Cincinnati-based All On Productions installed 12 Ayrton Rivale fixtures in Rupp Arena located within Lexington, Kentucky’s world-class Central Bank Center to support the University of Kentucky’s men’s basketball season and its kick-off event, “Big Blue Madness.” ACT Entertainment is the exclusive distributor of Ayrton lighting in North America.
While the All On Productions brand is just 18 months old, its team of five is not new to the industry offering 95-plus years of experience for a large roster of events, including concerts, festivals and athletics. It serves the Midwest and national venues with lighting, production management, A/V and staging and rigging services.
Rupp Arena, which opened in 1976 in the heart of downtown Lexington, is home to the University of Kentucky’s Wildcats men’s basketball program. Each year more than 400,000 loyal fans, known as The Big Blue Nation, gather at the arena to cheer on their beloved home team. “Big Blue Madness,” the season’s unofficial first practice, is the annual public kick-off event for the Wildcats’ basketball season featuring player introductions, fan engagement and entertainment. The event took place October 11 and was broadcast on SEC Network+.
All On Productions provides lighting and A/V services for many of the University of Kentucky’s athletic events. The company is marking its second year working with the Wildcats at Rupp Arena and supporting “Big Blue Madness.” Ayrton Rivale fixtures were deployed both years for the kick-off event, but this year they will remain installed at Rupp Arena for the duration of the Wildcats’ basketball season.
“It’s a long-term rental for all of the Wildcats’ home games from October through March,” says Bridget Nohalty, All On’s Production Services Manager. “The Rivale are one of the newest purchases for our inventory and work really well for the set up in Rupp Arena.”
Rob Moyer, All On’s Production Manager who acted in that capacity and as Lighting Designer and Programmer for “Big Blue Madness,” says the Rivale fixture’s low maintenance is ideal for the arena installation. “We wanted to hang them up and not touch them for the season,” he notes. “They have good punch for a profile fixture to cut through the main arena lights and are able to cover the floor with textures and patterns as well as scan the audience with beams.”
The fixtures are mounted on two trusses running down the long sides of the court. For “Big Blue Madness” nine more were added to a temporary truss to deliver wash and texture for a stage positioned at the far end of the arena in the student section of the seating. A dozen Ayrton Argo 6 FX fixtures, from All On’s inventory, supplemented the Rivale for washes and ballyhoos.
All On also used their grandMA3 consoles for lighting control for “Big Blue Madness.” “We had one grandMA3 light as our active console and a compact XT for back up and secondary programming,” Moyer explains. ACT Entertainment is the exclusive distributor of MA Lighting products in North America.
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