AARHUS, Denmark — Despite a boost from its prominent role at the Beijing Olympics and the positive, albeit delayed, launch of its MAC III Profile, Martin Professional is reeling from a sharp reduction in spending among leasing clients who are holding back on investments in new gear. The company has responded with a reorganization of its European sales organization and plans to cut 200 jobs by year’s end.
SUFFOLK, U.K. — Robert Ornbo, one of the world’s most prolific and celebrated lighting designers, with over 300 productions to his credit, died Nov. 19 at the age of 77. The cause was Fibrosing Alveolitis, a condition Ornbo had been battling since he was diagnosed with it in 2001.
WINNIPEG, Canada — Epic Production Technologies announced that Craig Redden, vice president concert touring, died of an apparent massive heart attack Nov. 20 while in Los Angeles.
OAK LAWN, IL — Design & Drafting’s LD Assistant 08 will include ETC’s Net3/ACN Network with the forthcoming LD Assistant 08 Update. This will enable users to plug directly into the ETC Network and access up to 64 DMX universes without any dongles.
BLACKBURN, Lancashire, U.K. — With the support of lighting rental company HSL, A&O Technology launched a U.K. warehouse to complement its facilities in Europe, the U.S. and the Middle East. Shown here, from left, are HSL’s Simon Stuart and Mike Oates, with A&O’s Marco Niedermeier.
LEICESTER, U.K. — Curve Leicester, a theatre designed by architect Rafael Viñoly, has been equipped with new gear including Robert Juliat’s followspots, long-throw profile lanterns and fresnel- and pebble-convex lens spotlights and the Robert Juliat Lutin with interchangeable lenses.
CINCINNATI — USITT’s annual Conference & Stage Expo is set for March 18 to 21, 2009, and the association is finalizing plans for activities before, during and after the show. Despite the uncertain economic outlook, USITT reports that more than 85 percent of the exhibit space available for the Stage Expo is already sold.
(Lighting, Rigging, Projection)Jan. 14-16, 2009Arizona State UniversityTempe, Ariz.www.estafoundation.org
SAO LEOPOLDO, Brazil — Martin Professional has appointed Pro Shows Comércio de Eletroeletrônicos Ltda as its new distributor and official representative in Brazil. Pro Shows was founded in 2003 by the company’s president, Vladimir de Souza.
JOHANNESBURG — Gearhouse South Africa provided custom-built indoor and outdoor stands for Indian automaker Tata Motors at the 2008 Johannesburg International Motor Show at the Expo Centre. Robyn Mulligan managed the project via GSA subsidiaries Sets, Drapes and Screens (SDA) and In2Structures.
LONDON — Lighting designer Arturo Ollandini is using Robe ColorSpot and ColorWash 2500 moving lights supplied by Sonalyst in his design for comedy duo, The Mighty Boosh, currently on tour in the U.K. The show, produced by Phil McIntyre Entertainments, is a mix of comedy and music with the lighting requirements of a theatrical rock ‘n’ roll tour.
MILAN, Italy — The Italian news parody, Striscia la Notizia, or The News Slithers, has become popular enough for the talent search for the two female performers who accompany the show to become a hit on its own, with a full complement of Clay Paky gear used to light the final performances and the interviews with the winning pair of female contestants.