Millions of protected eyes looked up at the skies April 8 as Mother Nature put on a showstopping spectacle. The 2024 Total Solar Eclipse was a one-off, 360° theatrical show of shadows and light, wonder and awe, seen in full glory starting in Mexico, sweeping through the U.S. and into Canada. The cosmic designer created the set—placing the Moon between the Sun and the Earth to form a straight line, block the Sun and temporarily darken the skies. Fortunate ones witnessed totality, climaxing with the dazzling “diamond ring” of light formed in the sky. Prior to the big day, Designer Watch checked in with creatives in the path of totality to find out what was in store for their sky watching parties.
A Vampire Eclipse in Austin
Vampire Weekend was slated to appear outdoors in Austin, TX at high noon for a 90-minute show to introduce their new album release, Only God Was Above Us. The eclipse would start at 12:17 pm and end at 2:58 pm, with full totality at 1:36 pm, turning skies dark for one minute and 44 seconds. Designer Rob Sinclair says, “The eclipse show is in daylight and the band will leave the stage for totality, so I don’t really think this is something worth talking about production-wise. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.” But that was good news; meaning the focus was on the music and marvel in the sky.
Illios Lighting’s Zach Boswell reveals their plot at the Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park: “Obviously there will be very minimal lighting but with one caveat: We are hanging a 20kW Fresnel on the upstage truss to mimic sunlight in the darkness. There will also be I-Mag so people can view the eclipse on screens without looking at the sun. Not a lot of lighting—just a few lights for backlight. It will be a ‘fader up, fader down’ kind of deal.”
The band’s tour takes flight soon after on April 27 at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Sinclair, who marks his 15th year with the band, says Ben Marx will return as Lighting Director. “I think he’s looking forward to it. He’s with Madonna until May,” Sinclair notes. Programmer Brian Spett also returns and may run the first few shows for Marx. “We’re getting the whole gang back together,” Sinclair says of his creative team. The tour circles back to Austin for its finale on Oct. 17.
‘Drive-In to the Eclipse’
During the pandemic, Jonny “Tosar” Tosarello bought, refurbished, and runs the Rock ’N Roll Drive-In in Chaffee, MO. Then touring started up again. “I’ve been completely slammed!” he says. “Especially with taking on the role as Production Manager—on top of LD— with Lynyrd Skynyrd and getting things in order for our spring tour with ZZ Top and Black Stone Cherry, which launched March 8. Now we’re working on the ‘Drive-In to the Eclipse’ event on top of our season opening April 5. Busy, busy, busy!”
On April 8, the Drive-In was featuring live music onstage before the eclipse moved through from partial phase to totality. “We plan to have country music artist Adam Wainwright’s set begin just before the total eclipse and then he will ‘count it in,’ if you will. All will ‘wow’ at the 4 minutes, 4 seconds of totality and then back to the live music!” Tosarello says. “This is a once in a lifetime event and we plan to make it something special!”
Eclipsing the Eclipse
Symphonies and orchestras around the country would be sending their own celestial sounds around the solar event. LD Don Weeks of Audio Images Sound and Lighting designed and planned to direct lighting for the Rochester Philharmonic Eclipse Spectacular at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, NY. This event actually eclipsed the eclipse, taking place the day before on April 7.
The space-themed repertoire—a la Star Wars and Close Encounters—included a choir, vocalists, and aerial artists. “It’s a standard ‘rock’ layout. Big looks, lots of gobos with movers,” Weeks explains. “The musicians you have to light carefully because of sheet music and their instruments. The lasers are going to play a big part along with the video content,” he added, shortly before the event. “This is the biggest event the RPO has ever done in their history. Of course, Rochester is right in the direct path [of totality] so as you can imagine, it’s a big event.”
Designers Open for Gigs
To support the industry, Designer Watch offers itself as a platform for designers, directors, and programmers to announce their availabilities for work. This will be an occasional feature in the column depending on feedback and space. Good luck to those wanting to fill their calendars!
- Andrew Cass says he’s been working on a new website for months now, pushing for new clients in 2024. Check out the site at www.AndrewCass.com
- Jon Pollak notes that from May to September he is available for “any and all” touring opportunities. Contact him at jonpollak@gmaIl.com
- Matt Guminski seeks design/directing and/or programming work in May and June before his European road trip in July with Death Cult/The Cult. He recently programmed Dolly Parton’s new Dollywood musical, From The Heart, designed by David Sexton. He also heads back to theater, his “first love,” designing lighting for regional theatre productions of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical and A Bronx Tale. Contact him via www.mglightingdesign.com
- Rachel Mullen has some tours/corporate shows booked but with availability for more lighting design/directing work in April, May, and most of June. Contact her at www.radiantfocusdesign.com
Share your news with Debi Moen at dmoen@plsn.com
