Robe fits the bill in Auckland’s Basement
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In 2022, Basement Theatre purchased its first Robe LED fixtures – two CycBar15s – a sale in proportion to its production needs that has made a big difference to how shows can be lit.
Squeezed into an old industrial building, once part of a large grain silo development, the charismatic theatre has been on the site for 15 years, making the most out of a challenging layout with some out-of-the-box reimagining that has ensured it has everything needed for a busy and thriving venue.
A busy and diverse programme of shows run Tuesday to Saturday in the two intimate spaces, attracting generally younger audiences together with those who might not necessarily entertain more traditional theatres. While smaller in size, it has a massively big heart!
The venue’s then technical manager Michael Trigg explained that all their fixtures must be flexible and multi-purpose, and the CycBar15s fitted this context.
He looked at several options before deciding on the Robe product being best value for their requirements. The fixtures are rigged in the 100-capacity main space and were purchased with support from Robe distributor Jands New Zealand at the start of 2022.
The CycBar 15s cover many bases, Michael explained. “They can be a front wash, a back light, a wash or a top light or they can be rigged vertically for more of an effects look, and the individual pixel control was something that really appealed for this,” he enthused, adding that the fixtures can also be rigged on side booms for dance shows.
Most incoming Basement productions there will bring their own lighting designers and will use the house rig which contains about 40 fixtures, sometimes augmenting this with a few of their own specials.
The venue is right at the heart of the annual Auckland Fringe Festival which has strong roots there, and is also at the epicentre of the New Zealand International Comedy Festival each May.
The CycBar 15s were such a great success that the theatre confirmed an order to triple their Robe inventory, adding two iBar 15s – an updated and IP65 rated version of the original CycBar – and two ParFect 150 LED source ACL style beam fixtures.
