NFL players are some of the toughest people anywhere, but they weren’t the only ones exhibiting true grit and determination around Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday January 29 when the Kansas City Chiefs took on the Cincinnati Bengals in the NFC Conference Championship game. Outside the big football field Gerry Dintelman and the crew from Midwest Music Supply were showing their own rugged character as they braved below zero Fahrenheit wind chills to set up a 24’x 20’ mobile stage for the KC Tailgate District, a pre and post-game party and concert.
Like the victorious Chiefs themselves, Dintelman and the production team delivered an exciting performance that left fans happy as they supported a variety of music acts from rap to country with hard-hitting light shows that utilized the color rendering prowess and intense output of CHAUVET Professional fixtures from Midwest Music Supply’s own inventory.
“This was quite a bear to set up, given the frigid conditions,” said Dintelman. “It took us about 10 hours to build this site the day before the game. The real challenge was the cold, even with several layers on, I had to keep moving just to keep warm. The cables were all stiff and frozen, and everyone was working just a step slower than usual. But the people in this industry are some of the toughest people I know, and we accomplished the whole show without any complaining.”
Punting the entire show, Dintelman worked with stage plots that were sent to him a week prior to the event. This gave him time to put together a show file built primarily around the Chief’s red and gold colors. Using this two-color palette, Dintelman managed to create a show that flowed seamlessly through different looks, reflecting the music and personality of different bands without repeating themselves.
During the daylight hours, he kept most of his looks directed out at the fans. This not only underscored the community aspect of the gathering, but it also ensured greater visibility. When the sun set, he relied on more evocative side and back lighting. He also changed things up by adding 12 WELL STX 180 and four WELL STX 360 fixtures to the rig for the post game segment. The 180 units were positioned on upright trusses flanking each side of the line array, while the 360 tubes went on the top downstage edge of the mobile stage. “The 360s made the stage look way bigger and gave me so much more eye candy to play with,” said Dintelman. “The fully wireless operation and magnetic mounting brackets made them super easy and quick to set up.”
Making a big time contribution to the lightshow and adding to its versatility were the rig’s 18 Maverick Storm 1 Wash and eight Maverick Storm 1 Spot fixtures flown on down, mid, and upstage truss. “I had no problem filling the stage with eye candy,” said Dintelman. “I also relied on the Maverick Storm 1 Spots to paint the backdrop and roof on occasion with its two gobo wheels, and animation wheel. Plus, with Amhaze series hazers, I had plenty of atmospherics in the air to catch the beams, even in the daytime. With the Maverick Storm 1 Wash, I had the ability to set fade times on the chases, which really allowed me to keep my punting interesting and new.”
Amping up the firepower even further were 16 Rogue R2 Wash and 12 Maverick MK1 Spot fixtures positioned on three double stacked ground truss structures. “This rig gave me a lot to work with,” said Dintelman — and like a star NFL player, this talented LD took what he was given and ran with it.
Further information from CHAUVET Professional: www.chauvetprofessional.com
