Winner of six Tonys, two Oliviers, one Grammy, two Baftas and
six Academy Awards, Chicago is the longest-running musical revival in
Broadway history and ETC was selected to light the show for its
International Tour 2018-2019.
ETECH spoke to head of lighting department, Glenn Duncan to find out
more of the technology he used to bring this all-South African
production to the international stage.
The world famous Chicago musical has landed in Montecasino Teatro,
South Africa after performing in New Zealand and China to critical
acclaim. Programmed and run on ETC’s Eos family of consoles, the
Johannesburg run has used the Ion XE 20 – provided by South African
distributor ApexPro to Splitbeam, the Technical supplier for the South
African season.
Mathew Lewis of ApexPro said, “We are always happy to assist where needed with service, as support is a major priority for us at ApexPro.”
The control side is not the only part that features ETC products: the
production is beautifully lit using a combination of standard Source
Four Tungsten profiles along with the acclaimed Source Four LED Series 2
Lustrs, which create stunning scenes. “With such a high standard of LED
technology available, it is no wonder that productions all over the
world include ETC fixtures as their go-to choice.”
Head of the lighting department for Chicago’s International Tour
2018-2019, Glenn Duncan, discusses more about his experience with the
technology used to bring this colorful production to the stage.
“Having the bigger programming surfaces and more displays on the
flagship consoles is great for programming, while the smaller, compact
desks make life much easier on the road. Seamless networking also allows
us to program and update from whichever console happens to be nearest
to the action, and gives us a backup system which can be relied on.”
According to Duncan, using ETC’s Eos family for a touring production
is useful as you can program on one of the larger consoles and then run
the show on a more compact member of the Eos family. “The ETC Eos family
is just that – a family,” says Duncan. “It’s a big plus that our show
will run on any of the consoles in the family without modification. At
various points on tour, we’ve used an Eos, two Gios, three Ions and an
Ion XE, and the showfile has always been perfectly portable between the
desks.”
Duncan previously worked on the original production, which used
scrollers. ETECH asked him how using the ETC Lustrs changed the show for
him – do they measure up in the typical tungsten environment of theatre?
“A great deal of very precise and detailed work was done by Ken Billington and Associates to match the colors and outputs to the original design – and the fact that the Lustr units have been able to fully replace the scroller versions is a testament to the quality of their output,” comments Duncan.
He goes on to explain: “The switch to LED has made for a rig that is
easier to tour and more robust on the long, bumpy journeys between
cities in China. Recently, I heard a comment regarding one scene, saying
how good the all-tungsten picture looked. I later realized that there
were actually a few Source Four Lustr units in that picture, too, and
one simply could not tell the difference.” He adds that “on a show like
Chicago, where the lighting is all about precision, achieving those
matches [must have been time-consuming], but I’m certainly impressed
with the results.”
Glenn has worked with gear from a variety of hire companies on tour but maintained consistency with his use of ETC gear. “We’ve worked with three different suppliers so far on tour, and the ETC equipment has always been reliable and consistent. I think it helps that the ETC gear is clearly named and you always know what you’re getting after presenting a spec. Rather than a plethora of similar-but-not-identical models, it’s good to know that a Source Four is a Source Four, a given lens will always give you the same optics, and a Lustr will always do what it says on the tin. The RDM features of the LED units are helpful too – if there is a discrepancy in dimmer curve, mode, color mix or DMX response on the supplied gear, we don’t have to climb ladders to put it right.”
“We’ve had very little reason to contact support or ask for help on
this tour, which in itself has been a pleasure. The equipment simply
gets on with the job – we can all take a lesson from it! In the past,
however, I’ve always been able to get the help I need from ETC, from the
silliest questions to the deepest code-level nitpicking.”
Lastly, ETECH asked Glenn why, as a touring lighting HOD, he would
choose ETC products for a show. “A busy tour can be hard work for crew
and equipment alike. The ETC equipment is robust and consistent, easy to
work with and always leaves us with a great-looking final product. If I
sign up for a tour and see that the rig is ETC-based, I know that the
gear will perform. It saves a whole lot of worry and fault-finding when
you know the equipment will deliver.”
In Duncan’s words, ‘Chicago the Musical’ continues to deliver, night
after night – and city after city. It continues to be one of the most
successful international musical hits of all time and thanks to the hard
work behind the scenes, the audience can sit back knowing that the
lighting experience will be as stunning as the show’s signature piano
riffs.
Located halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles on California’s Central Coast, Paso Robles is filled with wine, olives, hot springs, beautiful rolling hills, and sunny weather – exactly the picture many have of what the state is all about. Unsurprisingly, the city is not only a popular tourist destination but also a great location for conferences and business meetings.
The brand new Oxford Suites Paso Robles is a hotel aimed at satisfying all of those demands. The latest addition to the Oxford Collection-a group of 17 hotels in 4 states aimed largely at business travelers-the Paso Robles property will formally open in its downtown location in September 2019 with 101 executive suites, a 1,605 square foot ballroom, 2,500 square feet of meeting space, a boardroom, and an array of amenities, right down to electric car-charging stations. A second construction phase will add 40 more rooms.
Over the last half-dozen years, the Bend, Oregon-based Oxford Corporate parent company has partnered with local design/build firm Audio Visual Bend to create and install audio and video systems for the public and business spaces of its new properties. “We did a proof-of-concept install at one of Oxford’s early boutique hotels here in Bend, upgrading it from a home theater AV system to a commercial AV system,” recounts AV Bend AV Designer/Project Manager Tony Sprando. “They’ve been ecstatic with the ease of control of the system.” The Paso Robles location is the fifth Oxford Collection property on which AV Bend has worked.
Bend creates the ease-of-use that so enthralls Oxford Corporate by deploying Symetrix DSP networks and control panels to provide media services through the primary hotel areas. In Paso Robles, AV Bend installed a Symetrix Prism 12×12 DSP and a Prism 8×8 DSP to cover the meeting rooms, boardroom, and public spaces, which include the pool, garden, port cochère (drive-thru entrance area), lobby, bathrooms, bar, and dining room. With so many areas to cover, AV Bend needed the ability to configure a number of different zones, as well as easily cover the distances involved between the spaces. The Prism processors are equipped with Dante networking and a wide selection of I/O configurations and options, making them a versatile choice for installation into multiple Oxford projects. “We’re trying to be very flexible,” Sprando explains.
Music distribution, possibly the most common audio task in hotels, is one of the areas where Symetrix products delivered flexibility. “The two primary background music sources are Pandora for Business/Mood Music playlists,” Sprando observes. “One playlist is for the public spaces, while the other one is designed for the meeting rooms and boardroom, so the hotel can choose different genres for events that might be happening in those private areas. Furthermore, they can pull background music from the hotel into the meeting rooms, then turn that off and seamlessly transition into a presentation.”
Areas like the bar and restaurant have very simple control needs, requiring nothing more than a volume control for background music. In these areas, AV Bend installed Symetrix ARC-K1e modular remote control panels, which offer a rotary encoder with a button and a few LED indicators. For the meeting rooms and spaces that may need to route and switch sources or perform other control functions, ARC-3 adaptive remote control panels were put in. The ARC-3 features a touch interface and a menu system that can be programmed to perform complex logic-based events such as preset selection, source selection, and room combining.
The business meeting areas, having more sophisticated facilities, presented greater control needs. The meeting rooms are actually one large room that can be partitioned. Each of the resulting two rooms includes a projector and screen for video and is capable of hosting a wireless handheld microphone and a wireless lapel (lavalier) microphone.Event attendees can carry in a laptop and connect it through an HDMI jack or a VGA connection on a wall panel.
In the boardroom, laptops access the network via an HDMI jack built into the table. In addition, the boardroom has a Dell PC built into the room’s TV, controlled by a wireless keyboard and mouse. The boardroom facilitates participation by people in offsite locations with an interactive touchscreen, camera, and microphone.
Oxford Corporate has been opening a new property every year, and Sprando expects to keep installing Symetrix systems in new properties as they are built. “In the last five hotels, we’ve had very few service calls about the audio system. The Symetrix products have proven themselves to be quite reliable,” he concludes.
In the foyer of the Fugard Theatre,
a cardboard cut-out has been set up so that audience members can take a
photo of themselves ‘wearing’ the thigh-high glittery red boots so
prominent in the production and its marketing materials. The fact that
even this small show-related attraction has such a long queue on
performance nights says a lot about the production’s runaway success.
Since its opening in June of this year, Kinky Boots has been playing to rapturous full houses.
Now Kinky Boots will continue sashaying and strutting its stuff across the boards of the Fugard Theatre until 27 October.
The lighting for the show was designed by seasoned UK veteran Tim Mitchell and programmed by Mathew Lewis. “Programming for Kinky Boots made me fall in love with the Eos consoles all over again,” said Lewis, who is also the ETC product manager at ApexPro. “The lovely thing about Eos is whether you’re using your laptop or you’re using the big flagship console, it’s all the same software. So it’s all compatible and works together. It’s such an easy console because it speaks the same language the designer speaks to a programmer.”
According to Lewis, the lead product developer on Eos, Anne
Valentino, actually went and sat in theatres while they were programing
and listened to how the designers talked to the programmers. She then
developed the syntax from there, so as to keep it simple and
comprehensible. The Eos Ti was born from these efforts, and it is the
console Lewis worked on for the production. His love for the console is
contagious and, according to him, “There’s not a show on Broadway that’s
not on Eos.” Lighting Designer Tim Mitchell echoes the sentiment by
saying that “Eos consoles make average programmers look brilliant.”
The Eos Titanium (or Eos Ti) is ETC’s flagship lighting control console, with powerful hardware, easy-to-navigate software, and the right tools to realise art within the tight timetable of professional productions. The desk’s common-sense syntax is consistent and predictable so anyone – novices and professionals alike – can get down to business. You can work from an abstract concept of a design to a straightforward command sequence, thinking less about the mechanics of the system and more about the look of your show. All of this with an award-winning colour engine.
Another ETC flagship is prominent
in the lighting rig for the show: the Source Four LED Series 2 Lustr,
ETC’s flagship lighting fixture. Leading the pack of LED theatre
lighting, the Lustr uses ETC’s x7 Color System with the addition of a
lime-green LED emitter and more red, to create a deeper, richer colour
spectrum that fills in the gaps that ordinary LEDs leave behind. This
cutting edge technology lends the production a world-class sheen, as
various spaces are created and enhanced by lighting wizardry.
The biggest lighting challenge and goal, per Lewis, was contrasting
the “boring old world” of the shoe factory with the glitz of Lola’s neon
nightclub lifestyle. “The way that LED technology has come along, made
it much easier to be able to switch between these states. Especially the
Lustrs that can render tungsten-like looks all the way through to bold,
saturated colour. Couple that with the power of Eos, particularly the
colour mixing engine, and the whole process becomes a lot easier.”
Kinky Boots is a foot-stomper, and had the audience on its feet by the rousing show-stopping finale. Book now to avoid disappointment – and remember to get your own kinky-booted selfie during interval!
Attero Tech has released its Axiom ML1 audio extension module, the latest addition to the company’s audio extension I/O modules. The Axiom ML1 provides extension of analogue mic and line level audio sources in a single gang wallplate.
The Axiom ML1 features a combination of XLR and a ¼ -in connector, with +4 dBu nominal input level.
A 3.5mm jack is included with -10 dBV nominal input level, featuring 20dB of adjustable gain.
Audio signal-level indicator LEDs are included for each input, providing input gain adjustments.
Selectable sum-to-mono options for both inputs are featured, allowing two ML1s or an ML1 and another Axiom device to be daisy-chained on a single bus.
The Axiom ML1 sends mono or stereo analogue audio for up to 100 metres (total run length) over the Attero Tech Axiom bus via a CAT5 or CAT6 cable to an Axiom AXP20 expander unit.
In turn, the AXP20 outputs balanced analogue audio on 3-pin depluggable connectors for connection to commercial audio equipment.
Each year, Mason Sound (Jacksonville, IL) provides the sound system
and crew support for the concert series at the Illinois State Fair’s
main grandstand stage. New for 2019, Mason Sound utilized Dynacord’s
SONICUE sound system software to streamline the control and
configuration of their Dynacord TGX-powered Electro-Voice X-Line Advance
line-array loudspeaker system.
Requiring a 250-foot throw across a
dirt racetrack to the very wide grandstand, the Illinois State Fair in
Springfield is one of the region’s more challenging outdoor concert
venues, so controlled coverage is key. Additionally, the fair’s diverse
line-up of performers requires a sound system with the flexibility to
accurately and easily deliver a wide range of musical styles in the
hands of the various visiting mix engineers who run the rig over the
course of the eleven-day concert series. This year’s line-up included
Reba McEntire, Snoop Dogg, Old Dominion, Pentatonix, Dan + Shay and Bad
Company, among many others.
SONICUE elegantly assisted in
addressing all the above for this year’s deployment. SONICUE is
system-focused software that uses an intuitive “speaker view” GUI that
provides direct access to every system parameter on the fly, resulting
in amazingly fast and precise set-up and tuning. With reduced
preparation time on several days, due to horse and auto racing events on
the racetrack in front of the stage, SONICUE proved to be a big help:
“Our older system would take an hour or so to set up,” says Mason Sound
system tech Jason Hebron. “This one takes about 20 minutes. All the
engineers have been very happy with it.”
Ian Zorbaugh, FOH
engineer for country stars Old Dominion, was among those with positive
reviews for the Electro-Voice and Dynacord system. “It exceeds all
expectations,” he says. “I mix pretty dynamic with Old Dominion, and had
no issues with running out of headroom. As soon as you turn sound on,
you feel comfortable mixing. It’s been a very pleasant experience.”
This
year’s system included twin 18-box hangs of Electro-Voice X2-212
line-array modules, with Mason Sound opting for the 120-degree
dispersion model. Six more boxes were ground-stacked to ensure full
coverage of the very wide venue. Massive low frequency capability was
supplied by two banks of 16 X12-128 dual-18” subwoofers stacked on the
deck under the main arrays. Side-fills of three X2-212/120 were stacked
on top of a pair Electro-Voice X12/125F subwoofers. The entire system
was networked together for central control through 16 Dynacord TGX20 DSP
amplifiers, providing 320,000 watts of clean, efficient power.
Being
invited back to provide sound at the Illinois State Fair for several
years now, Mason Sound President Dave Mason credits his personnel and
sound system. “There are a lot of sound companies in our area, and
Electro-Voice is one of the main reasons we stick out above the crowd,”
he notes. “Their products and support are second to none.”
High End Systems
introduces the newest member of the Sola Series, the SolaWash 1000 automated
luminaire. SolaWash 1000 is available in two versions; either with an
Ultra-Bright engine producing 20,000 field lumens or a High CRI Engine
featuring incredibly accurate colour rendering.
The fixture includes a
full framing shutter system, CMY/CTO linear colour mixing system, a seven-plus
open position replaceable colour wheel, iris and dual Linear Frost systems for
medium and heavy frost. Sharp edge focus performs throughout the entire 12° –
55° zoom range. A TM-30 Filter boosts the Ultra-Bright engine to 85+ CRI.
Automated Lighting
Product Manager Matt Stoner commented, “The SolaWash 1000 offers an elegant
feature set for our users. Whether you are using the fixture as an
Ultra-Bright wash light with framing, a High CRI key light for face lighting or
even a wide and soft edge wash fixture, the SolaWash 1000 is designed to give
designers a great light, a wide gamut of pure and even colors, and a
beautifully simple feature set.”
“From a feature
perspective, the SolaWash 1000 is a wash light with the best of the basics:
fantastic colour mixing possibilities, great output and near-silent operation,”
says High End Systems Brand Manager Tania Lesage. “The fixture is designed
with fast serviceability in mind and is of course equipped with High End
Systems’ patented lens defogger. SolaWash 1000 will be a great complement
to our SolaFrame 1000.”
