Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Zach Bryan kicked off the arena leg of his The Quittin’ Time Tour 24, in Chicago at the United Center on March 5, 2024. Later this year, Bryan will pivot to playing stadiums across the U.S., but first we look at the design for the arena leg. Production/Lighting Designer Rob Sinclair of 1826 Studio handled the design duties for both the arena and stadium legs. He and Lighting Director Kyle Lovan shared their thoughts on the design with PLSN.
Talk about the design aesthetic you were going for on The Quittin’ Time Tour.
Rob Sinclair: The best way to describe anything to do with Zach is just honesty. He’s a very straightforward person. He and his band play with no track. They just go out there and play for two hours a night and they have a great time. There’s no real show to it. They come out, and play their music. It’s this amazing communal experience and that’s it. The aim was truly just to emphasize that; just give Zach a space where he could be close to his audience, where everyone could see him, where he and the band can see each other, and they can play music and can have fun. There’s an honesty to everything. There’s a grill material for the stage deck that underlines the large I-Mag screens. We have the string lights that go out into the arena that really give it that backyard vibe and really help blur the line between the audience and the stage. We help give it informality and a playfulness to it. There’s a real honesty, warmth, and simplicity to the whole show.
Kyle Lovan: Our artist, Zach just wanted to basically have a blank slate. He just wanted the band highlighted. We wanted the whole deck clear, nothing visible. The only think that you see is the under glow from the under-stage lighting and then the overhead lighting. It’s bare, minimal stage lighting, but it’s all to create a vibe with a band the central focus.
Tell us about working with Zach Bryan.
RS: Zach came to me as a recommendation. At that point, he’d never had an LD. He played Red Rocks with a bus and a trailer, and they were taking this amazing step of going to play arenas in the round. They’d skipped a lot of intermediate steps of touring. When we first met Zach, we took him to see Billy Joel’s set up at Madison Square Garden because Zach didn’t really have any reference about any of the mechanics of an arena. We stood him under the scoreboard in the center of the Garden and said, ‘this is where you’ll be. You can see if you’re in the middle, you’re really getting close to people.’ That’s how it got started. Now, we have this tour and the stadium tour starting in May, which is going to be great. It’s going to be really quite something.
How do you use the festoon lights?
RS: They’re there to give us a backyard look, but since they are digital systems, each cell can be individually controlled, and we can shape the colors. We’ve had a lot of looks out of them and they just add this fun to the show.
The video screens are just for I-Mag, or is there created content as well?
RS: We have a few moments of content, which Zach has curated, but the screens are there so people can see him and the band. The advantage of playing in the round is that although for a quarter of the show, the audience gets a really close experience, for three quarters of the show, they don’t. So, I-Mag was a very important part of helping everyone feel included no matter which way Zach was facing.
Kyle, can you tell us about layering lighting and video together?
KL: Nowadays, I feel like video and lighting are hand in hand. You have to have the handshake there. So, any kind of video coloring we’re doing, we’re also trying to adjust for it on the lighting side. If we need to make a key light brighter for a particular song so it pops to the lighting of the video effects, we can accommodate. So, it’s definitely a handshake that has to be really close knit. I talk with the Video Director [Nate Fountain] on angles of shots that he’s going to take, and where lights are going to be coming from. It’s definitely more of a video show because the video scoreboard is huge. So, we’ve got to play nice with him and make sure that everyone’s still on the same page.
What were your key gear choices?
RS: We’re using a lot of stuff our friends at Upstaging wanted us to use. I am very grateful that they sent out a great crew chief and crew for us. The real unique character are all the pods with the Portman P1 [Retro Lamps]. We have a dozen Portman pods. I am very happy with those as a unique item. The workhorses are the ACME Lyra and Solar Impulse. We also have the CHAUVET Color STRIKE Ms under the stage for this year’s tour. We replaced another light that we had used on the last tour. Those gave us a really new dimension; something really good for people to look at from the upper seats.
KL: I’m glad we changed to the Color STRIKE Ms for the under-stage light. They just have more horsepower, and you can see it cut through the grated stage deck that we use. That’s the most notable thing just because of the actual saturation that they can put out. Probably the biggest look for the show are the [Portman] P1s. Just having the old school incandescent look and also the pods where they’re seen from 360°. Just being able to create different looks for those throughout the show is pretty awesome. We do use them quite often for an audience light, especially with the amount we have. It’s pretty cool to see when you bring in the pods for the first time. The pods also have an [Ayrton] Khamsin. I use that for a couple of different moments for a backlight, where we don’t use a key light in that moment. We put some pretty extreme positions on the pods and use them for backlight. It’s a cool look for the show this year that we didn’t have last year.
The lighting pods are automated, correct? Talk about how those are controlled.
RS: Yes, automation moves the pods up and down and Kyle can control those, which is a new thing with [TAIT’s] Navigator. Kyle sends DMX signals to control their movement, which is exciting. They can go up and down, individually. It’s very nice to be able to have some interaction in the space about the band at times.
What’s your day-to-day like on the road?
KL: My day-to-day is pretty much making sure that everything is working up to snuff. We are on MA3 software now, so that’s the biggest change for me. Making sure that all the networking is set up, and that my console is talking to video along with automation; making sure all those are intertwined. That’s my go-to, besides obviously focusing the lights. Talking over with Stage Management on what the show flow will be that day. Our artist changes the set list every day, and even during the show he’ll change the set list. Making sure that all departments are on the same page of where we’re going to go, the best attack for that day. In terms of running the show, sometimes we punt, so nothing is timecoded. Luckily, our programmer has set up a pretty flexible, bulletproof show file. So, I could change on the fly if I need to. I have in-between looks so he could talk about the crowd. But luckily André [Petrus] set me up for success, for sure.
How was the support of Upstaging for this tour?
RS: Upstaging is always great. I’ve been working with John Bahnick [Account Exec] for 25 years now. Our Tour Director/Production Manager, Steve Drymalski is a former lighting guy, so Upstaging was just a natural choice for us. The Lighting Crew Chief, Franklin Antonio and his crew are just incredible, so supportive, and always has a smile for you. I just can’t say enough good things about Upstaging to people.
KL: This is the first tour I’ve worked with Upstaging. Honestly, visiting their shop for the first time, I feel it’s just more family oriented; everyone’s real close. I can jump on the phone and call our Project Manager, Josh [Wagner] and he’ll get something out to me immediately. Out Crew Chief, Frankie [Franklin Antonio] will bend over backwards and make sure everything is exactly how we want it. I have a great crew out with me; they sent the best. I used to tour as a crew member, so they’re always surprising me with some of the stuff they come up with. How they load this show in and out. They’re definitely a major facet of this design. Upstaging is really growing on me as a company, and they are definitely number one in my book as of right now.
How was the support of other vendors, including TAIT and Rock Lititz?
RS: TAIT has been great. They came out to support us on last year’s tour and this year has been fantastic. The stage is rock solid and any of the small, annoying details I’ve brought out, they’ve dealt with really well. We still talk a lot back and forth about how we fit tech areas in, and around the stage. We wanted to just avoid the barricades spread too far apart. They were really helpful in building tech areas that are integrated and helping make it look like Zach is next to the audience rather than he has a moat around the stage. Rehearsing at the facilities at Rock Lititz was great. I seem to spend a lot of my time in Lititz and the studios were great. The support was great. I like the hotel, and the coffee shops in Lancaster, which is important to me. I’ve very happy to spend time out there.
KL: We were at Rock Lititz for three or four weeks. It’s nice to have a constant of being in the same room and knowing what we’re going to get every day. Being able to work late in the night and walk across the street to go to bed. No worrying about getting an Uber later back to the hotel or if there’s a runner waiting for me or not, is nice.
Is the something you think others might notice about this show?
RS: That the show, hopefully most of the work is supportive of the performance rather than conflicts with it. We don’t try to out compete Zach, who has a great personality. His songs mean so much to people that everything that we do helps him communicate with this crowd. It’s not about flashy light show or big production, it’s just about being supportive of him and his storytelling.
Rob, tell us about working with Programmer André Petrus and Kyle on this tour.
RS: André I work together an awful lot. He’s a great, dear personal friend and a wonderful programmer. He knows everything that I’m going to ask for. So, every time we work together it’s a better and better experience. I just appreciate his friendship, his support, his skill, and his taste. And Kyle has been wonderful. He’s become a friend. He has a wicked sense of humor and no matter what’s happening, he’s always in control. That’s something I really appreciate, especially with a show like this.
Kyle, how was working with André and Rob on this tour?
KL: André and I are close friends and I love working with them. This is my fourth show with him, so following behind him is always an easier task. You know what you’re going to get. You don’t have any surprises. And for working with Rob, I’ve programmed with Rob on some other designs, like Queen. I love working with Rob. He has a unique vision in the industry right now. All his designs are different. It’s great to be a part of what’s happening in his career; being a part of these massive designs that he’s doing. I’m excited to continue working with Rob on most things going forward.
And working with Production Director Steve Drymalski?
RS: I hadn’t worked with Steve before, but he’s been great. Sometimes there can be a tension between production and creative, but there’s been nothing like that here. He’s always understood everything that I’ve asked for, and hopefully I’ve helped him with the things that he needed.
KL: Steve is always there. If he had a suggestion, we’d look at it, see what we can do, see what changes we can make. He’s definitely a big part of some of the looks out here for sure.
Rob, any last comments about working on this Zach Bryan tour?
RS: I am really proud of this show. I think we all created this perfect space for Zach and his stories. He’s an incredible talent and I don’t say that often. It’s a real pleasure supporting him and his music and to help further his connection with his fans. He’s very involved in the design process. He and I often talk about things. He understands what we’re trying to do. He’s very involved with video content, very involved with staging. He’s kind of a dream client in that he’s involved, he’s engaged, he’s interested, but he also will listen and it’s great. I really enjoy working with him.
PRODUCTION TEAM
- Tour Director/ Production Manager: Steve Drymalski
- Tour Manager: Mike Amato
- Production / Lighting Designer: Rob Sinclair
- Lighting Programmer: André Petrus
- Lighting Director: Kyle Lovan
- Lighting Crew Chief: Franklin Antonio
- Lighting Techs: Willie Coster, Clint Morris, Andrew Harvey, Chris Donati, Lucy Primiano
- Video Director: Nate Fountain
- Video Engineer in Charge: Brea Robbins
- Disguise Programmer: Luke Taylor
- Disguise Tech: Rebecca Gerhard
- Camera Tech: Mason Hatfield
- Video Crew Chief: Loic Woehrel
- LED Techs: Chris Campbell, Kaitlin Dunegan, Randy Llamas, Keaton Benjamin
- Head Rigger: Matt Rynes
- Riggers: Chuck Ream, Tom Lambert
- Automation Crew Chief: Jeff Lunsford
- Automation Programmer: Jordan Partier
- Automation Tech: Tim Gregg
- Carpentry Crew Chief: Aldo Seoane
- Carpenters: Donny Clay, Danny Reed,Wes Fiske, André Elam
- Stage Manager: Mat Burden
- Assistant Stage Manager: Tim Ward
- Lead Site Coordinator: Charlie Hernandez
- Production Coordinator: Sara Bennett
- Production Assistant: Ashley Mogayzel
- Backstage Coordinator: Maria Porcaro
- Backstage Assistant: Heather Ryan
VENDORS
- Lighting/Trucking: Upstaging
- Staging and Automation: TAIT
- Video: Fuse
- Barricade: All Access
- Rehearsal Facility: Rock Lititz
- Buses: Dreamliner
GEAR
Lighting
- 48 Portman P1 Retro Lamp
- 12 Ayrton Khamsin
- 101 CHAUVET Color STRIKE M
- 30 ACME Lyra
- 20 ACME Solar Impulse
- 8 Robert Juliat Dalis 862
- 28 Thomas 4 Lite Horizontal Molefay
- 800 TMB IMS RGB Bulbs on 50’ Festoon Stringers
- 18 TMB IMS Drivers
- 2 grandma 3 full-size Console
- 1 Follow-Me System
- 12 Custom Circle Pods
- 11 10’ Tyler Truss HUD Truss
- 32 8’ Tyler Truss HUD Truss
- 2 5’ Tyler Truss HUD Truss
- 20 Tomcat 8’x20.5×20.5 Truss
- 2 Tomcat 4’x20.5”x20.5” Truss
- 4 Tomcat 2’6”x30”x20.5” Heavy Duty Truss
- 5 Tomcat 4’x30”x20.5” Heavy Duty Truss
- 13 Tomcat 5’x30”x20.5” Heavy Duty Truss
- 19 Tomcat 10’x30”x20.5” Heavy Duty Truss
- 50 ChainMaster Liftket ½ Ton Hoist
- 62 ChainMaster Liftket 1 Ton Hoist
- 28 CM Single Fall 2 Ton Hoist
- 8 Reel FX DF-50 Hazer
- 2 hazebase Base Highpower
Video
- 384 ROE Visual CB5 600×1,200 LED Panel
- 7 Brompton Technology Tessera SX40 Processor
- 3 Disguise GX 3 Media Server
Automation
- 12 TAIT NAV Hoists
- 1 TAIT Navigator Automation System
