LAS VEGAS — Fleetwood Mac and Maroon 5 were among the standout acts on hand in Las Vegas to help ring in the New Year. VER provided Robe fixtures for both gigs, at the MGM Grand Casino and Mandalay Bay Resort Events Center, respectively, including Robin Pointes, LEDWash 1200s and LEDWash 600s. Fleetwood Mac performed its regular touring show Dec. 30 and a 70-minute set for a special New Year’s Eve VIP Party that MGM Grand staged for high-rolling guests Dec. 31.
“The VIP party had to stand on its own,” noted Benny Kirkham, designer of the NYE pre-show that led to Fleetwood Mac’s performance, featuring a lighting design by longtime Fleetwood Mac LD Paul “Arlo” Guthrie. “It was exclusive to the high rollers at the hotel. You couldn’t buy a ticket.”
Kirkham’s crew began preparing for the Dec. 31 event within an hour after the Dec. 30 show was done. The party featured four separate performance areas with a suspended DJ and dancer platform, an extra articulated circular truss, and a separate production stage that broke into two. The arena floor was walled in and wrapped in mapped video projection, and the space filled with round tables for the guests.
The party itself had 500 lights in its own rig. Of those, Kirkham specified 180 Robe Pointes, 40 LEDWash 1200s and 40 LEDWash 600s. The party ran from 8 p.m. to 10:50 and Fleetwood Mac performed from 10:50 to midnight.
Over at Mandalay Bay Resort Events Center, Maroon 5 also performed on both Dec. 30 and 31, also using Robe fixtures. LD Bill Sheldon chose 40 Robe Pointes and 56 LEDWash 1200s. Most of the Pointes were placed on the six 30-foot vertical towers positioned upstage between the video screens.
For more details on Fleetwood Mac’s LIVE tour, see “Designer Insights” in the Jan. 2013 issue of PLSN Magazine.
