Over 1,000 young people from across the UK gathered at Production Park in West Yorkshire this week, as Production Futures ON TOUR showcased the wide and evolving range of careers available across the stage, screen and live events sectors. From Production Managers and Lighting Designers to Creative Technologists and Virtual Production Specialists, the event demonstrated how both traditional craft roles and new technology-driven disciplines are reshaping the future of the industry. With employers adopting new workflows, platforms and emerging technologies, industry leaders say this shift is creating clear opportunities for the next generation, particularly for young people with a blend of practical, technical and…
Author: Alicia Pollitt
Working collaboratively is fun, exciting, and rewarding, and a space that production designer Fenton Williams and lighting designer/programmer Aaron Stinebrink enjoy in developing vibrant and imaginative lighting schemes to keep the Dave Matthews Band (DMB) looking fresh and different every year for their summer tours. This year, Williams and Stinebrink chose some powerful and flexible Robe products to help their creative journey in the form of 24 iFORTES, 36 Spikies, 14 MegaPointes and two iFORTE Follow Spots running on a pair of RoboSpot BaseStations, all supplied by rental company TMS (Theatrical Media Services) in Omaha, Nebraska. Overseeing the whole operation…
Shakira returned to touring in 2025 after a seven-year break, captivating audiences across North and South America with her charisma, unmistakable voice, and a repertoire full of hits. For her “Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran” world tour, the Colombian superstar wanted a sleek design with big, bold looks for stadium shows, and that’s exactly what lighting designer Dan Norman from design firm Silent House delivered with the help of 202 Elation PROTEUS HYBRID MAX luminaires, supplied by PRG. “The overall direction was to make it as large as possible to fill the stadium and give Shakira’sfans the best show possible,”…
INFiLED has announced its newest showroom in the UK. The grand opening and official inauguration took place on Thursday 20 November 2025, welcoming INFiLED clients, partners and friends in the brand new facility. The UK Experience Centre is the latest addition to INFiLED showrooms in the EMEA region, with experiential venues already in operation in Barcelona, Dubai and Frankfurt. Situated in Crawley, close to London Gatwick Airport, the UK experience centre will serve as a central hub for sales, technical support, and project consultation, enabling INFiLED to deliver faster, more responsive service to the growing markets across the UK and…
The energy of legendary rock group Heart’s live performances demands a sound system that delivers both power and musicality. The first person who knows that is veteran front-of-house engineer Gary Hartung, who’s helped deliver the band’s signature sound across arenas, sheds and theatres for several tours. After first specifying JBL Professional’s VTX V25 loudspeaker system for Heart’s 2019 tour, Hartung continues to rely on it today for the band’s 2024-2026 tour, citing years of consistent results and audience acclaim. Hartung, who has worked with Heart and vocalist Ann Wilson for more than a decade, first mixed on the JBL VTX…
DirectOut manufactures high-end smart platforms for many types of professional applications. The company is passionate about third party integration and has announced their native plugin for Bitfocus’ Companion, the outcome of a collaboration between DirectOut, its German distributor sphereo, and Dorian Meid, a highly experienced Companion module programmer. Compatible with Companion 4.0.0 or later, the plugin automatically detects the PRODIGY and MAVEN Series devices. It can be used with any Stream Deck hardware interface to enable greater control with fully programmable presets and parameters. Companion is an open-source control surface software that can control multiple devices across the live and…
HIVE has announced the addition of Dante audio-over-IP networking to its award-winning Beeblade media engine range, further strengthening the company’s ecosystem for synchronised, networked AV delivery. The new integration enables HIVE players to transmit high-quality, multi-channel audio directly over standard Ethernet, eliminating the need for complex cabling or external routing hardware. HIVE’s Dante implementation features a bespoke, custom-built HIVE-Dante driver – designed and compiled in-house to deliver seamless performance and reliability. Unlike third-party add-ons, the integration requires zero setup, licensing or configuration. Every Beeblade unit ships with Dante pre-installed and ready to go, fully embedded into the HIVE software platform.…
Audio system manufacturer CODA Audio has become the latest brand to partner with the Production Futures organisation. Production Futures was founded to create opportunities for newcomers to gain access, learn, train, network, and develop careers in the production industries, working with its partners to bridge the skills gap, support fresh talent, and future-proof the sector. Based in Germany, CODA Audio is a leading designer and manufacturer of high quality professional audio systems. Core to its products are a number of unique patented driver technology designs. To ensure the highest quality and control over its products CODA Audio has its own…
Follow-Me has announced that its Follow-Me 3D SIX system is once again proving itself to be a reliable tool for the lighting team on legendary rock band Toto’s Dogs of Oz tour, handling complex lighting demands for one of music’s most enduring acts. Toto’s musical repertoire presents unique challenges for lighting design, requiring a system capable of adapting to rapid stylistic changes without being confined to a single aesthetic. The Follow-Me 3D SIX system enables an unlimited number of fixtures from any manufacturer to function as follow-spots for up to six performers on stage. The SIX license delivers Posi Stage…
Ayrton has launched its new, ultra-powerful followspot, EagleStrike LT, designed for maximum output, speed and precision in stadiums, arenas, major events and other extraordinary venues. Originating from a bespoke request for a signature luminaire, EagleStrike LT is a fast, weatherproof followspot distinguished by power, precision at extraordinary throw distances and genuinely expressive graphic performance. The first LED-source followspot in Ayrton’s range, EagleStrike LT is engineered for intensive outdoor use across long distances where precision is paramount. An optional camera transforms EagleStrike LT into a fully automated tracking spotlight. To create this uncompromising and unmatched extreme-luminaire, Ayrton has developed an oversized…
Blackpink embarked on their stadium Deadline World Tour in July with stops in Seoul, Inglewood, Chicago, Toronto, New York City, Saint-Denis, Milan, Barcelona, and London. The quartet performed songs from each of their respective solo works as well as their award-winning studio albums and EPs, which sold more than 20 million copies worldwide. Blackpink selected Cohesion as the audio system for the first fifteen sold-out dates on this highly anticipated global tour. Artist management agency YG Entertainment valued the expertise of longtime Blackpink FOH Engineer Young-Il Kim and System Engineer Alex Kociper, who also worked on the group’s 2023 Born…
The Weeknd’s After Hours ’til Dawn tour continued throughout the summer, with lighting and production designer Jason Baeri turning to Elation’s IP-rated PROTEUS HYBRID MAX and PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADE L to complement the avant-garde conceptual production. The 2025 summer leg wrapped in early September 2025 after a four-month run playing some of the largest stadiums across North America. Initially launched in 2022, the tour has fully evolved into an epic spectacle with set extensions and expanded production elements, including an enhanced lighting rig. The show, an evolution of the last four years of the “After Hours” narrative with a futuristic…
Adlib continues to expand its UK footprint with the official opening of a new 8,000 sq ft base in Wimbledon, London. The new facility has been created to further support clients’ needs across London-based theatre, live venues and touring sectors. Building on Adlib’s acquisition of triplex in 2021, this latest move marks an important next step in their combined growth and reinforces the group’s commitment to delivering comprehensive support across the UK. The new Wimbledon office and warehouse is home to dedicated teams delivering Adlib and triplex operations, product specialists, account managers and project managers supporting rental, integration and sales…
Djo’s Another Bite tour saw the stage split in two for song Listen, with one side amber, the other blank and white. The colour divide was one of many intensely original flourishes that Carlos Katsurayama had up his sleeve when lighting this 12-city run for Djo, the red-hot psychedelic rocker whose breakthrough synth-pop banger ‘End Of Beginning’ reached number 11 on the Billboard charts. Katsurayama drew on the versatility and power of 137 CHAUVET Professional fixtures supplied by Colour Sound Experiment. “This show was challenging to execute because we wanted to take a less conventional approach to lighting,’ Katsurayama said of…
The US subsidiary of Absen will showcase four professional-grade product series, including the Saturn Series, Polaris Series, Jupiter Pro Series and Neptune Pro Series, at LDI 2025, from December 7–9, 2025, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. “Absen continues to refine its rental and staging product lineup with purpose-built solutions that deliver reliability, flexibility and exceptional image quality,” said Emily Chan, President for Absen Inc. “Each series showcased at LDI 2025 represents a thoughtful response to the evolving needs of live event professionals.” The Saturn (SA) Series, including SA panels, SA-B cube panels and SA-C flexible displays, delivers visual performance…
Audiologic, Tascam has announced that its Sonicview digital mixing consoles are now fully compatible with the Mixing Station app. This provides users with an additional option for controlling the consoles remotely from mobile devices, in addition to the in-house Sonicview Control app. The integration opens up new possibilities for live concerts, discussion events, and other demanding environments. Mixing Station enables musicians and sound engineers to control their monitor mixes wirelessly using smartphones or tablets. This speeds up sound checks, increases efficiency, and improves the experience for everyone on stage and behind the console during performances. The Ember+ protocol, introduced in…
STUFISH Entertainment Architects is advancing its research in sustainable stage architecture following the successful debut of its staging for Global Citizen 2025 in Belém. The scenic elements, built almost entirely from bamboo, serve as a large-scale test for sustainable stage architecture and set a new benchmark for environmentally responsible design in the live entertainment industry. As global leaders in temporary architecture and stage design, STUFISH’s latest design demonstrates the studio’s commitment to driving and researching new approaches to sustainable construction, aiming to reduce the environmental impact of large-scale shows. In modern-day show design, traditional stage and concert architecture have long relied on…
Boomtown Festival is certainly one of the most extraordinary open-air festivals in Europe and once again impressed in 2025 with a top-class line-up and its unique combination of music, theatre and visual art. The stage and lighting designs always make a huge contribution to the magic of Boomtown. GLS Lighting was once again responsible for the realisation on several main stages this year, with a clear focus on lights from Cameo. For the Grand Central Stage, account and project manager Wil Gregory created a setup that could be harmoniously integrated into the spectacular stage architecture with its handmade backdrops by…
