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Anatomy of a Rig – Martin Hruška at the O2 Arena Prague

By any measure, the rap show at 20,000-seat O2 Arena Prague was massive. There were over 400 automated lighting fixtures, 48 controlled hoists and a cross scenic piece that weight six tons. Featuring Slovakian rap starts KONTRAFAKT trio Rytmus, Ego and Anis, the show awed the sellout crowd. Stunning patterns of light crisscrossed the arena […]

Ignacio Rosenberg – Brave Light

Inspiration, vision, insight… all must be present for creativity to flourish, but at the end of the day, any creative concept requires courage above all else if it is to be turned into a reality. Henri Matisse recognized this when he wrote “another word for creativity is courage,” shortly before he went on to revolutionize […]

Celebrating Daddy Yankee

“Every moment of light and dark is a miracle,” wrote Walt Whitman. All lightshows are proof of that. But on rare occasions, when the meaning of the moment aligns perfectly with the aesthetics that celebrate it, the “miracle” becomes frozen in time, ensuring that it will always burn brightly in the minds of all who […]

Anatomy of a Rig – Evan Kirkendall and Big Nite DC

The Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, MD, about 10 miles south of Washington DC is a perfect site for any event. The carefully manicured grounds are elegant, and guests can gaze out the main ballroom’s 270-degree floor-to-ceiling windows to enjoy stunning views of the Potomac River. Small wonder then that the […]

I’m With The Band – Rob Koenig and Metallica

With few exceptions, most notably traditional Chinese culture, the number 6 is not considered particularly lucky. Metallica and Rob Koenig might beg to differ, however. For a time, after Koenig started his tenure with the iconic band, they referred to him as “Number Six,” a name chosen because he was their sixth LD in 2008. […]

Andrew Cass – Shining Brightly Closer to the Sun

As a rule, Andrew Cass prefers to stay away from having a single massive video wall behind the band, but like all rules, this one can be bent, especially in the interest of collaboration. Such was the case in December when Cass served as lighting designer and programmer for Closer to the Sun, the annual […]

Felix Peralta – Lyrical Light

Does a lighting designer need to have a musical background to create an evocative show?  This Emmy winning Muscle Shoals, Alabama-based LD says it isn’t absolutely necessary, but allows that one way or another, musicality and rhythm must find a way to run through the heart and soul of every memorable lighting design. A former […]

Hayden Borgars The Musicality of Lighting Fixtures

“I am part of light, and it is the music,” wrote Nickola Tesla, who once likened a single lightning bolt to a sonata. All lighting designers would likely agree, attuned, as they are, to hearing the transformative sound made by infinite photons every night on stage. Inspired by this magical harmony, Hayden Borgars strives to […]

I’m With The Band Tom Campbell and Maisie Peters

Today, the 23-year-old from Steyning, UK, is accustomed to performing before much larger audiences, as she draws energy and enthusiasm, not just from family, but from a rapidly growing group of fans around the world. Tom Campbell has enjoyed witnessing this young star’s rapid rise. As her lighting designer, he’s been there as his client […]

Jeff Mathews Nimble Light

Like the Greek philosopher Heraclitus’ “mythical man,” who can never step in the same river twice, lighting design can never go back to where it was just a short time ago. This Nashville-based lighting designer wouldn’t have it any other way. In his view, the need to adapt to the constant changes surrounding design, from […]

Shining Light on Rock & Roll Hall

Four hours and twenty-two minutes is quite a long time; about an hour longer than it takes to fly from New York to Miami, almost twice as long as the average NBA game, and even longer than Bruce Springsteen’s longest show, a four hour and six-minute performance that took place in Helsinki in 2012. Yet […]

Willie Williams Counterpoised Light

Minimalism can exert its power in the most unlikely places, even at the U2 UV Achtung Baby Live show that opened the much-heralded Sphere in Las Vegas this September.  Although the show at the massive structure with a 16k resolution wrap around video wall, enraptured audiences with its immersive and complex design, at its heart was a […]