NASHVILLE – Bandit Lites is on the road for the Winter Jam Tour Spectacular, which kicked off earlier this year. The tour of Christian music draws audiences of up to 20,000 due to its simple $10 charge at the door. This affected the stage design, where a somewhat ‘in the round’ approach was called for.
More details from Bandit Lites (http://www.banditlites.com):
NASHVILLE – Bandit Lites is on the road for the Winter Jam Tour Spectacular, which kicked off earlier this year. A spring West Coast Tour is slated to be announced soon.
Featuring artists such as Toby Mac, Red, Matthew West and Jamie Grace, the concert is one of the largest annual Christian music tours in the US due, in part, to its commitment to no tickets and simply charging $10 at the door.
With attendance sometimes soaring into 20,000, the stage has to be visible from 360 degrees to accommodate the vast audience.
“We do an end stage, but try to treat it somewhat in the round,” said lighting designer and project manager Jerry Holcomb. “Our LED walls and lighting truss trim is picked to try and leave a decent line of sight.”
The design consists of VL 3000 spots and VL 3500 washes designed around two half circle LED walls. Martin MAC Auras and Clay Paky Sharpys make up the floor lights.
“I like the color and size of the Vari*Lite fixtures,” said Holcomb. “The Sharpys allow a lot of motion and creative design with their beams, and we use the Auras to paint the audience and movement on our 40-foot truss. We also have a large mirror ball over FOH, which looks amazing when all 20 Sharpys hit it.”
“It is a great honor to be involved with the Winter Jam Tour,” said Bandits’ business development officer, Brent Barrett. “This event presents a wide range of extremely talented and popular Christian artists that can be enjoyed by anyone who enjoys and appreciates music. This tour is a wonderful means to present the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a safe and positive environment for young and old alike.”
Holcomb credits crew members Erich Hudgens, Nikki Dotson and John “2 Tone” Sumitra (FOH) for helping to get the rig up and down every day.
“Working with Jerry Holcomb is an absolute pleasure,” added Barrett. “He does a great job of wearing many hats on the tour and is an honorable man and well as a straight shooter. I look very forward to working with him on future projects.”
