Post by shayne on May 16, 2007 20:32:59 GMT 8
Bandit Helps Westlife Show The Love
Bandit Lites continues its longstanding relationship as lighting suppliers to chart-toppers Westlife
Bandit Lites continues its longstanding relationship as lighting suppliers to chart-toppers Westlife, currently blazing the live trail with their "Love" UK and Irish arena tour. Visuals – lighting, video and set - have been designed by Peter Barnes, working closely with Steve Levitt of Production North. Lighting was programmed and is being operated by Lighting Director, Dave Lee.
Bandit UK’s Chief Executive, Lester Cobrin comments, “Working with Steve [Levitt], Peter [Barnes] and Dave [Lee] is always a pleasure. Westlife continue to raise the bar and we are honored to be part of such an exemplary production.”
Barnes’ design utilises some clever eye trickery, making the stage appear a lot larger than it actually is. He’s dispensed with a front truss to give the impression of as much openness and space onstage as possible, and overhead there are 7 architectural style lighting trusses, radiating out from a 4 metre circle upstage center. The circle truss also provides the show’s opening gag – flying in from the roof with the band inside.
There are also three rear ‘video’ trusses per side at the back, flanking a high resolution LED screen. These are actually lighting trusses, but each is disguised with a banner-style strip of Barco O-lite low resolution video surface attached underneath.
Sixty Martin Professional MAC 2K washes make up the majority of the moving light count – chosen for their punch, power and intensity – and following on from last year’s rig which was all wash fixtures. These are placed all over the finger and video trusses, which gives a vast range and great focusability all across the state and set. As a concession to ‘conventional moving lights’ and at the request of the band, 10 MAC 2K profiles were added – on the rear video trusses.
All the trusses are toned with a total of 26 JTE PixelPARs. The set features a large central staircase, which is underlit with Pulsar ChromaBank LED fixtures, and 6 Color Kinetics ColorBlasts, also mounted under the stairs and used to make beamy looks through the treads.
Lee is running all lighting on a WholeHog II console and a wing. This is also driving a dual output Catalyst digital media server, loaded up with custom content created by Barnes. The Catalyst outputs are fed into the main video PPU system and routed to screen – either to the O-Lite panels, or to three strip shaped panels of Barco MiTrix, which criss-cross the O-lite on both sides of stage. The two Catalyst feeds are also made available to video director, Billy Robinson.
The show is divided into 5 different sections – including a medley tribute section to other famous boybands. It is a dynamic, interactive multimedia mix of lighting, video, live music, dancing and action. The final production includes all elements working together to produce a synergetic and seamlessly choreographed show – hailed as one of Westlife’s ‘best ever.’
The tour was preceded by a week of production rehearsals at Lite Structures in Wakefield.
“Everyone involved has put a lot of creative energy and imagination into this show and it’s been a really enjoyable process, and it has been really great working with Peter, and of course with the Bandit team again,” Lee comments. “With Bandit on the case I know I didn’t need to worry about anything on the practical or rigging front – I knew it would all just happen. This left me free to concentrate on programming – which was much needed as the process was very full on.”
Bandit is also supplying 4 Lycian 2K follow spots and four crew - Crew Chief, Johnny Harper, Dimmer Technician, Rob Starksfield and Lighting Technicians, Ricky Butler and Jason Dixon.
Video is from XL Video UK, sound from Wigwam and the tour runs through early May.
Source ZioSHow; wfvip
Bandit Lites continues its longstanding relationship as lighting suppliers to chart-toppers Westlife
Bandit Lites continues its longstanding relationship as lighting suppliers to chart-toppers Westlife, currently blazing the live trail with their "Love" UK and Irish arena tour. Visuals – lighting, video and set - have been designed by Peter Barnes, working closely with Steve Levitt of Production North. Lighting was programmed and is being operated by Lighting Director, Dave Lee.
Bandit UK’s Chief Executive, Lester Cobrin comments, “Working with Steve [Levitt], Peter [Barnes] and Dave [Lee] is always a pleasure. Westlife continue to raise the bar and we are honored to be part of such an exemplary production.”
Barnes’ design utilises some clever eye trickery, making the stage appear a lot larger than it actually is. He’s dispensed with a front truss to give the impression of as much openness and space onstage as possible, and overhead there are 7 architectural style lighting trusses, radiating out from a 4 metre circle upstage center. The circle truss also provides the show’s opening gag – flying in from the roof with the band inside.
There are also three rear ‘video’ trusses per side at the back, flanking a high resolution LED screen. These are actually lighting trusses, but each is disguised with a banner-style strip of Barco O-lite low resolution video surface attached underneath.
Sixty Martin Professional MAC 2K washes make up the majority of the moving light count – chosen for their punch, power and intensity – and following on from last year’s rig which was all wash fixtures. These are placed all over the finger and video trusses, which gives a vast range and great focusability all across the state and set. As a concession to ‘conventional moving lights’ and at the request of the band, 10 MAC 2K profiles were added – on the rear video trusses.
All the trusses are toned with a total of 26 JTE PixelPARs. The set features a large central staircase, which is underlit with Pulsar ChromaBank LED fixtures, and 6 Color Kinetics ColorBlasts, also mounted under the stairs and used to make beamy looks through the treads.
Lee is running all lighting on a WholeHog II console and a wing. This is also driving a dual output Catalyst digital media server, loaded up with custom content created by Barnes. The Catalyst outputs are fed into the main video PPU system and routed to screen – either to the O-Lite panels, or to three strip shaped panels of Barco MiTrix, which criss-cross the O-lite on both sides of stage. The two Catalyst feeds are also made available to video director, Billy Robinson.
The show is divided into 5 different sections – including a medley tribute section to other famous boybands. It is a dynamic, interactive multimedia mix of lighting, video, live music, dancing and action. The final production includes all elements working together to produce a synergetic and seamlessly choreographed show – hailed as one of Westlife’s ‘best ever.’
The tour was preceded by a week of production rehearsals at Lite Structures in Wakefield.
“Everyone involved has put a lot of creative energy and imagination into this show and it’s been a really enjoyable process, and it has been really great working with Peter, and of course with the Bandit team again,” Lee comments. “With Bandit on the case I know I didn’t need to worry about anything on the practical or rigging front – I knew it would all just happen. This left me free to concentrate on programming – which was much needed as the process was very full on.”
Bandit is also supplying 4 Lycian 2K follow spots and four crew - Crew Chief, Johnny Harper, Dimmer Technician, Rob Starksfield and Lighting Technicians, Ricky Butler and Jason Dixon.
Video is from XL Video UK, sound from Wigwam and the tour runs through early May.
Source ZioSHow; wfvip