PRG XL Video equips Idina Menzel tour
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Production, lighting and video design for the tour is by Abigail Rosen Holmes, who has also designed shows for artists such as Miley Cyrus, The Cure, Shakira and The Pet Shop Boys. Working with Abbey on the design and programming of the tour were Felix Peralta lighting programmer, Dan Scully video content and editor, and Eric Marchwinski programming video.
Lighting and video director Teddy Sosna commented: “Abbey and I have worked on numerous projects together - we met several years ago when she was teaching lighting and video design at Carnegie Mellon School of Drama in the US, where I studied. Abbey knew the passion I have for lighting in the theatre and brought me on-board for the 2015 Idina tour, and I’ve been part of the team ever since.”
Teddy discussed some of the looks and how PRG was able to help pull them off: “The lighting style is very theatrical, it’s an intricate design which focuses on soft and elegant looks, while still building up the excitement of a pop concert. The back of the stage is covered with strips of white voile, punctuated by panels of light grey custom woven jacquard fabric from Rosebrand, featuring a pattern based on a design which Abbey came up with specifically for this tour.
“The toughest part of pulling off a big looking and elegant show can be working with the various constraints of each venue. We owe so much to our PRG crews who contribute their decades of experience, and practical creativity to fill every last inch of our often historic and unique venues.
For the Royal Albert Hall show, Teddy also took advantage of the architecture surrounding the stage: “Everyone involved with the creative look of the show, including Idina, is keen to utilise the stunning surroundings of the venues we play in. Being able to take control of the architectural lighting in the Albert Hall gave me more creative freedom and enhanced the audience’s experience even further. A venue like this is so full of character.”
Teddy operated the lights from an MA Lighting GrandMA2 lighting console, with pre-programmed cues being manually triggered by him rather than timecode, because of the quite big variances of how the set runs from show to show, with Idina indulging in the opportunity to interact with the audience between songs.
Following her show at the Royal Albert Hall, Idina Menzel continued her tour around the UK, before returning to North America.
The full show includes custom LED scenic pieces built by Tait, those and the video screens are controlled through Mbox.
(Jim Evans)
