These were specified by Chris Moylan of Berlin based Optikalusion, who was the lighting designer and programmer for all the entertainment spaces, amounting to the theatre, AbtanzBar nightclub, the Studio and pool deck stage. This follows up his very successful Robe installation on Mein Schiff 3 in 2014 and Mein Schiff 4 in 2015.
For this latest vessel built in Meyer Turku Shipyard in Finland, explained Chris, the entertainment areas have been expanded. Klanghaus which was previously a very basic 'music chamber' has evolved into a full Studio performance space staging numerous more intimate entertainment pieces including a new holographic projection show. Outside on deck, the pool stage has also been enlarged from previous vessels, with the staging of an all new lighting and projection extravaganza, "Meeresleuchten".
Energy efficiency was a key principal underlining the whole lighting installation, together with providing a flexible and robust infrastructure for the 12 technical crew who are running everything whilst MS5 is at sea.
In addition to the 65 x DL4F and DL4Ss, there are 16 x LEDWash 800s in the theatre, 48 x LEDBeam 100s in the club and 30 x Anolis Outdoor ArcSource 48MC and 24MC LED fixtures, all delivered to the project by Robe's Finnish distributor, F-Musiikki Oy from Vantaa. Wartsila FUNA International were responsible for the electrical installation.
The DL4Fs were selected as the primary wash light for the theatre rig, used as both effects and general stage lighting,
"This is still the only RGBW theatre luminaire with a front lens, and the new '4' version - he used first generation DLFs on Mein Schiff 3 - is hugely brighter. The dimming granularity is excellent and it's simply an amazing fixture! Well done Robe!" he stated.
Reliability and lifespan are "huge issues" when specifying kit that's destined for a working life on-board a cruise ship. It's likely to be miles from a service centre most of the time and ordering spares and parts can potentially take weeks and be a logistical nightmare!
Lighting the outdoor area by the pool deck was one of the biggest challenges of MS5, and Chris decided to use the Anolis Outdoor ArcSource 48 and 24 MC LED fixtures to highlight a set of architectural sails which frame the stage at one end of the pool area.
(Jim Evans)
