Show and lighting designer Rob Sinclair worked alongside lighting director Louisa Smurthwaite to specify 21 Sharpy Wash 330 fixtures for this festival leg of the Tales of Us tour.
"Using the Sharpy Wash 330s, we created strong looks through the lead singer Alison and the rest of the band onstage," says Smurthwaite. "From the tight wash beam, through to the wider look the frost gave, we were able to create some excellent moments with the fixture."
Supplied by NEG Earth, 15 of the Clay Paky fixtures were rigged behind the band and six were used as side lighting. The upstage units were rigged at a height of 4ft, so that Sinclair and Smurthwaite could create a wall of backlight.
The tour saw locations ranging from vast outdoor spaces to smaller indoor stages. This made the Sharpy Wash 330 an easy choice, as its 330W lamp equals the light output of a 1000W luminaire, and yet it is small, lightweight at only 18.5kg and is easily transported.
The lighting design evolved throughout the show, starting out soft and ethereal and getting edgier and more vibrant towards the end, with the Sharpy Wash 330s delivering washes of colour in a range of stunning hues.
"The thing that I love most about the Sharpy Wash 330 is the colour mixing," continues Smurthwaite. "They work so well with the less saturated, more delicate colours that we start the show with, and also get the deep, richer shades."
The Sharpy Wash 330 has a full CMY colour system and 11-colour wheel. The show design also sees performers and backdrops appear seemingly out of nothing, thanks to the fixture's high-speed movement and optics system.
Goldfrapp's Tales of Us tour saw dates at Slovakia's Pohoda Festival, where they played alongside techno legends Kraftwerk, and Switzerland's renowned Montreux Jazz Festival. The next show will be at London's equally prestigious Royal Albert Hall on 18 November.
(Jim Evans)
