Rock N’ Roll is an attitude, as much as a musical genre, according to many social historians. This attitude was on full display in all of its free-thinking, glory at the 02 Intercontinental Hotel recently as the famed site hosted the World Procurement Awards.
Organizers of the event, which celebrates the achievements of companies and individuals involved in the procurement supply chain, wanted to endow it with a “rock vibe” to reflect the bold convention-challenging attitude that drives that industry. Helping to convey this mood was a dynamic production and lighting design by PYTCH that emulated the look and feel of rock shows throughout the venue.
PYTCH, which has looked after the production design of this event for many years, created this compelling aura without distracting from the its core purposed. To do this, the design team created one of the largest scale of productions the 02 has ever seen. This required a very complex rigging system, incorporating a large mother grid and a kinesys based motor system to accommodate unique angled automated diamond LED wall. There were also over 400 panels of LED for the stage set. The size and scope of the production meant that load in and load out were challenging, with only six hours between the end of the Awards show, and deadline to clear things for the next event.
Although the proceedings covered a wide area, and involved many different activities from awards ceremonies, to entertainment and speaking sessions, the design team tied everything together around the rock theme. “Creating a unified look was fairly straightforward,” said Chelsea Hopkins, Head of Brand and Marketing at PYTCH. “We simply stuck to our brief of building everything around the rock n’ roll look.”
Helping the design team accomplish this feat was a collection of over 100 CHAUVET Professional fixtures. Key among these were 12 Maverick MK1 Hybrid, 10 Rogue RH1 Hybrid and eight Rogue Outcast 1 BeamWashes. Being multi-functional, these fixtures expanded the array of creative options open to lighting lead Dan Giddings and his team. The flown Maverick and Rogue RH1 units were most notably used for mid-air breakups and beam effects. Complimenting these units were eight Rogue Outcast 1 BeamWash fixtures positioned on the stage deck.
“The impressive, combined punchy output of the Rogue Outcast 1 BeamWash, Rogue RH1 Hybrid and Maverick MK1 Hybrid fixtures helped our team create energetic sequence of movements during the awards ceremonies,” said Hopkins. “This ushered in in a combined effect akin to that of all-encompassing ‘Gesamtkunstwerk, ‘reminiscent of the kind of stage show one would normally expect from a stadium rock concert..
Complimenting these dynamic effects were bold, richly textured color washes from 20 Rogue R2 Washes. “They provided the flexibility and color required to make the event feel truly rock and roll,” said Hopkins. “Using the same fixtures that bands would use for performances and our experience working live music shows, we were able to bring the atmosphere of a rock concert to a corporate conference.”
Adding an extra element of engagement were 10 STRIKE P38 fixtures used for audience lighting, 24 WELL Fit uplights that accented different features of the venue, and 20 Rogue R1 FX-Bs that served as a captivating scenic element.
“The FX-B fixtures were positioned around the central diamond screen,” said Hopkins. “Directed downward, they provided gorgeous beams that surrounded the speakers, which really created a memorable effect.”
Video content was fed to the screens from a variety of Mac Pro and Mac Studio playback machines using QLb. “The entire set was treated as a single canvas, with various overlays, PiPs, and states to achieve the transitions between sessions,” detailed Hopkins. “All of the stage content was created in house by PYTCH, a combination of power point slides, video backdrops, creative after-effects content, and VTs filmed and edited on site during the show. Ultimately, over 73 people were involved in this production.”
In the end, however, the all of the effort and team work paid off, just as it does in the best rock shows. “The stage set really blew people away,” said Hopkins. “So many guests came up to us and said it felt like a great concert experience.”
That, notes Hopkins was music – make that rock music – to the PYTCH team’s ears.
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