PRG XL backs Bat Out of Hell-The Musical
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Peter Marshall, director of theatre for PRG XL, oversaw the provision of kit to the musical: “The show initially opened for a 12-week run in Manchester at the start of the year, before transferring to the Coliseum for the summer season from June to August. It was brilliant to continue our relationship with producer Michael Cohl and general manager Julian Stoneman again - after supporting them on Rock of Ages, and very exciting to work with Patrick and Finn, providing some of the latest technology on the market, including the Panasonic PT-RZ31K laser projectors.
“Bat Out of Hell was one of the first installs of these fabulous projectors in the world, which came straight from the Panasonic factory in Japan to the Opera House in Manchester.”
Associate lighting designer, Rob Casey worked alongside Patrick Woodroffe: “The overarching theme of the lighting for Bat Out of Hell is to achieve big, operatic backlighting which compliments Jon Bausor’s rugged set. We took a basic set of ideas from Patrick and theatricalised it using numerous positions overhead and around the set. The trusses are trimmed to around twelve metres, well out of view and capable of giving a steep-angled backlight, which Patrick is a really big fan of.”
Lighting programmer Chris Hirst added: “The main workhorse lights we’re using are the Martin MAC Viper Performance moving lights, as well as GLP X4 and X4L LED lights, which we use to achieve a lot of the looks seen on stage. Additionally, we have Martin Atomic and HES Dataflash strobes, a variety of different sized Colorblaze LED battens, Icon Beams, Colorblast CB6 LED lights, and a substantial package of generic lighting fixtures in the rig.
All the lighting cues are pre-programmed on a GrandMA2 console to timecode, which allows all the big, strobe looks, yet can still be cued through by a DSM.”
The production makes innovative use of the latest projection technology from Panasonic to add to the overall look of the set and lighting design. Peter Marshall explained: “When we specified the equipment needed for the show, it was clear that only the highest performance projectors would suffice. We opted for the Panasonic PT-RZ31K laser projectors to take on the bulk of the projection work. Being a laser light source, these units are incredibly efficient with a maximum lifespan of around 80,000 hours, suffering minimal light output drop off over the life of the lamp.”
Emily Malone, video programmer added: “The Panasonic laser projectors are brilliant, they’re very bright but also very quiet for a projector of that size, which means they are perfect for theatre. We’re running all the content through a d3 media server, triggered by a GrandMA2 console.
(Jim Evans)
