In 2026, Foo Fighters hit the road with the biggest stage the band had ever toured, standing at 197 feet wide and 65 feet high. Wonder Works was approached by production manager, Eric “Ski” Piontkowski to lead the technical design and coordination, translating Dan Hadley and Paul “Arlo” Guthrie’s creative vision into a fully engineered, repeatable touring system.
The defining feature of the design is a set of nine custom curved aluminium lighting ribs, fabricated by Atlanta Rigging Services (ARS). Each rib begins off-stage and sweeps behind the band in a wide arc, wrapping the performance space in a structure that is both architectural and kinetic. Crucially, the ribs sit permanently in front of the iMag and upstage LED screens.
Jeremy Lloyd, Director, Wonder Works, commented: “The lighting ribs are unlike anything we’ve done before – nine curved beams wrapping the stage, sitting in front of the screen and breaking up the video wall. That’s what gives the show its unique identity and layered look.”
The stage roof header features a band of factory windows complete with distressed metalwork and rusted, smashed-glass detailing. At key moments, matching floor window pieces are rolled in and PAR Can trusses lowered, stripping the show back to a harder, more vintage rock aesthetic. It is an intentional contrast: stadium-scale production that can still feel raw.
Nine custom lighting pods, fabricated by ARS, are suspended above the stage, each carrying moving lights, LED strobes, and fascia panels finished to match the set’s industrial aesthetic. Following the stripped back PAR Can section, the pods transform the remainder of the show by introducing movement and transforming the architecture inside the performance area. The identity carries through into the audience with matching pods on the delay towers, fabricated by PRG, which wrap the top of each tower and hinge together for protection in transit – a detail that reflects the broader engineering discipline required across a tour of this scale and pace.
A shared roof system presented one of the central coordination challenges. Across the European and North American legs, the tour moves between Stageco and G2 Structures roofs – each with different dimensions that affect the length of the lighting ribs and the positioning of PA wings. Wonder Works managed the design modifications required for each configuration, ensuring the show’s visual identity remained intact across venues with different structural footprints. Custom wind bracing for the video screens, lighting ribs and PA, designed and supplied by WowAxis, ensured the structure could perform safely and consistently throughout the tour.
The result is a production that feels bespoke despite operating within the constraints of shared infrastructure. The custom ribs, the factory aesthetic, the deliberate old-school moments – each detail is designed to belong to the band.
