Tag Archive: ETC Source Four

1. Charlie Morgan Jones: The Producers Diary – Part Two

   6 November 2017 11:50 Comments Off on Charlie Morgan Jones: The Producers Diary – Part Two

   Charlie’s diary of The Producers international tour continues below…
   Wednesday 25^th October – Focus/Plot/Tech Session One 
   Today the power is broken!  We were hoping to carry on plotting at 8am, but the whole block that the theatre sits in has gone down.  Everyone’s in good spirits though. We actually still have eight sessions of tech and two dress rehearsals to go, so we’re not hugely pressed for time at the moment!
   Thursday 26^th October/Friday 27^th October – Tech/Dress
   Tech is tech.  We’re pushing through at a rate of knots.  Shane’s fingers are a blur (he knows the ETC Eos family inside and out), Alex is coaxing some excellent spotting out of our local crew and Andrew is running around backstage like a lunatic making everything continue to work!
   The Mac IIIs are working overtime – I’m not sure there’s a single cue they’re off.  Same with the Mac 700s. I know they’re older units, but I’ve always been a huge fan!
   We’ve had some ongoing repairs/makes for our “Springtime” practicals which Andrew, Alex and JP have made look beautiful.  We seem to finish every day on a high, which is thrilling. It really is such a good show.
   Saturday 28^th October – Dress/First Preview
   It’s always a traumatic time for an LD – that moment when the DSM leaves the Production desk and goes backstage! Our wonderful Antonia left me this very lovely message though (see right).
   Today is the first time an audience has seen the show. None of us really know what to expect but, thankfully, they loved it – particularly the slapstick comedy!  The notes list is gradually getting smaller, and we’re all hoping for a little explore of Shanghai next week!
   Tuesday 31^st October – Move to Shanghai/Third Preview
   We moved the show to the biggest stage in Mainland China today. It was a slight shock after our smaller (but by no means pokey) opening venue.
   The theatre provided us lunch. I’ve never been to prison thankfully but this felt pretty close…I imagine we’ll eat out from now on.
   Given yesterday was the first fit up and relight, tonight is the smoothest I’ve seen the show yet!
   With the help of the chaps at White Light, we chose the Elation SIXPar as the workhorse overhead.  Across four bars, it gave me a whole host of options, from a full stage wash using all the units and the cyc (ColorForce 72) or close it down when cloths were flown in to just one or two bars.
   
   Wednesday 1^st November – Press Night
   Today we all get to watch the show for real!  There’s a big audience in and a great buzz in the foyer!  This marks the 10^th show I’ve lit for Selladoor, so it’s a special day.  Both the company and I have grown together, and it feels like celebrating with old pals – probably because it is!
   Thursday 2^nd November – Day Off
   We all have today off, but are staying in Shanghai to watch the show once more this evening.  We also managed to get some touristy sightseeing in – I made the boys pose for selfie after selfie and I think they secretly loved it!
    
   Friday 3^rd November – Travel Day
   Everyone is on their way home now and I’m signing off myself.  The show is in a great shape and I’m really pleased. I do think that we’re all looking forward to our own beds…
   The Producers in China has been a truly unforgettable experience.  From the bottom of my heart, I can’t thank Alex, Shane and Andrew enough.  They’ve dealt with a lot and overcome every hurdle with incredible competence and a smile on their face.
   I’m actually heading straight to Macau for a couple of days to visit one of my oldest friends who lives out there. I’m not sure that many people go to Macau to relax, but that’s certainly what I’ll be doing!  No gambling: just good food, good wine and good company!
   Kit List
   46 x ETC Source Four (various lenses)
   10 x Sunstrip Active Batten
   8 x ETC Source Four Mini
   3 x Par Can CP62
   14 x Martin Mac III Performance
   12 x Martin Mac 700 Wash
   9 x ETC Lustr 2
   9 x ColorForce 72
   2 x Followspot (In House)

2. White Light On Song for Ivor Novello Awards

   30 May 2017 08:53 Comments Off on White Light On Song for Ivor Novello Awards

   

   Created in 1956, the Ivor Novello Awards celebrate, honour and reward excellence in song writing and composing. They are named after the legendary composer Ivor Novello and represent the pinnacle of musical achievement and peer recognition in the music industry. Sponsored by PRS, previous winners include John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Adele, Phil Collins and Eric Clapton. Having supplied the lighting equipment for the past several years, WL was called upon once again for this year’s ceremony.

   The Ivor Novello Awards 2017 took place on Thursday 18^th May at the Grosvenor House, London.  The lighting designer was Quentin Jarman, who comments: “I have worked on the Ivor Novello show for twenty years now and it’s always a great occasion. For the music industry, it’s a unique celebration of song writing and the craft behind this”.

   For the Awards, Quentin’s brief was to create a lighting design that matched the colours of the screen graphics that would be played throughout the show. He states: “Whenever an award was presented, this was accompanied by a series of video sequences on a huge screen behind the stage. My role was to ensure my lighting and animated video images matched these and that the event had an exciting yet coherent feel to it”.

   

   Prior to the show, Quentin was given four clear colour references so that he was aware of the different feels he had to create. He comments: “I used moving monochrome video clips from the ArKaos Media Server and subtracted colour elements in order to get the exact shade I required”.

   Alongside this, Quentin drew on WL’s extensive hire inventory to create his perfect rig for the show. This included a wall of 25 Clay Paky Sharpys set between WL’s LED fusion battens. Quentin states: “Alongside creating a design which matched the video content, I also had to ensure this was flexible for when the winners walked on stage. For the various award presentations, these sequences had to be loud and pervade a concert type feel, which is where the Sharpys came in useful”.

   Unlike the majority of award ceremonies, the Ivor Novello Awards take place during the daytime. As a result, this meant that Quentin did not have the luxury of a full day of set-up time. Rather, the load in took place at 2am and the first technical rehearsals were at 8am. The dress rehearsal commenced at 11am before the guests arrived at 12:30pm.

   

   To prepare for such a short time-frame, Quentin visited WL’s London base and spent two days at the company’s state-of-the-art studio facility Studio15. He states: “By using the Studio15 facilities, I was able to pre-build the fusion LED battens as well as programme the desk and media server. As there was very little time on site, I needed everything in place for the ceremony so I could just show up and be ready to go”.

   Winners this year included Jarvis Cocker, Bill Withers, Florence Welch and Gary Numan. Grime artist Skepta won the prestigious Songwriter of the Year Award.

   Quentin adds: “This was another great awards ceremony that was very well received by all those in attendance. The Ivors are always a very unique show for me to work on personally and I am very grateful to WL for all of their support throughout”.

   Photos courtesy of Mark Allen.