Take That, the UK’s favourite ‘boyband’, hit the road this summer on their massive “Circus” stadium tour, with a spectacular lighting rig designed by Patrick Woodroffe and a stage set created by Es Devlin, Take That and the tour’s artistic director, Kim Gavin. The stature of the tour – produced by TPO (The Production Office) headed by production manager Chris Vaughan – reflects the massive popularity of Take That. This started in the early 1990’s and continued with even more enthusiasm in 2006, after one of the most meteoric band ‘reformations’ of the decade.
Woodroffe asked Dave Hill to join his creative team and programme the show – the two have collaborated on numerous projects over the years – whereupon Hill specified a grandMA2 full-size console for the job. Hill has been a dedicated grandMA user since the 2007 Genesis “Turn It On Again” tour, when he was immediately struck by MA Lighting’s “second to none” support and service.
He thought Take That was an ideal opportunity to use the new grandMA2 console. He likes the bigger screens and buttons but says, “The best and most sensible thing that MA Lighting have done is to introduce the grandMA2 so it can still run the grandMA ‘series 1’ software. This means you can get to know the console first with a familiar operating system, and then move to the new system when you’re ready”.
He continues, “The thinking behind the console has moved on enormously with the grandMA2. The layout is excellent, and I am really looking forward to using it with the new software.” Hill and Woodroffe programmed the Take That show during two weeks of full technical rehearsals in Hangar 1 at Cardington Airfield in Bedford, and then during pre-production for four days prior to the first show at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light. Dennis Gardner also joined the programming process and is out as Lighting Director/Operator, as Hill is busy LD’ing The Eagles’ European tour – also using a grandMA full-size.
This is the first time that Gardner has used a grandMA for a full-on light show – although he did work with one whilst he was head media server programmer at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He’s now unashamedly fallen in love with it! “It looks very sexy!” he comments “It’s extremely easy to learn and use, and it networks beautifully”. They are using a grandMA2 light for backup with another grandMA2 light on-stage used for a technical desk, along with 5 x MA NSPs – four active and a spare.
He is also eagerly anticipating using the grandMA2 software, and says that grandMA will now always be his first choice of console. The grandMA2 is controlling nearly 300 moving lights on Take That – besides others 56 x Clay Paky Alpha Beam 300 and 18 x Alpha Beam1500 as well as a mix of Robe, Clay Paky, Coemar, Martin, High End and Zap Technologies fixtures, together with PARs, Moles, i-Pix Satellite LED bricks, 27 strobes and fog machines. Many of the moving lights are rigged on to a 15 metre diameter circular truss which starts the set as a part of a scenic circus tent onstage, before being lifted into to a vertical position where it frames the central onstage LED screen.
All lighting equipment is being supplied by West London based Neg Earth Lights. Capital Sound are supplying the audio, video elements are a combination of XL Video and CT; Summit Steel have provided all the rigging and the Kinesys automation system that helps lift the circular screen frame, along with a set of giant hydraulics built by Brilliant Stages.
Photos: Copyright – Dave Hogan
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