both flying and on the ground to create mid-air effects over the audience, with the VL3015LT Spot luminaires positioned as part of the floor package upstage where they were employed for band back-lighting and to also add to the mid-air beam effects.
"We were also keen to reduce the amount of clutter onstage to allow a full view of the screen from all the seats," continues Normandale. "The VL3500 Wash was therefore ideal as it is so versatile with its wash/gobo combination."
Company NA's Ainars Pastars, project manager for the Kings of Leon show, adds, "Both the VL3500 Wash and the VL3015LT Spot are incredibly versatile luminaires, offering high output and a super-wide zoom range. We first acquired Vari-Lite stock in 1998 and since then they have proved extremely popular thanks to the fact they are the best on the market for output and colour mixing.
"We are also able to take good care of the luminaires as they contain many of the same parts so they're easy to repair. This allows us to consistently offer our clients well-maintained and reliable Vari-Lite products."
(Jim Evans)
