"Billboard's awards command attention throughout the music industry," said Jere Harris, chairman and founder of PRG. "They really went all out this year, and we were glad to help them set the stage for these exciting performers."
Designed by production designer Leroy Bennett and art director Anne Brahic, the show's stage measured approximately 160 feet wide by 80 feet deep. The structure, which was fabricated by PRG, was covered with inlaid laminate flooring. The stage also featured a custom-painted performance area and two lighted platforms covered with plexiglass.At both sides of the stage were sixteen arched walls up to 30' tall, framed with gloss black steel and backed with white netting material. PRG also built the structure for the 16' tall by 60' wide video wall that dominated upstage center stage. Custom band looks included a grass-covered mountain with sheep for Gwen Stefani, four band risers covered with candy canes for Fergie, and a sophisticated club style set for Ludacris that featured a black DJ table, black and white laminated cubic platforms for dancers and a walled turntable that pivoted to reveal the artist. In addition, PRG built three light box platforms for Mary J. Blige.
The lighting system, also designed by Bennett and Brahic, consisted of automated and conventional fixtures provided by PRG and controlled by PRG's proprietary Virtuoso VX lighting control console.
"It was a pleasure and privilege to work again with these talented designers, and the Fox Square Productions team," said Lincoln Maynard, general manager of PRG Scenic Technologies in Las Vegas. "The 'best' working with the 'best' is always the right combination."
(Chris Henry)
