Lighting designer Allen Branton is shooting a stand-up comedy special featuring Ellen DeGeneres, accompanied on his team by Kevin Lawson, John Ellar and Tim Donovan.… Read More »News on Ellen, Alison, Ozzy, Barry, Meghan, ‘Idol’ Auditions, Neck Deep and More
Lighting designer Tim Routledge informs us that we’ll see three of his tours in the U.S. this summer: Sam Smith’s The Thrill of It All… Read More »Summer Sizzles on the Touring Circuit
Look out, there’s a new lighting designer on the scene, but he already has a stellar reputation. Meet Bruce Rodgers of Tribe Design, newbie LD… Read More »Newbie LD Bruce Rodgers, Phish’s Sticks, Thirty Seconds of More Summer Tours
For songwriting duo Marian Hill’s Unusual tour, Ricardo Rojas served as set and lighting designer and lighting programmer. The tour supports the duo’s new album,… Read More »News of Marian Hill, Tinashe, Vance Joy, Sam Hunt, Neil Young, More
A week before preproduction began, an unexpected challenge was thrown into the mix when a bicycling LD Tess Falcone was struck by a motorcycle and… Read More »What’s New from LDs Tess, Cory, Sarah, Patrick, Ethan, Jeremy, Mark, Lenny, Mikey, Keith, Craig, Tom, Brent, Ed, Max and Landon
American synth-pop band MGMT kicked off their new U.S. tour in March and continue in May, taking it worldwide through 2018. LD Susanne Sasic is… Read More »Touring News on MGMT, Aerosmith, Bleachers, Pixies — and Reiff’s Reads
Black Violin is comprised of a viola player and a violinist, who have combined their classical string training with hip-hop beat influences to create “classical boom.” Production designer/LD Eric Cathcart designed and programmed for their “Classical Boom Tour” of theaters and performing arts centers.
There was a bright buzz reverberating around this year’s NAMM show, considering this was the first year of live production panels at this musical instrument-focused event…Sprinkled throughout this month’s column are familiar faces Designer Watch caught around the NAMM show. Top picture – LD Bryan Hartley (center) visits with LDs Susan Rose and Celine Royer during the Parnelli Awards. Middle picture – LDs Seth Jackson and Howard Ungerleider at the 17th Annual Parnelli Awards reception. Bottom picture – LDs Matt Guminski and Gurn Kaniski catch up at NAMM.
An avid reader of PLSN magazine, the recently-turned-16-year-old Christopher Da Silva, wanted to share his story and lighting success. So, the Toronto teen had a publicist spread his news. His biggest project to date? Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. He was commissioned to create a new lighting plot for the musical, and directed the lighting. The set included LED drapes, lit staircases, and more lights than the previous production. The September event was the biggest multimedia production of Toronto’s CPA Centre, with an audience of more than 8,000.
Within the Gaylord National Resort at National Harbor, MD, LD Chris Werner and his Los Angeles-based design team installed a holiday light show for the venue’s “Christmas On The Potomac event. The team created a centerpiece using a 55-foot tall tree enhanced with 19 double-sided video stars, each measuring 12 feet.
Russian-German EDM artist Zedd is on tour until Nov. 4 in Mexico with a creative team headed by show and production designer Travis Shirley. Longtime LD and lighting director Steven Hernandez and tour director Ken Floyd are also on board for the trek. “Zedd and his team were looking to get a bit more theatrical with the ‘Echo’ tour,” Shirley says. “We created a unique LED configuration along with a custom floating DJ riser and table and several projection moments throughout the show.”
Ryan Adams described the look he was going for on his current tour as “a 1980’s dystopian Star Wars junkyard.” LD Heather Cossette has been out with Ryan Adams’ tour as designer/director since March, supporting his new album, Prisoners. The tour ends Oct. 17.