Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Putting Beauty into The Beast

19/01/2019

Putting Beauty into The Beast posted: 19/01/2019

It's panto time again in the UK with the slapstick, craziness and innuendos flying as fast as a foam pie in the face

At Blackpool Grand this year, putting both beauty and some beast attitude into the show, lighting designer Andy Webb specified 81 x Robe fixtures - 98 per cent of them LED sources - for a brand-new version of the classic tale produced by UK Productions for the 2018-19 season.

It's the fourth consecutive year that Andy has lit the famous UK seaside resort's panto, which was directed by Damian Sandys with whom he also worked on the 2017-18 production. This was a huge advantage to the fluidity and creative flow of this year's show, together with knowing the venue, a beautiful original Matcham house that is notoriously tight for space when installing the complex modern productions of the 21st century.

Andy chose Robe as his main lighting fixtures for several reasons. I've spec'd and worked with Robe on numerous shows and I know the products really well he explained, adding, there is a great choice of fixtures, their LED light sources are of an excellent quality and overall the kit is super reliable .

He relishes the chance to light panto as a genre which is seriously fast-paced and offers huge scope for colour, melodrama and fun - simultaneously playful, exciting and scary - all great ambiences to embellish with light. Lighting a brand-new production for the first time was also really exciting, and it offered the opportunity to set the ground rules and create some spectacular signature elements.

To give the Beast's character more gravitas and depth, Andy introduced some proper darkness and foreboding to his castle domain. That darkness was also an imaginative starting point for the lighting to evolve, as they needed to be able to flip between this state and a host of bright mischievous lighting for the comedy scenes - of which there were plenty!

Lighting was also used for other metaphors - throughout the show, as the Beast slowly but surely falls in love with main female protagonist Belle, more lights and festoons, etc, are introduced to his castle environment transforming it from a dingy, grubby den to a brighter more vivid and alive space.

Andy started with ten Robe DL4S Profiles, eight distributed between LX bars 1 and 3 with the other two rigged at FOH.

Eight Spiider LED wash beams are also on LX 1 and 2 as Andy wanted a BIG lush wash lighting effect covering the whole stage.

Three DL4F fresnels on back light bar - LX3 - create a look that has become one of Andy's classic' panto scenes; the fresnel lens as a back light really brings a different take and quality of light to the picture he said.

On the same rear LX bar are six ParFect 150s and two Robe LED Strobes used for lightening effects critical to the big fight scene, helping the audience to feel every push, shove and punch.

On the final upstage LX bar are another four LEDBeam 150s utilised for special pickups at the back of the set and for set dressing - in conjunction with two VIVA Spots and one VIVA CMY on the same bar - plus another two VIVAs on the pros perch (FOH).

Four LEDBeam 150s on the house bars either side of the pros point into the audience for blinder effects and movement cues. As with all pantos, audience interaction is fundamental to the genre. Andy also reveals he was inspired to capitalise on these side pros lighting positions after working on the Cirque Robe' live performance show at the 2018 Prolight+Sound expo in Frankfurt with LD Nathan Wan.

There is also an LEDWash 300 on both pros' bars for the low-cut shadow work in the castle scenes and for those featuring The Beast.

A total of 20 x ParFect 100s and four ParFect S1s are deployed in various positions including eight at FOH acting as a contrasting set wash, with the rest on side stage boom ladders for cross stage lighting and a pair upstage swooshing across the Cyc.

Traversing the stage floor at the front - in the footlights position - are four CycFX 8 LED battens which provide excellent moody shadow lighting onstage and swing around into the audience for dramatic specials that build excitement at strategic moments in the narrative.

Just offstage of these each side is a Spikie. Andy has used the Spikie flower effects to help enhance the magical moments in the storytelling, like when the good fairy is working her spells for peace and harmony to prevail. They also give a nice low cross light for The Beast's reveal and for his transformation back into a Prince!

Just two of these small fixtures were all that were needed to play an integral role in the production, as Andy needed a neat and compact source zoomed in to 4 degrees so the (performer) flying wires weren't caught in the beams!

Next to the pros arch each side was a Robe Pointe - the only intelligent discharge fixtures in the show! These were unleashed for wizardry effects and in particular - in conjunction with three half mirror dishes - what Andy calls his magic zap' effect where super-fast beams of light zap between them, ping-pong style! This was devised to create the effect without using pyro.

The Pointes were also used for their more standard beaming effects into the crowd.

A single Robe MiniMe effects projector rigged in the upper balcony came into play during the Beast transformation scene, running sparkling video content. Andy was impressed considering the unit was over 40 metres away from the stage and focussed tightly into the Beast's chest. Again, the call was for a small and very controllable fixture to avoid revealing the flying wires.

The intelligent lights were supplied by CEG Hire & Productions from Cambridge, and Andy also used the house generics - Source Four profiles at FOH and PARs on some of the side booms.

As with all his desi
LINK: https://www.live-production.tv/news/shows/putting-beauty-beast.html...
See more stories from liveproduction

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

04/08/2026

Dalet Announces Commercial Availability of Dalia, Bringing Media-Aware Agentic AI to Enterprise Productions

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

04/07/2026

Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in Dolby Cinemas Across Japan, Presented in Dolby Atmos and Dolby ...

April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...

04/06/2026

Sony's New PTZ Cameras Deliver 4K 60p; New STARVIS Sensor Meets Low-Light Demands

Sony Electronics is introducing the SRG-AS10, a 4K 60p-compatible PTZ auto-frami...

04/06/2026

SVG Students To Watch: Alex Albert, Texas A&M University

This recent grad from Spring, TX, led creative-video output for the Aggies' men's basketball team last season and has been producing video and creating ...

04/06/2026

USGA Brings AI Recaps, 3D Range Tracking, and Predictive Shot Tracing to U.S. Womens Open

For the first time at a women's golf major, every player in the field will r...

04/06/2026

Panasonic PT-RQ45 Projectors Power Lille Video Mapping Festival Opera House Installation

Three Panasonic PT-RQ45 40,000-lumen 3-Chip DLP projectors made their first live...

04/06/2026

Bitmovin and Akamai Support NRJ Groups Deployment of Akamai Adaptive Media Player 2

Bitmovin and Akamai have announced a collaboration with NRJ Group, a French mult...

04/06/2026

Telestream to Exhibit at InfoComm 2026 with Live Production and Media Workflow Demonstrations

Telestream will exhibit at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N7952), demonstrating media work...

04/06/2026

Sony Announces RIALTO 65 Image Sensor Block for VENICE 2, Targeting 2027 Release

Sony has announced the development of RIALTO 65, a 65mm format image sensor block for the VENICE 2 digital cinema camera, targeting release in the first half of...

04/06/2026

KOKUSAI DENKI Electric America to Exhibit 4K and Remote Production Solutions at InfoComm 2026

KOKUSAI DENKI Electric America will exhibit at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N8025, June ...

04/06/2026

Bell Media to Carry All 104 FIFA World Cup 2026 Matches Across TSN, RDS, and Streaming Platforms

Bell Media's TSN and RDS are the exclusive Canadian broadcasters of FIFA Wor...

04/06/2026

MASV Case Study: How MASV Reduced Miami HEAT's Road Game Video Transfer Times by 85%

The Challenge: Receiving Heavy Media Files From Road Games Quickly and ReliablyT...

04/06/2026

MASV Outlines Seven-Step Sports Analytics Workflow, Highlights File Transfer as Key Bottleneck

MASV, a managed file transfer platform used in broadcast and live sports product...

04/06/2026

NESN Appoints Fahad Haider as Vice President of Operations and Engineering

NESN has announced the appointment of Fahad Haider as Vice President of Operations and Engineering. Haider returns to NESN, where he previously served as Vice P...

04/06/2026

Sports Broadcaster, Executive, and Author David J. Halberstam Dies

David J. Halberstam, who spent almost 50 years in sports as a broadcaster and an executive, died June 2 after a years-long battle with brain cancer. Over his l...

04/06/2026

Grass Valleys Ben Dolinky on Offering Teachable Technology to College Students Across the Country

Although collegiate production programs are tasked with delivering high-quality ...

04/06/2026

Prime Video Caps First NBA Season With Sports Emmy Win, Carries In-House Production Into WNBA Campaign

California studio, two production trucks, global distribution system are combine...

04/06/2026

TikTok and Sundance Collab Launch Micro-Series Storytelling Program

New global program empowers and supports storytellers through scriptwriting course and access to industry experts TikTok and Sundance Institute today announce...

04/06/2026

Celemony announce Tonalic ARA support for Cubase & Nuendo

Steinberg DAWs now boast in-depth Tonalic integration Celemony's innovative virtual session musician plug-in has just received an update that brings ARA...

04/06/2026

GearExpo UK: Microphone Update

Get Hands-On With Over 20 Mic Brands GearExpo UK is fast approaching, and if you've been looking for a chance to check out some new mics, then you'r...

04/06/2026

Positive Grid launch Reactor amp range

Combos feature new Amplifier Intelligence engine Positive Grid's latest release sees the company introduce two new combo amplifiers that promise to offe...

04/06/2026

Is Your Job Making You Work this June?

Is Your Job Making You Work this June? 4 June, 2026 Media releases SBS Launches the World Cup Watchers' Rights Association to Stand Up For Australians&...

04/06/2026

Statement regarding unauthorised use of SBS logos on third party social content

Statement regarding unauthorised use of SBS logos on third party social content 4 June, 2026 Media releases SBS has become aware of social media posts in c...

04/06/2026

TiVo: TV Viewing Hits Post-Pandemic Peak

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/06/2026

Bitmovin and Akamai Support NRJ Group to Deploy Next Gene...

Bitmovin, a leading provider of video streaming infrastructure, and Akamai, the cybersecurity and cloud computing company that powers and protects business onli...

04/06/2026

American Underground Opens at American Tobacco Campus, Completing a 16-Year Full-Circle Story

American Underground (AU), the Startup Hub of the South and a community of mor...

04/06/2026

Nielsen: Thunder Rolls as NBA's Most-Watched Team

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/06/2026

AI Drives Lenovo's 2026 FIFA World Cup Broadcast Plans

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/06/2026

ATSC Conference Looks Beyond Traditional TV for 3.0 Success

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/06/2026

ATSC Awards Highest Technical Honor to Julia Kenyon

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/06/2026

Lumine Group to Acquire Synamedias Video Network Business

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/06/2026

BFOA Launches 5th Annual Giving Day

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/06/2026

Hemisphere Media Group Brings WAPA+ Fast Channel to Prime Video

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/06/2026

APTS to Hold June 4 'Protect My Public Media Day'

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

04/06/2026

NVIDIA and Microsoft Reinvent Windows PCs for the Age of Personal AI

NVIDIA and Microsoft Reinvent Windows PCs for the Age of Personal AI Brie Clayton June 3, 2026 0 Comments RTX Spark - a 1-Petaflop Superchip, the Full...

04/06/2026

Inside the Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man Grade

Inside the Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man Grade Brie Clayton June 3, 2026 0 Comments Simone Grattarola discusses shaping the look in DaVinci Resolve...

04/06/2026

Cine Gear Expo Announces 2026 Awards of Excellence Recipients

Cine Gear Expo Announces 2026 Awards of Excellence Recipients Brie Clayton June 3, 2026 0 Comments Ed Lachman ASC, Caleb Deschanel ASC, and M. David M...

04/06/2026

St. Vincents Live with Orchestra Tour to Feature Berklee Alum Ruby Plume

St. Vincents Live with Orchestra Tour to Feature Berklee Alum Ruby Plume Berklee alumni St. Vincent and Ruby Plume will appear on the same bill across seven d...

04/06/2026

'All the Truth in My Lies' Coming to Netflix on August 28

Back to All News All the Truth in My Lies Coming to Netflix on August 28 Entertainment 04 June 2026 GlobalSpain Link copied to clipboard Download the imag...

04/06/2026

Larry Tanz, VP of Content, EMEA, Delivers a Keynote Speech at the Enders TMT Leaders Live 2026 Conference

Back to All News Larry Tanz, VP of Content, EMEA, Delivers a Keynote Speech at ...

04/06/2026

Turn Your Living Room into a Stadium With the New FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition' Game, Exclusively on Netflix Games June 11

Back to All News Turn Your Living Room into a Stadium With the New FIFA World ...

04/06/2026

Keeping conversations real on LinkedIn

Keeping conversations real on LinkedIn Published on Jun 4, 2026 Categories: Product News LinkedIn Corporate Communications Share LinkedIn Facebook ...

04/06/2026

Culture and family at the centre of new RT travel series

BackStory follows four Irish young people as they travel back to their parents' homelands Modern Irish identity is enriched by cultures and influences from...

04/06/2026

Forecast: Fun Ahead - 18 Games Join in June to Stream on GeForce NOW

June's forecast with GeForce NOW: 100% chance of gaming. GeForce NOW is lining up new adventures for the month, from big-name blockbusters to quirky indies...

03/06/2026

SES Launches Multi-Orbit Satellite Inflight Connectivity on Viva Airlines

SES and Viva, Mexico's ultra low-cost airline, have launched multi-orbit satellite inflight connectivity on Viva's Airbus aircraft. A total of 60 A320s ...

03/06/2026

CFP, ESPN, and TNT Sports Announce 2026-27 College Football Playoff Broadcast Schedule

The College Football Playoff, ESPN, and TNT Sports have announced kick times and...

03/06/2026

RED Digital Cinema to Host Panels and Demos at Cine Gear Expo 2026

RED Digital Cinema will exhibit at Cine Gear Expo 2026 (Booth 33, June 5-6, Universal Studios Lot), hosting three panels and hands-on product demonstrations. P...

03/06/2026

Roku Launches Soccer Zone for FIFA World Cup 2026

Roku has announced the Soccer Zone, a dedicated hub for FIFA World Cup 2026 content available across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argent...