As theatre evolves from painted backdrops to immersive canvases, this issue celebrates the innovation transforming the world’s stages. From concert halls to cruise ships, discover how technology and artistry combine to create breathtaking new experiences. We go behind the scenes of Lana Del Rey’s tour to explore cinematic sound and projection, spotlight lighting designers redefining storytelling, and travel to China’s Doupotang Waterfall, where nature becomes a stage. Plus, our expert panel shares insights on balancing sound in modern and heritage venues, and our buyers’ guide reveals the latest rigging essentials.
SOUND FOR EVERY SPACE The dos and don’ts for ambitious audio projects
YOUNG AND TECHNICAL
LIVEMAG.ONLINE
WINTER 2025
Sharing the AV scoop on Lana Del Rey’s world tour GLOW BIG OR GO HOME We go beyond the bulbs in our lighting special
Lifting the curtain on the technology behind theatre’s most subversive sounds and visuals
EDITOR’S WELCOME
03
EDITORIAL Editor Verity Butler +44 (0) 1223 492246 veritybutler@bright.uk.com Senior staff writer Katie Kasperson Features writer Oliver Webb Chief sub editor Matthew Winney Junior sub editors Tabitha John & Kezia Kurtz Editorial director Nicola Foley ADVERTISING Sales director Sam Scott-Smith +44 (0) 1223 499457 +44 (0) 7875 711967 samscott-smith@bright.uk.com +44 (0) 1223 499462 +44 (0) 7376 665779 emmastevens@bright.uk.com Account manager Kurran Jagpal +44 (0) 1223 492244 kurranjagpal@bright.uk.com DESIGN Design director Andy Jennings Magazine design manager Lucy Woolcomb Senior designer Carl Golsby Junior designer and ad production Holly May PUBLISHING Managing directors Andy Brogden & Matt Pluck FOLLOW US linkedin.com/company/livemagsocial @livemagsocial Sales manager Emma Stevens
Swing to page 14 to go behind the scenes of Lana Del Rey’s dream-like tour
A s a self-confessed ‘theatre kid’, I jump at any chance I can get to highlight the extraordinary technical innovations that are taking place in the theatre landscape right now. One of my favourite playwrights, Arthur Miller, once said: “The mission of theatre, after all, is to change, to raise the consciousness of people to their human possibilities.” This perfectly encapsulates our issue’s theme, as we dive into how stages no longer consist of painted backdrops and rusty pulleys, but are now immersive canvases offering a bounty of creative opportunities. From concert halls to cruise ships, discover how the modern stage has taken on a life of its own on page 26. Elsewhere, over on page 14, senior staff writer Katie Kasperson takes a front-row look at how Lana Del Rey’s latest UK and Ireland tour blended cinematic soundscapes, projection and lighting to form an atmosphere that’s as emotionally charged as her music itself. Speaking of light, features writer Oliver Webb’s creative lighting piece on page 42 explores how designers are rewriting the visual language of performance. Despite once being a purely functional element, lighting has now become a storytelling tool in its own right, capable of shaping emotion, texture and narrative in bold new ways. Meanwhile, for
our projection mapping story, we travel to China’s Doupotang Waterfall, where technology and legend collide to prove that nature is its own kind of stage. Our expert round table gathers some of the industry’s brightest minds to share their keen insights on adapting sound design for both modern and heritage venues alike. These luminaries offer their practical advice for achieving sonic balance in even the most challenging spaces. While our buyers’ guide rounds up the must-have rigging and stage accessories to make certain your next production is as seamless as it is spectacular. Since this is our final issue of LIVE for 2025, we want to extend a huge thank you to all of our readers, contributors and partners for your ongoing support and passion for the industry. We’ll be back in 2026 – and we promise to return with a bang, with our bumper ISE Show edition. Until then, here’s to the people, the performances and the power of AV that keep the world’s stages shining bright.
TO SUBSCRIBE, VISIT LIVEMAG.ONLINE
Need to update or cancel your LIVE subscription? Email us at livesubs@bright.uk.com
Bright Publishing Ltd, Bright House, 82 High Street, Sawston, Cambridgeshire, CB22 3HJ, UK
Verity Butler Editor veritybutler@bright.uk.com
CONTENTS
06 NEWS & UPDATES
The latest audio-visual scoops – from bicycle-powered festivals to Secret Cinema’s Grease
14 CONCERTS & TOURING Discover the sonic mix of melancholy and AV mastery behind Lana Del Rey’s latest tour
26 THEATRE & STAGE
Theatre is no longer the mechanical backdrops and velvet curtains of the past. We uncover it’s transition
34 ROUND TABLE
From archaic concert halls to futuristic venues, this panel advises how to adapt sound for any stage
42 LIGHTING SPECIAL
LIVE.
As the lighting market beams with innovation, we explore new creative illumination techniques
50 PROJECTION MAPPING Light and legend converge as a waterfall becomes living art through the power of projection
14
54 BUYERS’ GUIDE
Planning a tour? This buyers’ guide has you covered with the top rigging and stage accessories
42
MEDIA PARTNERS
This issue’s cover was designed by Holly May at Bright Publishing. Image by Manuel Harlan
CONTENTS
05
50
06
34
26
NEWS
NEWS
07
Elation lighting fixtures took centre stage at the tenth anniversary of the Untold Festival – one of Europe’s largest music festivals, held 7 to 10 August in Cluj-Napoca in Transylvania. With over 470,000 attendees and a line-up featuring, Armin van Buuren, Post Malone, Martin Garrix, Becky Hill, Tiësto and more, the milestone edition was celebrated with a truly spectacular production. Apart Productions, led by Andrei Predut, took charge of Untold’s main stage lighting for the very first time, after several years of working on the festival’s secondary stages. The main stage design, inspired by Romanian fairytales and folklore, featured an elaborate dragon motif that was dramatically brought to life by 130 Sōl I Blinders deployed, not as regular blinders, but as texture enhancers and eye candy to accentuate the dragon decor. Arranged in a crisscross design to mimic dragon scales, the Sōl fixtures highlighted the ornate decor using gradients and dynamic colour shifts that brought depth and motion to the scenery. TAKING CENTRE STAGE
AV UPGRADES FOR LIBERTY
Unicol Engineering has supplied custom mounting systems for a major installation project at Liberty Global. The upgrade included AV systems across both Liberty Global’s London and Leeds offices, featuring Nureva speakers, Logitech Rally range equipment, and video conferencing capabilities integrated with Sharp screens, all of which were installed using Unicol mounts. The project ran from September 2024 to May 2025, led by James Robinson, director and principal AV consultant at AVenture Audio Visual, who served as a third-party specialist to oversee the design and implementation process.
“Unicol designed a custom floor mounting solution with an excellent video experience while preserving the architect’s original furniture plan,” Robinson noted. “Both myself and the client are very pleased with the outcome.”
FOLK FEST PEDALS FOR POWER
and the idea really took root after the band played the Quad Stage at the 2019 Newport Folk Festival, where 2000-plus bikes commuted to it. The festival loved the idea of bike-powered performance and invited Illiterate Light back in 2020 with a full-blown stage at the festival (which has persisted to this day). “A stage powered by bikes and solar was completely off the grid,” noted Eric Shy, “but the organisers loved it and the following year agreed to dedicate an entire stage.”
Back in 2020, the iconic Newport Folk Festival introduced a bike-powered stage, following the organisers’ desire to incorporate bicycles into the festival experience and provide an alternative power source for performances. Masterminding this was Illiterate Light, a two-piece rock band from Virginia who first experimented with the idea of carrying a simple sound system powered by bike, after setting up in 2015. Eric Shy took over production manager duties as the tech scaled up,
NEWS
08
BULLETIN DELTA LIVE MAKES KEY DEPLOYMENTS Delta Live has underlined its position at the forefront of live sound with investments in audio systems that have been deployed across some of the UK’s most iconic live events and venues. The BBC Proms, Edinburgh Fringe Festival and London’s Roundhouse are all beneficiaries of the company’s investment in 2025, which has seen a range of new equipment, audio systems and vital infrastructure deployed across the venues. PRECISE AUDIO FOR MICHIGAN CHURCH Situated in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Christ the King was initiated in 1981 as a Catholic ‘Charismatic Renewal’ church. The current church building was dedicated in 2001. The church was still operating off its original sound system, which was struggling to provide even coverage across three naves, fanning out from a central space. It was deemed necessary that a system with a higher degree of control was essential. As a result, Martin Audio’s smallest Wavefront Precision footprint, WPM, was installed in three L/C/R clusters of six elements in each, along with three SXC118 cardioid subwoofers. NEW SYSTEM FOR ICONIC HALL The 2150-seat Henry Le Bœuf Hall now boasts its first-ever permanent sound system: a cutting-edge L-Acoustics L-ISA Hyperreal sound installation featuring the high-performance L Series. It promises to redefine live music experiences in one of Europe’s most prestigious venues. LEGRAND SETS UP SHOP IN MINNESOTA Legrand AV officially opened its new headquarters in Minnetonka, Minnesota on 1 October. The opening of the new location is a milestone in the company’s growth and commitment to invention, collaboration and community. The headquarters, located at 10900 Red Circle Drive, joins multiple functions into a single location with a flexible and sustainable workplace designed to foster innovation.
SPECTERA NIGHTS FOR SECRET CINEMA’S GREASE SHOW
requirements provided the perfect testing ground for Spectera’s capabilities, with the system’s performance far surpassing all expectations. Sound designer, Gareth Fry, explained the unique demands of the production: “It’s a massive venue. Everywhere is a stage, everywhere is an audience space. The performances and the audience are mingling with each other, and that was one of the key points of the show – to create that immersive effect.”
Secret Cinema’s production of Grease at Evolution London has showcased Sennheiser’s revolutionary Spectera wideband wireless system in a major UK deployment. Having run from early August through the second week of September in Battersea Park, this immersive theatrical experience transported audiences into the iconic world of Rydell High, where the line between screen and reality disappeared entirely. The production’s ambitious scale and unique In Murcia, 300 miles south-east of its European headquarters in Barcelona, InfiLED helped to transform the historic Artillery Barracks into an AV hub designed to nurture esports, digital production and content creation. The EU-backed government project was completed in just 60 days and further positions the city of Murcia as a destination for digital innovation. The project – delivered by InfiLED in partnership with systems integrator Dominion and AV mounting solutions provider B-Tech – used InfiLED LED screens to help reshape the early 20th-century barracks into the Hub Audiovisual de Murcia. It is comprised of a photography studio and gaming arena, along with recording studios, editing suites, simulators, a 3D printing studio and more. The newly completed Hub Audiovisual de Murcia is open to the public, offering AV facilities to content creators, students, HISTORIC HUBS
local artists and gamers. A photography studio offers a professional environment for visual storytelling, while the gaming arena enhances the Murcia region’s esports scene, drawing new talent and audiences.
NEWS
10
Christie has recently continued its long-standing partnership with the British Film Institute for the 69th BFI London Film Festival, in partnership with American Express, where its RGB pure laser projection technology powered screenings of some of the year’s most anticipated cinematic releases. Taking place from 8 to 19 October, the festival dazzled audiences at its iconic home on London’s South Bank, with the Southbank Centre’s renowned Royal Festival Hall hosting many of the galas and premieres on an impressive 18-metre (59-foot) screen. “Their RGB pure laser projectors have become an integral part of our festival experience,” said Dominic Simmons, head of cinema technology at the BFI. “Christie’s ability to deliver stunning clarity and colour on such a large scale ensures that every premiere feels as cinematic as the filmmakers intended. For our temporary set-up at Royal Festival Hall, Christie’s technology provides the reliability, performance and ease of installation our teams depend on, helping us bring the magic of film to life for audiences and creators.” THE 69TH BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL
LINKING UP AVATAR
Built on powerful ultra-low-latency FPGA processing, Klang:vokal+ was exactly what Swedish heavy metal band Avatar needed to keep their in-ear mixes sounding open and natural. Their engineers upgraded to Klang:vokal+ with brand-new MIDI integration, compatible with their Allen & Heath dLive monitor console. By taking full advantage of the additional channel count and in-console control, they ensured every instrument and microphone could be processed through Klang, delivering a spacious mix that keeps the band connected to their music and audience. Tim Bickford and Niklas Dahlstrand have handled front-of-house and monitor duties respectively for Avatar since 2022, switching to Klang in 2023. Currently, they are on tour supporting Iron Maiden, before their autumn headline tour, In the Airwaves . The tour will promote their new album and begins in November, with dates in the US, Mexico, Europe and the UK. The change to Klang was a leap of faith as Dahlstrand had never used it before, but now the band wouldn’t consider working without it.
DIARY DATES ISE 2026 3-6 February Barcelona
LIGHT + BUILDING 2026 8-13 March Frankfurt
MIR EXPO 2026 12-14 April Rimini
INFOCOMM ASIA 2026 15-17 April Beijing
NAB SHOW 2026
18-22 April Las Vegas
NEWS
11
BULLETIN IMMERSIVE CINEMA COMES TO BRAZIL Powersoft’s third-generation install amplifier platform, Unica, is delivering intelligent, intelligible audio at the newly renovated Cine Teatro Liz Bastos in south-eastern Brazil. After many years of closure, the cinema was purchased by the mayor’s office and later comprehensively rebuilt and modernised, reopening to great fanfare earlier this year. ROSS VIDEO ACQUIRES IOVERSAL Ross Video has recently marks Ross Video’s expansion into experiential technologies, strengthening its end-to-end live production ecosystem. Ross Video aims to initiate the Vertex AV production suite through a series of demos and showcases in the coming months, highlighting the platform’s creative potential and integration within Ross Video’s ecosystem. announced the acquisition of Ioversal. The acquisition of a steadily growing range of high-profile integrations with its Ubex platform. From education and live events to immersive exhibitions, the Ubex platform is becoming the trusted product to deliver large-scale AV experiences. Its powerful solutions have already proven their worth across a wide variety of projects throughout the globe. ALCONS LAUNCHES M-SERIES After more than three years of intensive research, development and real-world evaluation, Alcons Audio has proudly announced the official launch of the M-series Reference Monitor Systems. Developed from the ground up for ultimate sonic accuracy and dynamic range, the M-series brings Alcons’ hallmark pro-ribbon clarity and ultra-low distortion to environments requiring absolute reference performance. Different uses for the systems include high-end music and film mixing, LIGHTWARE INTEGRATIONS Lightware is at the centre immersive sound production, broadcast control rooms and live-sound monitoring.
SUCCESSFUL GRAND OPENING FOR UNIVERSAL’S EPIC UNIVERSE
Professional Wireless Systems played a critical behind-the-scenes role in the highly anticipated Grand Opening of Universal Orlando Resort’s Epic Universe. The multi-day media event included coverage from NBC’s The Today Show , Access Hollywood , Telemundo’s Hoy Día , live streams, influencer content and an array of different international news outlets, which all relied on PWS’s expertise to make sure they stayed connected and interference-free. The newly opened Universal Epic Universe is the company’s most daring theme park project to date. Covering over 750 acres, the park has new lands, attractions and immersive experiences based on beloved franchises including: Super Nintendo World, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic, How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk, Dark Universe and Celestial Park. Universal’s Epic Universe, which has five immersive worlds in one park, was designed to completely redefine the theme park experience.
“This was one of the most frequency- dense, logistically demanding press events we’ve supported,” says Jim Van Winkle, general manager of PWS. “With lots of simultaneous productions on-site, our team’s ability to keep everyone connected without interference was crucial and a testament to the planning, experience and innovation we bring to large-scale events.”
NEWS
12
BULLETIN
AVID AND WEST ONE PARTNER UP
West One Music Group has now revealed the official launch of its fully functional search and download panel in Avid Media Composer. West One Music’s global client base can now take advantage of the company’s innovative search app capabilities in Avid Media Composer, including Advanced Search, Playlist Management, AI-powered search tools, Cue Sheet downloads and many other different features. “We’re excited to partner with West One Music Group and launch the Panel for Avid Media Composer,” said Raymond Thompson, senior director of Partners and Alliances. “The panel was built to make music discovery faster, smarter and more intuitive for editors saving time and driving efficiency.”
SHOWROOM DELIGHTS
Tucked away in Highgate, London, the L-Acoustics showroom isn’t your typical demo space – it’s a playground for sound and creativity. The engineering team needed an infrastructure that delivered flawless audio, video and lighting without breaking stride. That is where Van Damme came in, providing the hidden backbone and ensuring that everything runs smoothly. POWERING BNE COMMUNICATIONS Clear-Com is happy to announce its latest collaboration with BNE Productions. For the first time, BNE has made a direct investment in Clear-Com equipment, marking a new chapter in their relationship, and they wasted no time putting it to work across multiple stages at Insomniac’s flagship festivals, Dreamstate and Apocalypse. This milestone demonstrates Clear-Com’s essential role in powering communication at today’s biggest live events. FOOTBALL FEVER HITS MIF Internationally renowned artist Ryan Gander sought to explore how the integration of technology could combine art and football to create a playful exhibition at this year’s Manchester International Festival (MIF). Collaborating with innovative AV technology leader Naostage, Gander was one of six artists to work with football stars, including Manchester United’s Eric Cantona, Lioness Ella Toone and Edgar Davids, to create Football City, Art United , an interactive exhibition conceived by World Cup and Champions League winner Juan Mata. OPEN AIR VISUALS FOR AUSTRIAN GIG Linzer Klangwolke, a large open-air multimedia event, has been running annually in the city of Linz since 1979. In September it attracted nearly 100,000 visitors to the Donaupark. Titled Urban Pulse, this year translated the city’s heartbeat into captivating images and beats for a dynamic, visually staged concert. It harked back to Klangwolke’s roots and placed sound itself at the centre.
The West One Music Avid panel plug-in for Media Composer is now live and available today. Guides and step-by-step installation videos are available, and the West One Music and Avid support team can help with any set-up or technical questions.
CSG CONNECTS CENTRAL PARK
of the festival’s main stage along with the delay speaker towers, designed to deliver the strength, scale and precision required for a show of this magnitude. G2 Mobile Structures supplied a two-tiered structure that provided the Cisco Pavilion on the bottom, along with the FOH mix position for the show above. Guardian Barrier Services successfully implemented the event’s crowd control plan with its barriers, while Field Protection Agency protected the park’s grounds with its proprietary flooring systems.
On 27 September, the 2025 Global Citizen Festival transformed Central Park into a global stage for music and activism. This year’s event was headlined by Cardi B and Shakira, with performances by Tyla, Ayra Starr, Mariah the Scientist and Camilo. It drew thousands of fans on-site and millions more tuned in worldwide. Concert Stuff Group was a key partner in making the large-scale production possible, with several of its companies providing critical infrastructure for the festival. G2 Structures debuted as the provider
NEWS
13
ISE 2026 LOOKS TO PUSH INNOVATION BOUNDARIES
From state-of-the-art lighting rigs and audio arrays to advanced video mapping and show control platforms, ISE 2026 puts everything within reach. The live events stage in Hall 6 returns as a hub for demonstrations, panels and case studies so that you can see, hear and test solutions in real-world scenarios. Connect with top brands like ETC, Claypaky, Robe and Elation, and engage with the innovators shaping the future of live events. In Hall 8.1, find Spark, ISE’s new initiative dedicated to creativity and collaboration. It’s a space for pioneers to exchange ideas, drive innovation and inspire new approaches to live event production. Spark isn’t just a showcase, it’s a catalyst for the next big leap forward in live events. ISE 2026 is where your next idea begins. Whether your focus is lighting, audio, video or venue management, dive into a content-rich programme where you can test tomorrow’s tools and connect with peers and experts.
Step into the epicentre of live event and installation technology at Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) 2026, over 3-6 February in Barcelona. ISE is a launchpad for creativity, technology and production expertise. Lighting designers, event producers, venue operators and technologists from all over will converge to explore what’s next and push the boundaries of what’s possible in live events. From live demos to interactive showcases, attendees can see the technologies behind unforgettable experiences. Plus insightful talks from industry leaders will offer a front-row seat to the technological trends impacting the next wave of concerts, festivals, corporate events and venue installations. Halls 6, 7 and 8 hold the very latest innovations in rigging, show control and stagecraft. Indeed, every corner of the exhibition is tailored to provide hands-on access to technologies that can transform your ideas into realities.
Click here and use code ‘live’ to register free!
CONCERTS AND TOURING
14
Best known for her hypnotic vocals and Americana aesthetic, singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey’s UK and Ireland Tour 2025 broke records. We catch up with the team behind the tour’s AV tech
Words Katie Kasperson
CONCERTS AND TOURING
15
16 CONCERTS AND TOURING L ana Del Rey has been churning music finding its audience both at home and abroad. out hits for over a decade, with her melancholic, Americana After releasing her latest studio album – Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd – Del Rey brought her distinctive sound across the Atlantic, marking her debut as a UK and Ireland stadium headliner and making her the region’s biggest-selling touring solo artist of 2025. The singer-songwriter, best known for tunes like Summertime Sadness , Video Games and Young and Beautiful , bases her brand on a retro, American aesthetic. Her lyrics linger on themes like money, drugs and desire, while her music videos take on a vintage, filmic style akin to old Hollywood – and often incorporate religious imagery, too. Her live performances extend this look even further, with her latest tour featuring a major set-build: a Southern gothic-style, slightly weathered house, complete with a porch swing and an Eden-esque garden where the band was stationed. An evolution of her previous stage design that debuted at Stagecoach Festival earlier in the year, the set played nicely with her more recent music, which has strong roots in country and folk. Del Rey’s husband comes from Louisiana, so it’s likely she’s been spending more time – and finding greater influence – in the American South. BLUE BANISTERS Tour manager Emily Holt asked Stufish’s Ric Lipson to lead the stage design and creative direction, collaborating with lighting designer Darien Koop and video designer James Lockey in order to develop a cohesive visual experience. Creative Technology supplied the LED screens, projections and holograms; while Nlitedesign Ltd, Green Hippo and Motion Impossible contributed to the tour’s final output too. “We were involved early on this year, when the show design was being dreamed up,” begins Tesni Kerens, project manager at Creative Technology. “The main part of the brief that applied to us was the on-stage screens, which made up the backdrop and surrounded the house with custom visuals and content. We also thought about the projection elements, as there was a desire for the house to be brought to life using projection, as well as some hologram sequences.” In the end, they opted for LED and IMAG screens, built using Roe Visual 5Q6.2 panels, with CB3 screens delivering the holographic video. At various points throughout her set, Del Rey would briefly leave the stage for an outfit change and a hologram would replace her in the upstairs window, performing Bluebird , Howl , Arcadia and/or Norman F*cking Rockwell – depending on the date. Holographic technology has an increasing presence in live music, bringing both living and deceased musicians back on stage.
An evolution from the stage design at Stagecoach Festival, the set suited the country and folk influences in her music
CONCERTS AND TOURING
17
LED screens were used on either side of the stage to stream live footage of Lana Del Rey’s performance
Holographic technology has an increasing presence in live music, bringing living and deceased musicians on stage
“We did some previsualisations,” continues Kerens, “looking at different ways of doing the wraparound of the on-stage screens and projection studies for how we would light up the house with projected content.” Creative Technology’s adaptability enabled additional holographic projection and LED elements. “We helped the creative team and talent execute the show they had so carefully designed.” Lipson and Del Rey planned the tour’s look, parsing pictures of homes across America and noting their architectural similarities and differences. They landed on a blue and green house that looked lived-in, decorated with vintage pieces – like a rocking chair, lantern and rake – accessorising the porch and lawn. The house’s front steps led all the way to a short catwalk with a splash pool at the end, while willow trees and a white trellis adorned either side of the stage. Lipson and his team at Stufish designed the staging so that it was
fully functional – as it would be in a Tennessee Williams play, perhaps. Del Rey and her singers and dancers could move freely about the property, going inside the house and even onto the roof. The lights, supplied by Christie Lites and designed by Koop, could be flipped on or off, flickering with the music at times, while the backdrop revealed a starry night sky, a thunderstorm or a cloudy haze. Rotating lamps lined the stage’s edge, and LED screens on either side streamed live video footage. MILLION DOLLAR MOVES As per Chelsea Fearnley, head of marketing and brand at Motion Impossible, this video content was captured and fed to ‘those huge LED screens that now dominate modern gigs’ by the camera movement company’s Agito modular dolly system, which proved to play a pivotal role during the UK and Ireland Tour 2025 . “Without it, the fans in the nosebleeds would’ve
CONCERTS AND TOURING
19
VIDEO GAMES Nlitedesign Ltd’s Phil White specified and supplied the tour’s media servers, selecting Green Hippo’s Hippotizers to handle the job. Having worked with Lana Del Rey for 15 years, White opted for two Hippotizer Tierra+ MK2 and two Boreal+ MK2 servers to support her and the three-part stage LED wall and IMAG screens, but we quickly expanded that,” he said in a press release. “To achieve this ambitious range of visuals, the Tierra+ MK2 handled playback of four full 4K outputs, including HD feeds from the camera team for live IMAG displays. The Boreal+ MK2 powered the on-stage hologram projectors, LED screens and the set’s house window TV.” Integrating the Hippotizers with a GrandMA3 console and controlling everything via DMX, White used Green Hippo’s SyncManager technology to production team’s lofty goals. “The original brief called for a
Agito’s modular dolly system (above) offered panoramic camera moves to maintain the dynamism of the performance on-screen
been squinting at a dot in a dress. It powered the experience in real time,” explains Fearnley. “With Agito, the audience received panoramic camera moves – coasting in front of the stage one second, rising over dancers and pyros the next – throwing angles onto the screens that were just as alive as the show itself,” she continues. In sports mode, Agito can move quickly and hit its mark with absolute accuracy – which proved to be the case during Del Rey’s performances. The dolly also features MagTrax – “which uses a simple strip of magnetic tape to guide the camera,” Fearnley shares – allowing Agito to repeat moves and sync with lights, cues and choreography. “All of this is done safely, without disrupting the artist,” Fearnley confirms. What’s more: “The audience – whether they’re at the back of the stadium or not – gets to experience a concert that feels more like a film.”
CONCERTS AND TOURING
20
The lights, supplied by Christie Lites and designed by Koop, could be flipped on and off when necessary
CONCERTS AND TOURING
21
CONCERTS AND TOURING
22
CONCERTS AND TOURING
23
This tour was different; it was not a conventional stadium show and
there were a lot of scenic elements
The Boreal+ MK2 powered the on-stage hologram projectors, LED screens and the house’s window TV
create timecodes. He also turned to the company’s OutputMapper, VideoMapper and LiveMask features to configure and manage camera feeds. OFF TO THE RACES Lana Del Rey’s concerts are shaped more by their sound than anything else. While her soft voice wouldn’t necessarily stand out as a stadium contender, her music has an epic quality that lends itself to large performances. Sound Image, a Clair Global brand, handled all things audio, recruiting front-of-house mixer Dani Munoz (Enrique Iglesias, Snoop Dogg) and system engineer Chris Demonbreun (Imagine Dragons, Zac Brown Band) to lead the team. Sound Image president Jesse Adamson called Munoz and asked him to sign on, while Demonbreun was already involved and on the ground. “A couple of hours later, I was on the way to Europe,” recalls Munoz, who immediately accepted the offer. After he arrived, Munoz “headed straight to the site and built a showfile using the previous show’s multitracks,” he says – the ‘previous show’ being April’s Stagecoach Festival in Indio, California. “I had a decent mix ready within a few hours. Soundcheck was nerve-racking for everyone, but the first show went well, so they asked me to stay!” Meanwhile, Demonbreun “started with Lana back in the spring of 2024 for
Del Rey was the biggest-selling touring solo artist of 2025 in the area, despite it being her first time there
her headlining Coachella performance,” he shares. “This tour was different; it was not a conventional stadium show. There were a lot of scenic elements, plus a fast-paced schedule.” Kerens agrees. “The schedule was tight, so moving a show of that scale between venues presented its own challenges.” To mitigate any hiccups, “we had an advance team who went ahead of us to ensure we’d be on track with our build. This definitely helped – it was a great call made by the production team,” she concludes. With the UK and Ireland Tour 2025 also being Del Rey’s first stadium run in the region, “it was a big task for everyone involved,” admits Munoz. “Emily Holt is a powerhouse who has previously stepped up to enormous challenges. She was supportive and always made sure we had what we needed, as she knows how complex our jobs can be.” STADIUM ARCADIUM The UK and Ireland Tour 2025 included stops at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium,
CONCERTS AND TOURING
24
Glasgow’s Hampden Park, Liverpool’s Anfield Stadium and Dublin’s Aviva Stadium, ending with two sold-out nights at Wembley Stadium in London. “We knew we would have to cover every possible seat in these huge stadiums,” recalls Demonbreun. “Lana is a delicate singer, but we needed to use speaker hangs that would cover the audience. With help from Sound Image, Britannia Row Productions and L-Acoustics – plus Dani’s mixing skills – we pulled it off. “When choosing what to use for the PA, Dani and I discussed a few options,” Demonbreun continues, “but we felt L-Acoustics was the best choice with the wide variety of speaker elements, the control we were able to have with Panflex technology, the ability to run the whole system with AVB (audio-video bridging) and, with L-Acoustics, you get a true Hi-Fi audio system. Lana’s music deserves the best system available,” he concludes. Munoz echoes this. “A PA’s signature sound is most evident when you have to mix on different systems, especially when it comes to vocals,” he explains. “To me, it was clear that L-Acoustics suited her best. That was the biggest piece of the puzzle.” With every arena being its own acoustical beast, the audio team had to carefully consider how each one might impact Del Rey’s sound. Munoz relied on plug-ins, noise-reduction processors and other techniques to keep her microphone stable “amid so much sonic chaos,” he describes. During each show, Del Rey sang atop a 20-foot platform that happened to sit directly in front of a stadium-sized PA system – “which meant that her mic was getting hit by the longer-throw boxes,” explains Munoz. L-Acoustics’ Soundvision software allowed the audio team to minimise reflections, while the Panflex technology reduced spill and enhanced throw. The crew also used L-Acoustics L2 and L2D speaker arrays to balance delays across the audience; dozens of X8s, Kara IIs, A10s and A15s as fills and, finally, P1 processors for time alignment and precise system tuning.
LIVING LEGEND Munoz and Demonbreun both agree that working with Del Rey was unique – she’s a talented singer, sure, but “she has an incredible ear,” says Munoz. “It’s uncanny how she can hear the slightest changes that I make on my mix while she’s on stage.” “She is attentive to detail and knows exactly what she wants,” Demonbreun adds. “I love that she tells us what she feels, and she is always right about the sound of things.” According to Munoz, “she’s particular about her vocal effects, so I make sure her sound and vision are presented 100% the way she intends. I rely on classic FX units like Bricasti Design and Eventide. Sometimes, she will even send me screenshots from her studio sessions in order to recreate a specific sound with plug-ins,” he reveals. “Dani was able to give her exactly what she wanted,” shares Demonbreun, “and I was glad to be there for support. Every stadium tour is a lot of hard work. The audio team stepped up and made these shows happen,” he concludes. “We were able to deliver her signature sound.” Once again, Munoz concurs. “It was definitely a challenging tour; I am my own worst critic, so I will always be working to improve, but it was a win for everyone.”
L-Acoustics was considered to be the best choice to carry across Lana Del Rey’s unique sound
THEATRE AND STAGE
26
As the curtain rises on a new era of stagecraft, AV is taking a leading role
Words Verity Butler
THEATRE AND STAGE
27
THEATRE AND STAGE
28
nce upon a time, the magic of theatre was confined to the proscenium. Painted flats, creaking pulleys and a flicker of stage light on a faded set of velvet curtains were the welcome regulars of past theatre productions. Though they still conjure something nostalgic, it’s impossible to deny that today’s stages look, sound and behave very differently. As an art form, theatre is an ever- shifting ecosystem. Before, it was most common in playhouses and, if we were to go even further back, amphitheatres. Now, it lends itself to everything from grand opera halls and expansive dance stages to intimate fringe sets, vivacious cruise liners and immersive venues – to name just a few! At the heart of this change is audio-visual technology. No longer a support act, stage tech is seen as a
central creative member of any given production team, crucial to helping shape how stories are told. BRINGING CINEMA TO STAGE The boundary between stagecraft and screencraft is blurring, with the increased use of LED-based visual design proving to be more than a simple technical flourish. Recent analysis from Stats Market Research showed that venues equipped with LED screens saw 25-40% higher utilisation rates, hosting a broader mix of live and hybrid events than those with conventional set-ups. In the case of Stranger Things: The First Shadow , the theatre adaptation of Netflix’s global phenomenon, the challenge was monumental. How do you translate a story so rooted in cinematic special effects into a live stage environment? The solution came in the form of a custom InfiLED LED wall, based on the company’s lightweight AR Series for rental staging applications. Delivered in partnership with Blue-i Theatre Technology and creative studio 59 Productions, the LED installation integrates seamlessly with physical sets, amplifying the show’s eerie, myth-laden atmosphere.
The tech team used a wall of LED panels to build the world of Stranger Things, usually reliant on TV special effects, live on stage
THEATRE AND STAGE
29
After its popularity in London, Stranger Things: The First Shadow headed across the Atlantic for its American debut on Broadway
An example of this is one of Australia’s leading performance arts companies, Bangarra Dance Theatre. It is a contemporary-dance-focused Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance company. Founded by African- American dancer and choreographer Carole Y Johnson, Gumbaynggirr man Rob Bryant and South African-born Cheryl Stone, Bangarra means ‘to make fire’ in the Wiradjuri language. When developing the company, Johnson had a three-part plan for Aboriginal dance in Australia. The first part was to establish a school that would train dancers as members of a student and graduate performing company, which would teach and give them academic qualifications as well. It would also seek to provide a path for dancers to other creative areas such as choreography, tour management and all front- and back-of-house skills. The third key aim was to maintain authentic cultural continuity, friendships and close ties to traditional communities. So, while Stranger Things harnesses LED technology to conjure up the supernatural, Bangarra Dance Theatre uses it to explore cultural connection through contemporary movement. Bangarra’s recent production, Illume , demonstrated how technology is no
“The use of LED screens in theatre is no longer just about adding digital effects,” explains Ed Cooper, director of Blue-i Theatre Technology. “It’s also about enhancing the storytelling and amplifying the audience’s emotional connection to the performance.” That philosophy emphasises The First Shadow ’s design approach. Rather than appearing as a screen, the LED wall acts as an extension of the set – a textured, responsive part of the world of Hawkins, Indiana, circa 1959. The display’s high contrast and smooth tonal control allow for sudden lighting shifts and shadowy transitions that make the supernatural elements feel alive and immediate. Blue-i Theatre Technology chose InfiLED’s AR Series along with Brompton Technology processing as the backbone of the system. Offering high dynamic range, deep blacks and painterly colour rendering, the AR Series (now upgraded to the ARmk2) could deliver the team’s demanding brief, with 10-bit colour depth that gave smooth transitions. “The 10-bit colour depth is essential,” says Cooper. “It makes transitions much smoother and is critical for seamless visual effects in a live theatre setting.” In addition to visual fidelity, the AR Series offers practical advantages. It’s lightweight, quiet and easy to maintain,
which is crucial in theatre environments where space can be tight and quick turnarounds are the norm. Cooper notes that these features let the LED blend effortlessly into the stage while providing flexibility for complex cues and adjustments mid-performance. “We’ve always been an InfiLED house, and for good reason,” Cooper adds. “InfiLED stands out in the theatre world, especially when paired with Brompton processing technology. Together, they meet the unique demands of live shows.” Following its success at London’s Phoenix Theatre, the same visual strategy was taken across the Atlantic to Broadway’s Marquis Theatre, maintaining aesthetic continuity while adapting to a new venue. Audiences and critics alike have praised the production’s haunting visuals, which serves as proof that LED systems can evoke both cinematic grandeur and theatrical intimacy. BEYOND THE BACKDROP Theatres are called home by many art forms, and one particularly familiar resident is dance. Be it a musical number, ballet or backing for a musical act, the subjective nature of dance demands that theatres are readily equipped to help accentuate a variety of performance models.
THEATRE AND STAGE
30
longer just a silent partner, but instead more of a creative collaborator. Like Stranger Things , the production team jumped on the use-of-LED-in-theatre bandwagon, by integrating a wall made of Roe Visual’s Carbon CB5 LED panels into their stage design. Novatech Creative Event Technology supplied the complete LED set-up, marking Bangarra’s first-ever theatre- based production to choose an LED wall over traditional backdrops. Leveraging the enhanced creative potential offered by the Roe Visual wall, the company could achieve new, exciting and immersive visual effects, with textures and movements of light that weaved seamlessly around the dancers themselves. Illume was not only innovative in its use of technology. It also represents Bangarra’s first collaboration with First Nations visual artist Darrell Sibosado. The creative partnership brought together movement and digital storytelling in a way that honoured their ancestral heritage, while incorporating new aspects of performance design. “Partnering with Bangarra underscores our commitment to supporting the arts, particularly where innovation is concerned,” comments Leko Novakovic,
the managing director of Novatech. “This is Bangarra’s first production using the possibilities of LED technology and the results have been outstanding.” Similarly, Bangarra’s production manager Cat Studley praised the technology’s results, noting how the LED set-up elevated the team’s artistic ambitions. “The LED screen could cover everything we needed artistically, so we could bring even more ideas to life. It was the best way to go,” she enthuses. THEATRE SETS SAIL Theatre is no longer confined to land. As audiences increasingly seek immersive entertainment experiences in unexpected places, the technologies that power live performance (once found only in traditional venues) are finding new homes in ever more adventurous environments. And one of the most striking examples of this shift can be found – not in the West End or on Broadway – but far out at sea. Aboard the floating entertainment worlds of Carnival Cruise Line, live shows, concerts and multimedia spectaculars rival those of land-based theatres, yet are still supported by the same sophisticated AV infrastructure. The key to this particular transformation
Illume was Bangarra Dance Theatre’s first theatre-based production that opted for an LED backdrop
THEATRE AND STAGE
31
The LED screen could
cover everything we potentially needed artistically, so we could bring even more ideas to life
Bandarra, the name of the Aboriginal dance company behind Illume, means ‘to make fire’ in Wiradjuri
is AV Stumpfl’s impressive Pixera media server platform. “We discovered that Pixera was the ideal solution to meet our needs,” explains Grant Kruger, entertainment technical fleet supervisor of lighting for Carnival Cruise Line. “It delivers high-performance video playback and ensures a consistent and polished show experience that can be reliably repeated for many years.” Carnival, one of the world’s leading cruise companies, currently operates Pixera on four of its 29 ships, with more scheduled soon as part of a wider plan to modernise and future-proof its video
and show-control infrastructure. Among the first vessels to launch the Pixera platform were Carnival Encounter and Carnival Adventure, both debuting from Australian ports back in March 2025. On board, passengers can find Pixera powering LED content and visual storytelling inside a various array of entertainment spaces, from the main theatres and music lounges to more intimate venues such as the comedy clubs. For Carnival, the appeal of Pixera lay not just in its capabilities but in its open, hardware-agnostic architecture.
“One of the main factors that sets Pixera apart from other media server brands is that you can own your own hardware with it,” Kruger says. “Pixera provides us with the flexibility to utilise our own custom-built servers, which is essential to our workflow. We currently manage the full technical operations in-house across 29 different cruise ships, overseeing everything from fixture maintenance to media servers.” In the world of cruise ship operations, time is a precious commodity. Each vessel has a limited ‘drydock window’ for upgrades, often only a few days long, during which the entertainment systems must be installed, programmed and tested before the ship sails again. Pixera’s user-friendly interface and fast deployment capability proved a decisive advantage for Carnival’s team. “We had the system up and running – show playback ready – within just three days on both the Encounter and Adventure vessels,” recalls Kruger. “We could build everything on one ship and then just walk over to the other one and deploy it instantly. That was really great.” For a fleet spanning nearly 30 vessels worldwide, such repeatability is critically important. The Pixera system facilitates Carnival’s technicians to copy and adapt project folders from one ship to another with only minimal reprogramming required, streamlining workflow and maintaining visual consistency across the company’s floating fleet of theatres. Cruise ships are among the most demanding environments for any AV system. Limited bandwidth, variable power conditions and salt-air corrosion can all conspire against uptime. Yet, as Kruger notes, Pixera has met these
Carnival currently uses Pixera’s LED technology on four out of its 29 cruise ships
THEATRE AND STAGE
32
The 154-year-old Royal Albert Hall is a beautiful but difficult venue for production teams to navigate, which is where Riedel’s flexibility came in
It’s a challenge the Royal Albert Hall is meeting head-on through a strategic investment in its communications infrastructure. The venue recently installed a Bolero wireless intercom system from Riedel Communications as part of its ongoing modernisation of in-house technical services. “After renting communications systems from a different manufacturer, we chose Bolero for our permanent in-house wireless intercom,” reveals Ben Evans, who was audio operations manager at the Royal Albert Hall at the time. “It’s a user-friendly system that gives clients clear, reliable audio and integrates seamlessly with the gear most of them use. That there’s no complex licence management was a significant factor in our decision, plus the system’s network-based flexibility was a key advantage over competitors’ point-to-point solutions.” Opened in 1871, the Royal Albert Hall is one of the most recognisable performance spaces in the world. A circular Victorian masterpiece in architecture, it’s hosted everything from classical symphonies and royal
galas to pop concerts, boxing matches, film screenings and ballet. The building’s 154-year-old architecture is breathtaking but presents practical issues for many production teams. The circular structure faces a constantly rotating calendar, often seeing one major event load out and another load in within 24 hours. Evans explains that this operational pace drove the decision to expand and upgrade the hall’s communications network. “We have a reputation as a trusted technical partner in the events industry. Working with Riedel and having the Bolero comms system on board bolsters that reputation and helps us generate revenue.” The Royal Albert Hall’s in-house technical departments are integral to its appeal. In 2018, the venue established a dedicated audio team and partnered with D&B Audiotechnik to install a permanent PA system. It’s not just the stage managers and show callers who benefit. Bolero extends communication to every corner of production, from front-of-house and monitor engineers to lighting operators and audio crews, through a network
challenges with resilience. “We did have a couple of hiccups on one of our ships,” he admits. “But we were able to sort a solution really quickly by submitting a support ticket to which the Pixera team would send over a corresponding support package.” Overall, he adds, “the stability has been exceptional. We’ve had no issues with performance inconsistencies or bugs since integration.” A NIGHT AT THE OPERA Modern-day theatre venues wear many imaginative hats, but few spaces embody the grandeur and technical versatility of an opera hall. A venue such as London’s Royal Albert Hall, originally conceived for orchestral and choral performance, now serves as a multi-format hub for live entertainment of every kind. Its scale and acoustic heritage bring prestige, but also pose some unique challenges. A major stumbling block, for instance, is the ability to maintain crisp communication throughout a venue that was designed before the invention of electricity.
Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64Powered by FlippingBook