Stageco project director Dirk de Decker and creative designer Es Devlin consulted with Muse production manager Chris Vaughan, and Malcolm Birkett, technical designer for the tour to create the unique stage designs to support the artistic concept of the show.
Stageco's Koen Peeters and Tom Frederickx were also essential to the team, creating CAD designs and complex calculations needed for the bespoke stage, which was comprised of 20% unique components alongside Stageco's trusted staging system. Dirk then worked out the tour logistics to create the stage in the most efficient way for transportation and building.
The 34m high stage required 16 Stageco trucks, a team of 14 Stageco staging professionals supported by local crews, as it tours seven cities in 2010. Taking three days to build and one day to dismantle, the 60m wide by 34m high structure is used in nine shows during 2010.
The design incorporates 32m free-span frontage, resulting in an open structure with excellent sight-lines from all angles. To build such a large span safely the two separate sections were supported until the stage was complete for loading with technical production, and the support material was then used to make delay towers.
Koen Peeters comments, "This is the first time I have worked with Chris Vaughn and Malcolm Birkett and it has been a real joy; they are calm, down to earth people, doing a great job creating a spectacular show."
(Jim Evans)
