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The stage at the
2006 BBC Planet Awards getting ready for action. |
Lighting designer Pete Hosier (aka “Luton Pete”) specified
and used an Avolites Diamond 4 console to control lighting for the 2006 BBC 3
“Planet” World Music Awards, staged at London’s Brixton Academy.
The D4 is always his desk of choice he explains. He has used Avolites’ most
powerful console extensively since a D4 was installed at Shepherds’ Bush
Empire 16 months ago, where he’s one of the house programmer/designers. “It
was ideal for a show like the Planets, with very limited programming and
rehearsal time, multiple artists and a lot of lighting to control ‘on the
fly’”.
This was the fifth Planet Awards (Originally called the BBC 3 Awards World
Music Poll Winners Concert) a show that’s quickly become established as a
premier event for world music.
This years show gathered musicians from all corners of the planet and included
live performances by Nitin Sawney, Sain Zahoor, Souad Massi, Amadou & Mariam,
Fanfare Ciocarlia and Konono No 1. It was presented by High Masekela and Late
Junction’s Verity Sharp and Fiona Talkington, and was broadcast on Radio 3,
with TV highlights shown twice on BBC 4. The entire concert is also available
for download from the BBC’s website, as is a special behind-the-scenes
documentary about staging it.
Luton was brought onboard by production company Serious Productions to take
care of all the show’s and artist’s lighting requirements, for which he worked
closely with the BBC’s designer, Oli Richards. With a stage and a presentation
area on stage right to be lit, they came up with the idea of using Pulsar LED
Chroma strips to create a continuity in look between the two elements.
Forty-eight of these were used in total, 12 in the presentation area and the
rest for the performance area of the stage. The latter were bolted behind
three upstage screens so they shone through the scrim material and disappeared
when the projections were running.
The three screens at the back of the stage were stretched
across trussing frames, each of which also had six Martin MAC 250 moving lights
rigged onto them.
Other moving lights included 12 High End X-Spots, located on the back rail of a
box truss and on drop bars descending from the side trusses of the box, used for
cross stage fillers, plus another four on the floor. The screen truss was hung
upstage of the back rail of the box and flown in and out so artists and their
kit could be easily moved on and offstage.
On the front edge of the box truss were four MAC 700s, used exclusively for
screen projections, with Luton taking full advantage of their animation wheel
facilities. Also on the front edge of the box were three HES Studio Beam PCs. TA
further 8 PC Beams were on a ‘TV truss’ flown in the auditorium, primarily used
for audience lighting. The same truss also contained 14 Source Fours on it’s
upstage rail, used for key lighting performers onstage.
Other lighting instruments – supplied by Neg Earth - included a few odd PARs
dotted around, and some Lowell Omnis, used as floodlights along the font of
stage …. Ideal for lifting the faces of performers wearing elaborate headgear
that shielded their faces from the overhead illuminations causing shadows!.
All lighting was controlled by the D4. Originally, Luton was planning to run a
digital media server with video off the console as well, but this was replaced
with the animated projections.
Luton loves the versatility of the Diamond 4 and the fact that you can configure
and customise the front panel to have your fixtures, effects and functions
exactly where you want them for easy access. His preference in this case was to
organise all the movement chases and special effects along the top of the desk,
with the basics including stage colour washes along the bottom.
It was more of a static look show composed from a series of big spectacular
looks for each artist rather then a flashy rock ‘n’ roll affair, although it
“Had its moments!”, and lighting for the TV cameras was also always in mind.
Using the desk for a high profile one off like the Planet Awards was one
context, but Luton also comments that from the Shepherd’s Bush Empire’s angle,
the D4 is an ideal tool for their house lighting team and also for any visiting
LDs using the house rig - because it’s so easy to learn. The chances are that
most LDs – certainly any of those familiar with other Avolites consoles – can
pick up the basics immediately. For those using it for the first time, the
Empire house crew has developed a 45 minute tutorial in which they take the
operator through the desk and then leave them alone to get on with creating
their show “So far we’ve had nothing but positive feedback from everyone using
it – whether it’s the first time or not ” he declares. |
