MADISON, WI - Wherever Gavin Adcock goes, a party atmosphere is sure to follow. The rapidly rising star, who notched his first ever ACM Award nomination last year, has a way of turning any venue, even a big arena, into a country ho-down.
Throw in some bull riding and barrel racing, which is what happened on February 28 at Alliant Energy Center for “Bulls, Bands and Barrels,” and the good-time energy goes through the roof! Adcock’s lighting designer, Alexander Lehman reflected this ebullient mood in flying fashion at the one-day event with help from over 50 CHAUVET Professional fixtures supplied by Premier Global Production.
At the heart of his vision was a plan to minimize moving fixtures in favor of intense back lighting. “For this show, I really loved the idea of creating a wall of light behind Gavin -- a wall that would light up the first few rows, create shadows on the band with moments of backlighting and the key lights turned off,” said Lehman. “There were moments where we had the touring strobes and house strobes on to create backlight and light up the audience and band without key light. The thought was to create a mood that didn’t feel like a concert, but more like a high-energy country party.”
Working with PM Keegan Hughes, and the PGP crew (Quiz, Pepper, Geddy, and Joe ), Lehman achieved this vision with help from the Color STRIKE M fixtures, positioned on seven carts behind the performers on stage. “They did a lot of work backlighting the band and creating the tone for most of the show,” he said of the motorized strobe-washes. “They also did a great job at lighting the crowd, adding energy and helping make the show feel dynamic.”
Also pumping visual energy into the party mix from behind the band were 45 COLORado Solo 3 Par units. “The pars in our rig were essential,” said Lehman. “We really wanted to shift from a moving light heavy show, and give a nod to old school rock/country that used to be filled with massive par rigs. Having a decent-sized grid of pars meant we could do fun, dynamic chases and effects. The zoom we got with the COLORado pars was a really nice too. It meant that we could have another means of creating dynamic, punchy looks behind the band.”
The par fixtures, like the Color STRIKE M units, were arranged in a straight line across the upstage deck. By artfully directing their light against carefully positioned dark spaces, Lehman added depth and texture to the stage. Played against the shadowy areas, the intense light also endowed the stage with a sense of raw energy, the kind that sets the scene where anything can happen -- precisely the kind of vibe one would expect to find when partying with Gavin Adcock.
About CHAUVET Professional
CHAUVET Professional offers innovative professional lighting fixtures for the production and touring market as well as permanent installation in theaters, hospitality venues, cruise ships, clubs, television and architainment applications. For more information, please visit www.chauvetprofessional.com
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