Batman Live

When Nick Grace of Water Lane Productions approached Warner Brothers with the idea of bringing one of DC Comics’ most popular creations to life with a whole new design concept - not on the pages of a graphic novel, or even a cinema screen but into the realms of a somewhat untraditional, live action theatre environment - little did he know that his pitch would win a multi-million pound production deal that could, and would, travel the world.
   The summer of 2012 will see the eighth box office offering from the Batman Legacy hit cinemas with the release of The Dark Knight Rises. Until then, DC Comics fans are in for an entirely different take on the superhero.  
    Arena-filling productions transporting characters onto the stage for family entertainment has become a familiar notion in the last few years, (Star Wars, Doctor Who) but no story ever came close to the lengths Batman Live endeavours to tell its audience.  
    Based on an original story, written exclusively for the live show, landmarks in Batman Live that have long been a part of comic history include set designs of Gotham City, Wayne Manor, the Batcave, Arkham Asylum and Haley’s Circus, designed by the award-winning Es Devlin.
    The sets have been skilfully worked into a full throttle plot, which incorporates a world of advanced technology brimming with state of the art visuals and illusions, but the atmosphere remains true to the gritty, retro edge Gotham has always portrayed.    
    In this family-fun interpretation, Batman (Bruce Wayne) and Robin (Dick Grayson) - who were both orphaned as children - battle their enemies throughout, calling for fight scenes, special effects, and an impressive array of gymnastics. The audience comes face to face with The Joker, Catwoman, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, The Penguin, Two-Face, The Ridler and Alfred, Batman’s impossibly well-spoken butler, during the 90 minute performance.
    With 48 cast members, 42 crew and some additional bus drivers, (from Beat The Street), there’s around 100 people involved with the Batman Live world tour at any one time. The show is touring the UK and Ireland from July – October, before moving on to the European mainland and America in August 2012 with a view to continue in Asia and Australia thereafter.
    The weekly itinerary is demanding, with travel and pre-rig scheduled on Mondays, Tuesday for the load-in and Wednesday requiring tech rehearsals. Matinees and evening performances occur from Wednesday to Saturday with a Sunday load-out. It may sound gruelling, but this is one production that looked far too much fun to even contemplate a complaint. 
    Tour Production Manager, George Reeves, who has recently finished touring with U2, said his previous experience on the Walking with Dinosaurs tour gave him a basic template for Batman Live, but that there’s always room for improved efficiency.
    LH2 Studios in London held the lighting and automation rehearsals which lasted a month, supplied by Upstaging and Neg Earth. A further three weeks of pre-production took place in Nottingham before a week of technical runs began in Manchester. Following that, three days of open rehearsals took place in Manchester for 5,500 people a night, before the official world premiere took place at the city’s MEN Arena.

SECURING THE CIRCUS
Looking up from the impressive stage, the ceiling truss has been built into a horseshoe shape, doubling up as a PA rig with eight zones in the air for surround sound. “We’re using Clair Brothers’ i3 cabinets, they do such a great job,” said an enthusiastic Reeves. There are also 200 moving lights on the rig.
    “I enjoy the figuring out of the entire show; making it move faster, that’s what I get excited about. For example, we have circus acts, trapezes and winches up there, but Tait built the catwalk so that the lights take just 15 minutes to de-rig. Those planning details really save time for the future.”
    The rigging was secured by Lance Desmond, and Performer Rigger, Mark Perrin, with department head Johannes Soelter overseeing. Trussing was brought in by John Fletcher of Five Points Production Services, another company to have worked on the Walking with Dinosaurs arena spectacular.

A MINI GOTHAM
The set design was in good hands. Es Devlin received critical acclaim for her Take That set on the Progress Live tour, a production to which Lighting Designer Patrick Woodroffe also lent his talent. Said Reeves: “We have the best people involved, all around us on this show. And there’s a lot of detail in the staging, it’s not just painted on. It’s fascinating; it took eight weeks to make this mini Gotham City.”
    Tait Towers designed and supplied various visual, scenic and flying effects to bring the comic book hero’s story to life with a mix of circus-style stunts and industry-leading technology, video animation and special effects.
    Helping to turn Set Designer Es Devlin and Executive Producer Nick Grace’s ideas into reality, Tait supplied over 20 different technical elements, which were produced specifically for, and integrated into the set.
    Matt Hales, Project Manager at Tait Towers, started working on the project in May 2010. He said: “An ambitious production of this size and with so many new things to be tried, which was due to embark on such a lengthy tour, needed close attention to detail; not just on how things looked and worked, but also how quickly they could be assembled and how they could be transported.”
    The production centred around one main stage, which Tait created with visual impact and ease of assembly and use at the core of its design. Hales explained: “The rolling main stage is comprised of a Tait proprietary system which magnetically locates the decks. We set up parts in different sections of the arena floors, which allow the aerial mother grid and stage to be simultaneously worked on. Once the grid has been lifted, each stage section can be rolled into place, aligned with total accuracy and assembled very quickly. The stage contains some very complex elements including prop lifts, circular lifts, video integration and a pantographic staircase.”
    The main stage incorporates a video floor which was developed specifically for the show by the Tait design team and Frederic Opsomer at Tait Technologies in Europe. Made from custom aluminium, all LEDs are embedded into the deck structures, offering significantly better durability and integrity.
    “A much higher capacity system,” Hales continued, “is needed for a production of this scale to cope with elements such as the 800 kilo Batmobile and the high pressures excerpted on the stage by stilt performers and acrobats.”
    The track which the Batmobile travels on is integrated into the structure of the stage, with the Batmobile travelling at up to 16ft per second. This is incredibly fast for a theatre show effect, but it was vital to incorporate this capacity. Hales commented: “The emergence of the Batmobile was a key moment in the performance, almost a character in itself.”
    Tait developed a 25ft Joker mask which was moved onto the stage from the rear and used by performers for tumbles, climbing and acrobatics. The freestanding structure had to be durable enough to withstand up to 16 or more performers using it.
    Said Hales: “Set Designer Es Devlin did the original (normal size) sculpture of the mask which we scanned and turned into a 3D CAD image. Each section of the mask was then created using a bespoke aluminium frame, with custom CNC machined foam to within 2mm, providing an exact up-scaled replica. It was then hard coated for durability. It was a huge feat and was effectively a 25ft jungle gym with ladder rungs and in-built performer access points.”
    Scott Fisher, founder of Fisher Technical Services (FTSI), part of the Tait Towers group, worked on the flying and winch systems. Fisher added: “Batman Live used our Navigator Automation System which is the most advanced motion control system available. Coordinating was fairly complex, as we had to make sure that we captured each character’s personality; Batman jumps across the stage, Catwoman leaps. Capturing these characteristics was challenging, but vital for the show.”
Additional stage props were built in the UK by Souvenir Scenic Studios.

A MEETING OF TWO WORLDS
There’s not a chance the mainstream press could pigeonhole Batman Live; its production elements are far too varied and powerful for this show to be classed as a typical theatrical performance. Sound Operator Simon Fox would know; he comes from a background in the London theatre circuit, having completed productions in the West End for Mamma Mia and Legally Blonde.
    But this is an opportunity where theatre and rock ‘n’ roll meet, taking performers and turning arenas with rock ‘n’ roll values into a fully working theatrical environment while at the same time, becoming something never quite seen before.
    “I’d previously worked with Simon Baker, the Sound Designer, and heard he was doing Batman Live. I asked if he needed an operator, and he gave me the job,” said Fox.
    Mixing on a DiGiCo SD7, Fox continued: “It has the theatre software installed which alters some of the functionality of the desk, and we use two Mac Pros for playback running Figure 53’s QLab software. Each Mac has an RME Hammerfall DSP MADI PCI card allowing for 56 simultaneous audio outputs. We use Apple’s Mainstage software on a Mac Mini for vocal effects including pitch shifts, reverbs and delays.
    “The main effect is Batman’s voice for which we use a pitch shift down. We also use pitch shifts for the helium gags as well as a few reverbs and delays. The show is very challenging to mix,” said Fox.
    For the epic, cinematic soundtrack, an 80-piece orchestra was recorded at Abbey Road Studios before the tour. “In the absence of a live orchestra, it’s my responsibility to trigger all of the music tracks and sound effects as well as mixing the vocals - line for line.” said Fox. “We also control most of the video content as well as some lighting cues in order to sync video and lights with playback. It’s essential to ensure that each track or sound effect is triggered at the correct moment.”
    Fox worked closely with System Technician Tim Peeling who had worked at Concert Sound for 16 years before Clair Brothers took the company over. He’s been one of Clair Brothers’ busiest freelancers for the last three years, teching for high profile music figures Alicia Keys, Maroon 5 and Ozzy Osborne. He was specially requested for FOH duties by Executive Producer Jake Berry.
    It’s a very dynamic show; the audience don’t hear the noise levels found inside the lobe-trembling presence of a stadium rock gig, but it is a union filled with cinematic, widescape sounds. “This is where theatre and rock ‘n’ roll meet. Turning arenas with rock ‘n’ roll values into a fully working theatre, it’s a meeting of two worlds”, said Peeling. 
    For Batman Live, Peeling would take the title of System Engineer and maintain responsibility for the complete audio system installation, set up, tuning, time alignment and maintenance throughout the course of the demanding tour.
    The sound system consists of 60 boxes of Clair Global’s i3 system split into eight hangs with two end fire arrays of BT218 subwoofers and 26 bi-amped FF2 front fill boxes that are built into the stage. The power behind such a weighty kit? A cool 46 Lab.gruppen PLM 20000Q amplifiers running on a wireless network giving great flexibility and control.
    The DiGiCo console and control was all spec’d by Sound Designer Simon Baker and the system design was created specifically for the needs of Batman Live by a technical crew at Clair Brothers. Said Peeling: “The system is doing a great job of bringing a high-end theatre feel to arenas and covering all the seats evenly. The i3 is also very quick to rig and comparatively light in weight for a medium format line array. It’s a dynamic live show and Simon Baker has done a great job of achieving the cross over.”
    With an incredible amount of technical data to coordinate on a show of this scale, challenges for the tour, even at this early stage, were mostly time driven.
    “The time alignment side of the system design is fairly complex; we’re using the delays on the matrix of the console in addition to the system delays in the Lab.gruppen PLMs to enable us to time align twice - once to the centre of the stage for the live performance and again for the music and sound effects back to the screen.”
    On site communication was upheld via a total of 24 channels for personal radio microphones and a complicated intercom setup supplied by Wireless First. The complex job was manned by wireless, radio and communications engineer Niall Slevin who also mic’d the actors.
    Sound Assistant, Rob Gurton, also looks after the artist microphones, which are a head worn, integral part of the performance; the positioning and fit is crucial to enable a clear and balanced dialog of the characters.
    As an employee of Clair Brothers, Gurton had previously worked with Executive Producer Jake Berry on a number of different projects and was requested by Production Manager George Reeves to work as a member of the audio crew on Batman Live.
    “On load-in days, I help fly the PA system and setup the general mains and amplifier systems,” said Gurton. This involves working with a mixture of lighting and video crew to ensure an efficient and organised system is in place.
    DPA’s 4088’s and 4061’s microphone models are paired with Sennheiser SK 5212-II L belt packs. “They’re nice and small which makes them ideal to conceal in a costume”, Gurton pointed out. “We are doing a very technical show that hasn’t really been tried before in a touring environment, so it’s stepping into the unknown, but it’s great to be involved in a show of this scale.”

PRECISION LIGHTING
Still buzzing after using his design skills to illuminate the biggest boy band on the planet, Lighting Designer Patrick Woodroffe wowed fans across Europe on Take That’s Progress Live tour and swiftly put his expert knowledge into Gotham’s darkened streets.
    “I’ve known and worked with both Nick Grace, and Director Anthony Van Laast for many years, so it was a natural collaboration,” explained the LD. “I’ve done a few of these arena hybrid shows, most recently for Ben Hur Live, so I had experience already in how to use lighting to create very large scale theatre. It’s a very delicate balance when you’re trying to tell a story with all the subtleties of a smaller theatrical show, while at the same time constantly having to create these large, spectacular moments, often using light alone,” Woodroffe added.
    Comic book fanatics were left in a state of amazement as they saw childhood heroes appear under Woodroffe’s carefully placed spotlight. He continued: “Where a single three-quarter light on an actor who has [to read] a dramatic monologue might mean something to 1,000 people, it doesn’t make an impression to 15,000 in an arena. You have to find a different way to tell that part of the story without losing the intimacy or the subtlety of the moment.”
    Understanding the story of Bruce Wayne, his life-long struggles, continued torment and fight for justice is key to translating the superheroes world for a very diverse audience. 
    “Batman Live has really set the standard for these sorts of shows. It is a spectacular event that fills a large arena with action, but at the same time the script, the acting, the staging, Es Devlin’s extraordinary stage set and video treatments from Sam Patinson and Luke Hall all make this a genuinely sophisticated theatrical experience.”
    He’s not kidding. A large part of Batman’s likability isn’t routed solely in its breath-taking technical production, but as TPi notices, in its ability to make a five-year old girl laugh as her dad jumps out of his seat. Albeit rehearsed to the core, it’s a fantasy adventure in the flesh, achieving a genius project that allowed audience reactions to prove that technical planning does hold massive entertainment appreciation.
    Once Woodroffe had masterminded the design, he asked regular collaborator - and Wales BAFTA winner for Best Lighting Director 2009 - Tim Routledge to take the reins for the touring aspect along with Lighting Board Operator Steve Kellaway.
    Routledge operated the lighting requirements after joining the Batman pre-production in January. “It’s a really precise show; a great mix of theatre, spectacle and rock ‘n’ roll in one place,” he enthusiastically explained. Two MA Lighting grandMA2 Lite’s were chosen as the lighting control desks, with a huge array of fixture comprising 52 Robe 2500 Spots, 37 Martin Professional MAC 301’s (which were placed on the floor), 31 Alpha Profile 1500’s, 32 Coemar Infinity Washes, 30 Martin Professional MAC 2000 Wash XB, 14 Martin Professional Atomic Strobes, 40 Clay Paky Sharpys, 64 iPIX Satellites, a 20K Molebeam and eight James Thomas Pixelpars.
    Routledge elaborated: “We used a lot of the new Clay Paky Sharpys which are just phenomenal lights - quite how they get so much light out of such a small fixture is incredible. We use them for a number of jobs here, from creating laser beams to protect the Gotham Museum of Art from Catwoman, to a huge whirligig of Joker coloured beams that speed out of control at the crescendo during the first half of the show.”
    Back to the control element though, and this was where Routledge felt particularly at home. “We bought the grandMA2 Lite consoles specifically for the tour as I have used the grandMA consoles exclusively for a number of years; they simply provide the flexibility and power we need on shows,” he said. 
    The Batman Live show in particular uses a number of playback methods for precise definition, and manual playback for the theatrical sections. MIDI note triggers define FX to go with sound FX - such as the Joker’s fun yet terrifying machine gun - and MIDI show control commands to enable cues in the show are triggered exactly in line with action or sound underscores. Lastly, SMPTE timecode is used get automatic fluency for longer sequences such as fight scenes in the second act.
    As if working within the lighting breakthrough on Batman Live wasn’t living out boyhood dreams fully, the LDs also have direct control of the features within the Batmobile. Running wireless DMX to the vehicle, the team have full control of a whole host of features; the afterburner, headlights, and a staggering 576 LED lights built into the car’s anti-gravity wheels. Not your average arena tour, then.
    There are 484 cues in the cue list for the duration of the show and 500 more that are independently triggered. Smoke effects within the performance was triggered from the grandMA2 consoles. From the lighting position, eight solenoid releases are controlled for festoon and bunting which fly in during circus scenes. To add further responsibility, the stage’s revolving video floor is too triggered from the desk by controlling double layers of the show on Green Hippo’s Hippotizers, which also run the main video screen graphics
    The Batman Live experience, is unique for the audience, but as Routledge quite rightly pointed out, operating the famous, perhaps even iconic bat signal (the Gotham City police’s distress flare calling for Batman’s help), is the desire of many a lighting operator. “Batman has been an absolute joy to be involved in; the company is fantastic and very talented. Every day, I got to go Gotham City and operate that signal and even the batmobile - every boy’s dream!”
    Board Operator Steve Kellaway, has six followspots that are continuously used throughout the show. He joined the crew three weeks into the rehearsals following a stint with Peter Gabriel in America.

AUTOMATED ACTION
1988 was the year Darren Williamson, holding the title of Head of Automation on this tour, started his career in production. The job of Head Flyman at the Blackpool Opera House kept him busy until the thrill of touring theatre and rock ‘n’ roll shows took over five years later. In the 18 years that have followed, Williamson has captured a confidence from within the industry, working on cutting edge projects and learning from some of the best automation engineers and programmers in the world. Stage Technologies, Kinesys, Fisher Technical Services Inc (FTSI), Silicone Theatre Scenery, Microtrol, Unusual Rigging and Engineering and Bytecraft have all helped hone these talents into a specialised area of the show; Williamson had to build, programme and operate all of the automated aspects of the production.
    “I had worked with Nick Grace and Nick Grace Management a few years ago on their International tour of Mamma Mia and met with Nick at Christmas while I working at the Royal Albert Hall. We discussed Batman Live and after seeing designs of the set and the Batmobile, and since my experience was in acrobatic performance flying which would feature heavily in this production, I was highly interested,” stated Williamson.
    It would take a couple of months, but sure enough Grace called to see if Williamson was still interested. He flew back from a job in Seoul to start work on the pre-productions at London’s LH2. Leading the Batman Live Automation Crew, a wide variety of automated elements was necessary to set the scene, including aerial acrobatics, hydraulics, pneumatics, a 100ft tracking video wall. Not to mention the star gadget, the Batmobile itself.
    The gymnasts and circus performers in the show are in the best possible hands, with Williamson having past experience with the Cirque du Soleil. A team of three other Automation Engineers work closely with Williamson. Robin Henry had recently opened The Wizard of Oz on the West End; Andrew Johnstone reached Batman Live via U2’s 360º tour and Neil Frazer had also worked for Cirque du Soleil. Williamson’s team has been assembled to maximise expertise in a wide range of skills including electronics, engineering, rigging and programming which enables a rapid response to any technical difficulties.    
    The automation department of Batman Live utilises the FTSI T-series winches for performer flying. There are four static winches and two attached to trollies that traverse the 120-inch track at speeds of up to 15-inches per second. The main lift is driven by four hydraulic scissor lifts and the revolve was driven by a friction drive system.
    The video wall is suspended from four motorised ‘tugs’ that track the wall on and off stage. The video wall also has pneumatic stabilisers and powered doors at the top for aerial performers to enter the performance area. The Batmobile has an on-board motor drive and slip ring assembly to allow continuous rotation. It connects to a motorised skate within the stage that drives down an integrally cast CAT track at speeds of up to 20ft per second. The control system is the Navigator, built by FTSI who also supplied all the performer flying harnesses and artists’ rigging.
    Said Williamson: “The Navigator is incredibly customisable allowing for a highly user defined system which streamlines the process of programming and operation greatly. The system’s functionality includes collision detection, rule-based-logic which is a very powerful way of dictating equipment behaviour on a contextual basis and rapid access to a host of on screen information and overrides, allowing hardware manipulation on a software basis directly from the console. FTSI’s close relationship with Tait Towers allowed them to quickly engineer customised solutions for the show’s complex special effects.”
    Pyrotechnic and SFX Consultant and Manager, Shaun Barnett of Quantum Special Effects, designed, fabricated and installed the special effects with Dan Ivory-Castile rigging and firing them the on the road. The effects comprise confetti canons, a suspended crate explosion, pyro-simulating missiles (which fire from the Batmobile), CO jets, a smoke screen and a pyro / gas system on the Joker head balloon.
   Quantum had also worked with Es Devlin on Take That. “From the initial design meeting we were very excited to be involved as it was outside of the normal genre of productions we supply; it was a great challenge,” said Barnett.
   “One obstacle was how to fire effects on props that move and are mobile. The problem was solved with a Galaxis Showtechnik wireless firing system.”
   The Joker balloon was the main challenge for Barnett’s crew. “The face is inflatable and the design team wanted the back of the head to ignite in flames, every night!”
   The compromise was to make the hair from fibreglass and coat it with a flame and heat retardant paint, which was executed by Souvenir Scenic Studios. A large CO jet system is rigged backstage and fired immediately as the balloon tracks off the stage to cool the balloon and extinguish any gas still burning, for health and safety reasons.
    For the dedicated crew, Batman Live involves a mix of disciplines. It was this sentiment that was continually repeated backstage at the MEN Arena. This show, above any other to date, was a true production hybrid. It integrates equipment from several departments; the video wall has automation, the stage lift has video, the Batmobile has links with the lighting console via DMX to control its on-board aspects while the aerial fight sequences utilise time-code to match with lighting, sound and performance.
    Said Williamson: “Having such a large scale production installed and fully working in time for the opening performance each week, safely while also upholding the artistic integrity of the performance, is a constant challenge.”
    It wouldn’t have taken much guesswork to figure out Williamson’s personal highlight, but we asked anyway. “It’s the chance to fly Batman and drive the Batmobile at hair-raising speeds - in front of a live audience.”
    The Batmobile is not only the fastest bit of kit on set, but also the largest piece to be loaded in and out in one piece. The ultra- slick design was constructed by Asylum Models and Effects and engineered by McLaren Engineering Group. Costume Design for the characters was handled by Jack Galloway who has designed for the live adaptations of Dirty Dancing, The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast.

A VISIONARY TALE
An interesting part of the Batman Live set up, is how it truly incorporates video into the live action story. Video Director Sam Pattinson has worked on content for Lady Gaga, AC/DC and The Rolling Stones. Not only are the screens part of the scenery (bat-shaped screen, of course), but they provides the both a comic strip cartoon backdrop, creating yet again, a unique tool which separates this show from a traditional theatre or rock gig.
   The Head of Department operating the mammoth storyboards was Video Engineer Mike DuQue, who works alongside Gabriel Lopez. The video takes the crowds right inside the dining room of Wayne Manor to the inside of a mental health institution, providing an unmistakable visual transition from one scene to the next. Supplied by DannyO Video, DuQue and Lopez are working with 384 panels of Everbrighten BR-15 SMD LED screen, hanging off Tait Towers’ traveller truss in the shape of an enormous bat signal. The BR-15 panels are one by five metres tall and 64 by 32 pixels, with a max output of 5500 NITS. The full screen resolution is 1792 by 576 requiring two Everbrighten CR10 controllers.
    Danny O’Bryen of DannyO Video commented: “In pre-production, we chose the BR-15 screen for several reasons, we needed a bright, reliable screen that was light enough to hang almost 400 panels in UK and European venues. We also really liked the colour output and the exceptionally wide viewing angle.”
   The main piece of equipment driving video content is three Hippotizer-V3-i7 Media Servers from Green Hippo. Content for the video was originally imported as animated Quicktime files, and then filtered by the media servers via DVI to DuQue’s system. The system is triggered both manually via the Hippotizer V3 Cue Controller Interface.
   O’Bryen concluded: “The screen is most cleverly used as a sort of virtual set throughout the production, complimenting the massive physical props and set.”
   Catering was supplied by Eat Your Heart Out, health and safety regulations by The Event Safety Shop and live event security specialists Showsec enforced security and audience safety.
TPi

Photography courtesy of
David Scheinman,
Tait and NGM

www.batmanlive.com