Robe for Roger Waters' Us Them Tour posted: 20/11/2018
Few artist activists on the planet have had more impact than Roger Waters whose live shows present a cerebrally charged mix of music, politics, social commentary and visual intelligence in performances that are as captivating and powerful as they are provocative.
Lighting designer Pryderi Baskerville has one of the most demanding lighting briefs in the industry, as well as the pleasure of working with a highly talented and focused creative team including creative director Sean Evans, production designer Jeremy Lloyd from Wonder Works, video director Richard Turner, production manager Chris Kansy and production director Andrew Zweck to deliver this masterpiece of subversive industrial scale art!
Pryderi has worked for Waters since 2013 and as LD / lighting director / lighting programmer since 2016. This Us Them world touring cycle originally started in May 2017 and runs until December this year. Pryderi specified 97 x Robe BMFL WashBeams for the stadium version of the shows and 57 x BMFL Spots and 8 x BMFL Blades for the arena gigs.
Waters himself is involved with every step of the production for all his touring work.
With video a major part of the show - a media in which Waters has consistently innovated through the years - and particularly with the impressive 65-metre-wide upstage LED screen for the stadium shows and the fly-in Rolio projection surfaces that bisect the arena shows - Pryderi needed some seriously bright and reliable lightsources!
This led to the choice of Robe's BMFLs amongst other lights on the rig.
They are bright, offer great colours and an excellent throw as well as being lightweight considering their output he stated.
The BMFL WashBeams with their even higher output were a natural upgrade progression for the outdoor shows.
The stadium shows feature 15 x BMFL WashBeams rigged above the LED Screen and another 10 per side on two special PA mast torms'
These sleek PA towers were custom designed and built by WIcreations for this latest leg of the tour. Each one is a half metre diameter, matt black coated round steel tube for a fully streamlined and modern aesthetic. The PA rigging cradles holding the slim Clair Brothers arrays are rigged to the towers via an i-beam hoist system, and another 1 tonne hoist is attached to the base of the tower with its steel travelling up the offstage side of the mast, hoisting up 10 BMFL WashBeams along the integrated PA mast track.
Individual transparent rain shields offer effective weather protection and when in position, these form a perfect perpendicular line of downstage BMFLs each side.
Another 20 x BMFL WashBeams are rigged on two offstage torms at each end of the LED Screen - 10 units per torm.
Eight BMFL WashBeams are split over two FOH Towers (4 per tower), and at the base of each of the four FOH Towers is a floor mounted BMFL WashBeam.
The warm up' stadium shows for this leg were Paris plus Lucca and Rome in Italy, and the entire Latin American tour is outdoors. The rest of the remaining shows - including all the Mexican dates - utilise the indoor / arena system.
The arena show overhead lighting is rigged on three trusses, with 12 x BMFL Spots on the downstage truss.
Two of these are assigned to IR Trackers embedded in Waters' IEMs, connected to the VYV Photon / Albion system for projection tracking, which provides positional information for the designated lights. Pryderi can select any of these lights to connect to the trackers, and during Picture That' all fixtures on the upstage truss track Waters. Sax player Ian Ritchie also wears trackers - on his person rather than in his IEMs - and he's followed with lights during his solos in Money' and Us and Them'.
Another 14 x BMFL Spots are on the mid-stage truss and 15 on the upstage one. Two left and right vertical torms each feature 6 x BMFL Spots per side, and on top of the stage left and right bunkers' are another four BMFLs per side. The bunkers are part of the sub-stage technical underworld' construction which protrude slightly above the deck and are convenient for positioning lights! Down below are custom designed areas housing monitor, playback and backline worlds.
The fixtures on the onstage trusses and side torms are all used for producing epic large scale looks and for selective backlighting / accents on performers. They do the heavy lifting' as Pryderi puts it, and as mentioned above, can also be linked to the tracking system, so multiple lights are used at various points in the show to highlight Waters.
The 8 x BMFL Blades in the bunker positions are used for side lighting, their precise shuttering is helpful in this role, and on the arena version show the BMFL count is completed with four BMFL Spots on the FOH lighting / video riser.
When ramped up to stadiums, the 15 x BMFL WashBeams on top of the LED Wall provide both band backlight and massive imposing aerial looks while the BMFL WashBeams on the PA masts and offstage torms also provide big, bold, raw looks, as well as providing the band specials. They essentially replicate what's happening on the arena show torms, but are augmented for the outdoor shows.
Twenty-two floor-based BMFL WashBeams provide fabulous, piercing aerial looks, and a backlight wash down onto and across the stage, and on this version of the show, luminaires are again linked to the tracking system and used for following Waters.
The 8 x BMFL WashBeams at FOH in the stadiums are utilised for band key lights and primary follow-spotting, and the four fixtures floor mounted at FOH pick out the giant Pig, that gets walked through the crowd in Pigs (Three Different Ones)'.
The entire show is highly theatrical - as well as the high-impact visuals, automation and scenic props flying in and out. There are so
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
13/05/2026
New Adobe Premiere Color Grading Mode Accelerated on NVIDIA GPUs
Joel Pennington May 13, 2026
0 Comments
New NVIDIA RTX-accelerated features streamlin...
13/05/2026
Grass Valley announced that dB Broadcast has delivered new IP-based outside broadcast (OB) trucks for Cloudbass, featuring Grass Valley LDX 100 Series cameras a...
13/05/2026
Ikegami will exhibit the latest additions to its wide range of broadcast production cameras, control units, viewfinders and monitors on stand 5D3-1 at Broadcast...
13/05/2026
FISE, working with the founding members of the XR Sports Alliance (XRSA), Accedo, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and HBS, have collaborated to develop an immersive...
13/05/2026
Canon Unveils New EOS R6 V Full-Frame EOS Camera and RF20-50mm F4 L IS USM PZ Bu...
13/05/2026
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Honors Beth Morrison and Moses Pendleton at Comme...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Creative software developer Foundry today announced the latest developments on Nuke Stage. A purpose-built application for end-to-end virtual production and in-...
13/05/2026
A definitive portrait of one of Ireland's most influential musicians
New TV documentary airs Monday 18 May on RT One and RT Player at 9.35pm
Watch the...
13/05/2026
Agentic AI is changing the way users get work done. Following the success of OpenClaw, the community is embracing new open source agentic frameworks. The latest...
13/05/2026
Reinforcement-learning agents - AI systems that learn by trial and error - can c...
12/05/2026
Beyond the Hype: A Strategic Post-Hoc Analysis of NAB 2026 If NAB Show 2026 had an underlying theme, it was a quiet, industry-wide pivot from the high-energy sp...
12/05/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D), a Panoptec Technologies Group company, and CT Square, led by Chandresh Shah, have announced a joint venture to distribute G&D and V...
12/05/2026
With 30 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the tournament in the United States, has announced th...
12/05/2026
The NHL has announced the return of Stanley Pup for its third consecutive year, a 90-minute special featuring adoptable rescue dogs competing on a miniature rin...
12/05/2026
NBCUniversal presented its 2026 Upfront to advertisers at Radio City Music Hall, detailing upcoming programming across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, and Versant properti...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced funding for the Fandom and Social Connection Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Publ...
12/05/2026
TNDV and Live Media, both divisions of Live Media Group, supported live broadcast coverage around NCAA Final Four weekend in Indianapolis, including the March M...
12/05/2026
The European Football Alliance (EFA) has announced a content distribution agreement with Fubo Sports Network, the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel ...
12/05/2026
For the first time, Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S. will have two separate tel...
12/05/2026
CP Communications led a comprehensive spectrum management initiative on behalf of Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week, coordinating RF assets across the ...
12/05/2026
LiveU has announced a strategic partnership with DRONERESPONDERS, a 501(c)3 non-...
12/05/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BMC TV, a specialist in IP transport of broadcast content, has selected the Open Broadcast Systems 5G Flyaway solution...
12/05/2026
NEP Europe, part of NEP Group, has announced it will deliver broadcast solutions...
12/05/2026
Grass Valley has announced continued collaboration with Ravensbourne University ...
12/05/2026
Stats Perform has announced the launch of Opta Pulse, an AI-assisted video creation and distribution platform for leagues, rights holders, and broadcasters. The...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced a collaboration with Sesame Workshop to integrate Sesame Street characters into FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 programming. Conten...
12/05/2026
To date, NHL Productions has produced 19 broadcasts with commentary in American Sign Language
NHL in ASL (American Sign Language) may be just one show, but the...
12/05/2026
Google's Brian Albert: creators, athletes, highlights, nostalgia, second-scr...
12/05/2026
A still from Past Lives by Celine Song, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | p...
12/05/2026
Spotify is where fans and artists come together, turning discovery into somethin...
12/05/2026
Features patented Marco-MMC clocking technology
Black Lion Audio's latest release combines the company's expertise in clocking with their renowned p...
12/05/2026
New Track Panel, sequencer upgrades & more
Following their recent public beta release, Reason Studios have announced the full release of Reason 14. With the...
12/05/2026
One month to go! SBS reveals expansive FIFA World Cup 2026 lineup beyond the pi...
12/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents its advanced solutions for power electronics testing at...
12/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, has developed a modified fund raising p...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Tyrell Corporation, specialists in high-end live sports and entertainment broadcasts, was tasked with delivering compelling broadcast coverage of premier equest...
12/05/2026
Registration is now open for IBC2026 as the global media, entertainment and technology community prepares to converge on the RAI Amsterdam from 11 14 September ...
12/05/2026
Ross Video, a global leader in live video production technology, will present its latest innovations and integrated production workflows at BroadcastAsia 2026, ...
12/05/2026
500 selected leaders from around the world across start-ups, corporates, and venture capital. Over 50bn in assets under management among attending investors, a...
Robe for Roger Waters' Us Them Tour posted: 20/11/2018 
