Fall/Winter 2003
RIGGING AND FIRE CURTAINS STANDARDS UPDATE
"It's better to be safe than sorry."
An old saw? Outdated adage? Meaningless rubbish? ...Or words to live by?
Ask the people working under the Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera "Justified and Stripped" tour's supergrid as it collapsed. Ask South Africa president Thabo Mbeki as the sunshade, pillars and speakers crashed to the stage where he waited to speak. Ask Godstock, one of the US's top Christian music artists, after strong winds overturned their stage and carried it into power lines. Shocking.
Following this recent spate of production disasters, being safe rather than sorry takes on a whole new life for theater and stage personnel. How safe is your rigging? Are proper maintenance procedures being followed? Do you have an appropriate inspection and user manual? Are you aware of the proposed standards ESTA (www.esta.org) recommends? Who's performing under your grid?
SO CAL PROJECTS GETTING NOTICED
Two recent projects involving LVH are getting a lot of notice. The First Presbyterian Church of Encino won the 2003 AIA California Council Honor Award for architects Abramson Teiger and has been featured in several print and electronic media. Boston Court is raising the bar for small community theaters with advanced technical abilities.
First Presbyterian Church of Encino—When the architect, contractor, and lighting consultant all got together to renovate this 1950s A-frame church, they brought in LVH to implement their illuminating plans. The First Presbyterian Church of Encino now has an uplifting, even ethereal quality wherein light plays a crucial role. The all-white makeover and the 14 new skylights are augmented by incandescent theater fixtures, plus fluorescent cove lighting and sconces, and control systems to make it all compliment each other. The results are award-winning. [click here for pictures...]
Boston Court—The philanthropist who funded Boston Court wanted an intimate community theater and recital hall, with the latest technical equipment. That included the ETC Express 24-48 lighting control system, which LVH installed, as well as the fabrication and installation of a drapery and track system, elaborate tension grids, conventional battens, and the dimming system for the architectural lighting control system. Now, the angel is happy, the audience is cozy, and the technical results are impressive. [click here for pictures...]
