My first experience seeing Queen live was in 1976 at the historic Winterland Auditorium in San Francisco. It was one of those rare magical moments that you don’t forget. There is no one on the rock scene who can match the singing and stage presence of Freddie Mercury. Freddie’s gone, but not the memories that will live forever. Brian May, whose unique guitar style is unsurpassed, and Roger Taylor, whose rock anthem drumming defines the style of the band, have embarked on the first Queen tour in 20 years. They’ve brought with them the talent of Bad Company vocalist Paul Rodgers to sing the hits of both bands, from “Tie Your Mother Down” to “Can’t Get Enough” to “We Are the Champions.”
| Crew Lighting Company: Bandit Lites U.S. Bandit Rep: Richard Willis Lighting Designer: Barry “Baz” Halpin Lighting Director: Trent O’Connor Set Design: Mark Fisher Crew Chief: Jeff “Flex” Archibeque Lighting Techs: Bobby “D” Dominiquez, Mike Stehr, Micah Andrews, Billy Willingham, Trevor Ahlstread, Nathan Alves Head Rigger: Phil ‘Tobi 1’ Broad Riggers: Bill ‘Tobi 2’ Rengstl, Lance Stoner Video Company: XL Video Video Directors: Aubrey ‘PO’ Powell, Benny Trickett Production Director: Robbie Williams Production Manager: Albert Lawrence Tour Manager: Juliette Slater Stage Manager: Pat Daly Production Assistant: Hannah Charlesworth Lighting Gear |
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Lighting designer Barry “Baz” Halpin is supported on this tour by lighting director Trent O’Connor. O’Connor, who became the operator well into the tour, started off as the motor operator controlling the truss moves on the stadium run of the tour. He became Halpin’s “right hand man” for the L.A. and New Jersey shows as well as for the Japanese leg of the tour. I spoke with Halpin and O’Connor about their experience on this massive show.
Barry “Baz” Halpin: “The original concept for this show was an easy one. I wanted to capture the grandiose style of the massive PAR can rigs that Queen was famous for without bowing to the pressures of nostalgia. Queen’s music is amongst the most dynamic in the rock ‘n’ roll world and required an equally dynamic rig. 
After the initial meetings with the band, it was clear that they wanted a very versatile system that packed an ‘in-your-face’ punch as well as forming the basis of the set. In this instance, bigger is most definitely better. Mark Fisher was on board as the production/ set designer and we worked together to create the overall look. We knew the time scale that we were faced with on the dayto- day running of the show, and with this in mind, started down the path of the rows of linear trusses that were motorized and move throughout the show. The use of the Thomas Swing Wing truss was integral to the design as it meant that we could build and cable all the trusses in another area of the arena whilst the rigging and mother grid build was taking place. The truss itself is lit internally in sections as we do not ‘swing the wings.’ This means that the fixtures actually hang inside the truss rather than from it and form a ‘roof’ for certain sections of the show. One of the other larger design elements are the iconic Mark Fisher-designed searchlights that house a Syncrolite and are manually operated. The searchlights were a request of Roger Taylor’s and form the largest scenic elements on stage.
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They are lit both as a set element and used as a powerful light source to backlight the musicians and blend with the rest of the lighting system. Mark also designed the custom risers that run the width of the downstage and continue to form a thrust and ‘B’ stage area, which Paul and Brian make full use of. As the tour has progressed, it has grown, and Mark has added two wing platforms that extend into both sides of the stage.
“Queen had a very distinct ‘over-the-top’ look in the ‘80s. It was, I think, a given that this was going to be a large-scale lighting rig; however, it was also 2005/2006. Though it was an issue I wrestled with, I don’t think that, had Martin MAC 2000 washes been available in 1985, I would have designed a PAR can rig. Queen were always innovating both musically and with their production. This was no time to get caught up in nostalgia. The band wanted to move with the times. I’m using MAC 2000 washes as I would PAR cans—a costly endeavor, but the end result is worth it. We also have five pods of ACL bars hung vertically and several dimmers worth of two-, four- and eight-light Molefays to give some serious punch. We have added 20 Thomas Pixel Lines, 12 Martin Atomic 3000 strobes and 30 eight-way Moles with color changers. We have also added the Bandit Moto Data system, which controls all the movement of trusses. On the stadium leg of the tour, we had two extra trusses with a total of 24 more 2K washes on them and more four-lights, which we don’t have with us in the U.S.”
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Trent O’Connor: “For the ramp into the audience, we have eight-light Molefays with color changers underneath them as the thrust is all custom, and four mini strips up lighting them at the end of the thrust. We have three video projection screens, one on either side of the stage and one center. The side screens take care of the I-Mag and the center screen does the footage and effects from the High End Systems Catalyst. The Catalyst is used sparingly for only four songs, one of them being ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ with a tribute to Freddie Mercury.”
BH: “We’re using the Bandit Moto Data system that we used in the New Jersey show last year. It’s still relatively new, but has performed outstandingly. We’ve also upgraded to the Syncrolite B-52s from SX3ks. It is also my first time using the Pulsar Pixel blocks, which we have installed in Roger Taylor’s drum kit to illuminate internally. “Both Brian, Roger and Paul Rodgers have been around for a while and know exactly what they want.
| Video Blast from the Past Video contractor XL Touring Video worked closely with video consultant Aubrey “PO” Powell, who was one of the founding members of the influential 1960’s album cover design groups, Hipgnosis. The group is responsible for many of the famous Pink Floyd album sleeves, as well as those of Led Zeppelin and Bad Company. President of XL Touring Video, John Wiseman, says, “It was exciting to hear from production director Robbie Williams, who I had the pleasure of working with on Pink Floyd years ago. Then to find out that PO was also involved immediately made me realize that this was going to be a first-class project, and I was honored to be a part of it. From the design all the way down to the video handoff from Freddie Mercury to Paul Rodgers, it was a class act.” Some of the show highlights are moments when film clips from Queen’s and Rodg – ers’ respective pasts appear on a big video screen behind the stage. The audience always cheers loudest whenever former Queen singer Freddie Mercury, who died of complications of AIDS in 191, appears. |
Artistically, they have been involved from the very beginning and continue to be. The show is continually evolving and the band is not interested in sitting back and playing the same show that they did six months ago. As a direct result of this, the set list changes and the looks change—sometimes very miniscule changes and sometimes a complete 18 0. It keeps the show fresh for everyone.”
TO: “This is my third time working with Bandit US, but I do a lot of work with Bandit UK as well. I find Bandit to be very helpful and professional with a reassuring attention to detail. The transition of the touring system from the UK to the U.S. was seamless. The crew, equipment and quality of care are first rate, and as a direct result, the failure rate is low. A big thank you to all the Bandit Team. “It’s worked out really well. I’ve worked with Baz before on Christina Aguilera’s tour, among others. What a sheer joy lighting this band!”
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