Lighting Co
Bandit Lites
Venue
Various (Tour)
Crew
Creative Director & Production Design: Seth Jackson
Lighting Designer: Nathan Scheuer
Lighting Director & Programmer: David “Fuji” Convertino
Lighting Crew Chief: Jason Workman
Lighting Techs: Joshua Fenn, Scot Sepe, Patrick Cowden
Media Designer & Video Director: Brent Sandrock
Stage Manager & Rigger: Brad Child
Production Manager: John Lafferty (JML Productions)
Tour Manager: Mark Holloway
Road Manager: Meg Dieter
Bandit Lites Rep: Mike Golden
Video Co: CT Touring/Barry Otto, Mark Haney
Staging: Gallagher Staging
Trucking: Ozark Mountain Leasing, Inc.
Truss, Rigging: Bandit Lites
Gear
2 grandMA2 Lite consoles w/3 NPUs
24 Vari*Lite VL 3000 Spots
22 Vari*Lite VL 3500 Wash fixtures
15 Robe Robin Pointes
36 Robe 100 LEDBeams
18 Robe 600 LEDWash fixtures
11 Robe 1200 LEDWash fixtures
33 Bandit Lites GRN Pars
3 Diffusion DF-50 Hazers
1 High End Systems F-100 Smoke Machine
Designer Insights:
Seth Jackson
Creative Director & Production Design:
“Having designed my first Selena Gomez tour two years ago along with Brent Sandrock (media designer and video director), this time they were wanting to take a big step forward in the size and scale of the production. In addition, Selena, who has always been involved in her show, knew exactly what she wanted to do this time. We looked at research of old Hollywood glamour, Judy Garland and the musical Chicago as influences. She had a clear picture of the show she wanted to present. She knew she wanted to have an elegance and grace with a sense of romance, but not leave her young fans out. There had to be a grown up quality without betraying the fans she cares so deeply for. We took scenic elements with a classic style (the grand staircase, the velour swags, the red carpet) and placed them in a modern context. Additionally, Brent decided to enhance Selena’s feelings, make it organic and real by creating the majority of the video content from scratch using real elements and classic filming techniques with as little “digital” element as possible.
“In addition, Brent and I crafted a five act play as a structure for the show. Each “act” of the concert was opened with a minute long video piece that we shot with Selena that saw her experiencing a piece of her dreams that led her into the next section of the show. Everything was storyboarded and scripted so that the show had an arc and a story, rather than simply being a set list.
“This entire process was filled with a lot of friends. All of us had worked together in the past, so the entire tech process was familiar, relaxed, and a lot of fun. Selena sets a great example. She is professional, hard working, and always quick to keep things light hearted and fun. It was the same story with the staff, crew, and vendors. Gallagher Staging (both Joey Sr. and Jr.) were with us every step of the way. They built a great set, paid tremendous attention to detail, and were always around during rehearsals to adjust to changes as the show developed. For lighting, we went back with the previous tour’s vendor; Bandit Lites. Mike Golden dealt with every detail of this tour and was with us through the whole process. I would like to say it was just because we are all long time friends, but I’m betting his teenage daughter, a huge Selena fan would not have been pleased if this tour didn’t get his full attention! Our video company was CT Touring. Barry Otto and Mark Haney gave us a tremendous crew of veterans who I had toured with and were all long time friends. Likewise, Mark Haney and I have spent countless miles on the road together. Like I said, this was a team of friends all coming together and to give their talent and skill to the creation of this tour.
“Carrying on from the conversation above, lighting director David “Fuji” Convertino and I have known each other for years and I have worked with him as a programmer on more than a few projects. I was thrilled when I found out he was available to do this tour. I knew that lighting designer Nathan Scheuer and I were in great hands. “Fuji” has it all covered, from followspots to programming to eclectic front of house toys! Nathan and I have been working together for the last few years. Together, along with Brent, we are a part of 3srCreative, a firm we created for these type of design projects where our team can produce a full scale production covering every aspect of the creative process.
“This tour has a great story. Nathan and I received word that we were doing this tour shortly before a trip to the Czech Republic to visit the Robe (lighting) factory. While there, we were riding in a van across the mountains with our sketch pads out, literally trading sketches back and forth for the whole trip. When we got back, I converted our original drawings into a 3D model in 3DS Max. From there, Brent took the model and did some animations and fly throughs and we were off and running. As for lighting, and Nathan can speak more to this, our experience at Robe played into the plot and the design which was built on the core of their products.”
Brent Sandrock
Media Designer & Video Director:
“Seth and I have enjoyed working together for many years, and I attribute that mostly to our shared creative process. Our designs often start with a single set idea (in this case I think it was the curtains) and then we toss ideas and 3D models back and forth adding and adapting the elements until we have a more complete stage picture. From there we envision how and when the elements will be used and further customize them to the overall arc of the show. For Selena’s tour, she gave us the concept of a classic and elegant musical with different acts. From there, we basically built from the ground up adding curtains, then the proscenium piece, then the staircase.
“Selena is actively involved in the design process which was a great resource since she had such clear and solid concepts. Sometimes artists can be too specific with their ideas, to the extent they are not realistic within the scope of their tour, but that wasn’t the case. She gave us a lot of latitude with the interpretation and implementation of her ideas making the process enjoyable.”
Nathan Scheuer
Lighting Designer
“After my initial conversation with Seth (Jackson), I knew that the lighting design of the show would need to look large in the U.S. arenas but would need to be easily condensed when the show went overseas. The versatility of the instrumentation and the ability to expand and contrast was a huge factor in not only instrument selection but also during cueing. Throughout the process we worked together to make sure that the scenic and lighting designs could work together to not only make load in easier, but had the ability to stay interesting and large from start to finish of the show. Since I was a little late getting to rehearsals due to another show, I worked in ESP Vision in St. Louis and cued the show before I sent it to “Fuji” and Seth. Throughout rehearsals it was “Fuji” and Seth who adjusted and worked with the show with any changes that came up during that time. I was then able to see the last few rehearsals and then put a final touch on the show with both of them. It was definitely a team effort.
“We used Bandit Lites out of Nashville as the lighting vendor, working with Mike Golden as the main contact throughout the process and then Jason Workman, who I worked with on the Barry Manilow tour became the lighting crew chief. Fixture selection was based on the versatility we needed out of every fixture and I wanted something I could trust to last the entire length of the run. That is where the Robe products came in to play. When the Selena process was first beginning back in March, we (Seth and I) took a trip to the Robe factory in Czech Republic to see the manufacturing process and introduced to some of the new products. That is where we saw the LED 600 and 1200 products that had not only great power but also beautiful color mixing and blending, and also the Pointe which was a huge fixture in the tour that could give us a ‘wash’, ‘effects’ or ‘beam’ look out of a single unit.”
For more Steve Jennings photos of the Selena Gomez tour, go to www.plsn.me/Selena2014
