Travis Shirley Designs Sam Hunt’s Latest Shows
“Sam Hunt is one of those artists who is on the cusp of country music,” says production designer Travis Shirley, “But he can rock any… Read More »Travis Shirley Designs Sam Hunt’s Latest Shows
Jingle Beat
Eamotion, Gallagher Staging and Others Create Holiday-Themed Drive-Through Experience For the last four weeks of 2020, entertainment-starved patrons are flocking to the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway… Read More »Jingle Beat
ABC News’ Studio TV3
The Studio Gets an Overhaul for 2020 Election Coverage with Help from the Lighting Design Group PLSN recently caught up with Dennis Size, executive vice… Read More »ABC News’ Studio TV3
Foo Fighters ‘Concrete and Gold’ Tour
Longtime lighting designer and director Dan Hadley is back on the road with Foo Fighters on their current tour in support of the band’s ninth studio album, Concrete and Gold. We caught the band at the beginning of the third U.S. leg of the tour.
Katy Perry – ‘Witness:’ The Tour
The current Katy Perry tour brought in a top-notch team with the return of longtime lighting designer Baz Halpin, who this time around is also producer for the tour. Halpin worked with the creative/show directors and choreography team of Antony “Ant” Ginandjar and Ashley “Ash” Evans of The Squared Division, with the company offering creative production and concepts for stage and screen. Back on board are associate lighting designer, lighting and video programmer Eric Marchwinski, lighting director, lighting and video programmer Drew Gnagey and production manager Jay Schmit, who’s been with Perry for the past seven and a half years.
Paramore 2017 ‘After Laughter’ Tour
Paramore released their fifth album, After Laughter, in May and launched their 2017 tour the same month, with a performance at the KROQ Weenie Roast and Fiesta followed by a jaunt through Europe and the U.K. in June and July. North American dates followed, running from late July through late October.
Red Hot Chili Peppers ‘Getaway’ Tour 2017
The Red Hot Chili Peppers currently have the largest kinetic lighting rig for a tour, with a matrix of 1,040 LED cylinders rising and falling to create a seemingly endless array of unique show looks. PLSN caught up with longtime RHCP production designer and lighting director Scott Holthaus, media server programmer Leif Dixon and, handling video direction backstage, George Elizondo for their insights on this trek.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Bryan Hartley Raises the Bar for TSO’s 2016 ‘Ghosts of Christmas Eve’ Tour
The first tour the Trans Siberian Orchestra (TSO) did was only five shows long. They had just one band and used local production. But the word quickly spread. The next year, they brought in designer Bryan Hartley and a lighting package. They also started doing two shows a day on that second tour, some 17 years ago. Ever since, this gigantic live concert, which is a mixture of classical, rock and holiday music, has grown to selling out arenas every holiday season with what can best be described as a visual spectacle.
Five Finger Death Punch and Shinedown
Bruce Reiter, Brandon Webster, Sooner Routhier and Carter Fulghum Discuss the 2016 Co-Headlining Tour
Five Finger Death Punch (5FDP) and Shinedown are on a co-headlining tour which also features Sixx: A.M. and As Lions, playing arenas across the nation. We spoke with some of the production crew — 5FDP production manager Bruce Reiter along with their lighting designer/director and tour manager Brandon Webster. Then, for Shinedown, we talked with production designer and lighting programmer Sooner Routhier of SRae Productions and lighting director Carter Fulghum.
16th Annual Parnelli Awards
The 16th Annual Parnelli Awards was on track to be its typical high-energy, funny, and emotional show … and then Tom Petty surprised the audience by taking the podium. He flew in himself and 11 members of the Heartbreaker family to give accolades to his long time tour manager, Richard Fernandez, who received the live events highest honor, the Parnelli Lifetime Achievement Award.
Garth Brooks Hits it Out of the Park at Yankee Stadium
After 19 years, the renowned country music artist Garth Brook knew that his return to New York City needed to be on a stage worth the wait. Having played in Central Park to nearly a million people in 1997, Brooks this summer took the field, literally, at Yankee Stadium in mid-July, becoming the first country music act to play the iconic Bronx ballpark. Joined by his wife and fellow country music star Trisha Yearwood, the massive stage design suited the epic scope of the venue, the event, and the artist himself.
The Visual Splendor of Coldplay’s ‘A Head Full of Dreams’ Tour
Coldplay hit America this summer with its first tour since 2012, titled A Head Full of Dreams in support of their seventh album by the same name. The London based quartet celebrated its 20th year by launching a three-year long tour earlier this year in South America. The North American tour started in NYC on July 16 and will continue throughout the summer by playing arenas with a scaled down production during the week and filling stadiums on the weekend with the larger production.