girl in red’s latest headline tour has marked a creative and logistical milestone – not least her triumphant night at OVO Arena Wembley. Behind the scenes, Production Manager, Eric ‘EZ’ Wade of EZ Services and Tour Director, Andy Lewis of JTW TOURING led a tight-knit, trusted crew through an ambitious international routing, balancing design innovation with on-the-ground feasibility.
With support from Artist Manager, Ben Blackburn, Creative Director, Isak Jenssen, and design studio, Human Person, the team built a visually iconic and emotionally resonant live show, translating seamlessly from intimate club venues to arena stages. “This campaign was about scaling up in the right way,” Wade informed TPi’s Jacob Waite. “Every decision had to walk the line between creative ambition and practical delivery.”
The creative brief came directly from Jensson and girl in red, aiming for “a cool shiny show with sick visuals and lighting design” that retained its identity across vastly different venues – from Red Rocks Amphitheatre, New York’s Radio City Music Hall and Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium through to Glasgow’s Barrowland Ballroom.
The production leaned heavily on set pieces, most of which were custom-fabricated and shipped via air and sea. EFM Global provided critical support to keep gear moving across continents. “We even routed the tour around freight schedules to avoid the need for a B-rig,” Lewis explained.
Human Person led the design process after a selective search. Visuals were hand-drawn, digitised, and tightly synced with a dynamic lighting design that avoided repetition, while blending live video, both scripted and spontaneous, into the set. “They just got it – straight from the first call,” Lewis recalled. “They had scalable ideas that respected both budget and ambition.”
Lighting featured ACME Lighting Pulsar S2s, alongside GLP JDC1s and X4 Bars, adding visual flair inside “The Beanie” – a giant inflatable centrepiece that lit up songs like Serotonin and October Passed Me By with euphoria and softness in equal measure.
The video package was similarly expansive, with LED, projection, and multi-camera work enhancing both intimacy and drama. A standout was the inflatable projection surface lit by a Panasonic RQ35 laser projector, sourced by Colour Sound Experiment to cut through saturated reds and intense stage lighting.
From venue infrastructure to crew continuity and international freight, the production team faced down challenge after challenge. “Every venue had its quirks. We had to ensure visual consistency, whether in a club or an arena,” Wade said.
Most elements – riser facias, set pieces, even girl in red’s Nord keyboard casing – were bespoke, adding pressure to maintain uniformity across different legs of the tour. “Carpenter, Jamie Dodds and Stage Manager, Archie Brewis-Lawes were instrumental,” Wade added, while praising the tour’s vendors for their continued support.
Another standout element was the introduction of an 18ft ribbon lift. “Finding a model that met our height and safety specs took time, but it paid off,” Wade remarked.
Audio was equally considered, with solutions by Fourier Audio, Waves, and Klang contributing to a polished, immersive experience. “Wembley felt like a full-circle moment,” Wade reflected. “As someone local to the area, it was surreal to walk in not as a fan, but as the production manager.”
A key addition for the night was a B-stage, placed at FOH for We Fell In Love In October, complete with autumn leaves cascading from above. “That request came in just a week out,” Wade revealed. “It required health and safety clearance, insurance, promoter and venue sign-off, and of course – finding light brown leaves on short notice. ER Productions came through at the last hour.”
The show wasn’t without last-minute hiccups. “We lost a spotlight due to a data issue mid-set,” Wade recalled. “Our LD Eliza Moore reprogrammed another fixture on the fly. That’s what makes this crew so special – resilience under pressure.”
The Wembley build also benefited from robust infrastructure. “We chose the venue deliberately,” said Lewis. “It looks and sounds great, suits all-ages audiences, and carries iconic status.”
Budgets were reworked with promoter input to maximise production impact. “We’re lucky to work with promoters who trust us. Our vendors also went above and beyond,” Lewis added. “This was the first tour where we really scaled up – three trucks for most dates, five in the UK. We brought on an MD and made serious investments in backline and infrastructure.”
The entire tour tested the limits of touring production. “At times, it felt like we were doing arena-level production in venues that were never designed for it,” Wade said. “But those moments, when we made it work anyway, were the most rewarding.”
The tour’s ethos – building big while staying agile – redefined what was possible in each space. “We were transforming venues that might normally host stripped-back club shows with inflatables, mapped projections, and full media packages,” Wade said. “There was a real sense of pride in that.”
The team now sets its sights on Øyafestivalen in Oslo, where they’ll close the current tour cycle. “We’re bringing the full show to a small festival stage with an hour changeover,” Lewis laughed. “It’ll be tight, but it’s going to be special.”
From 200-capacity rooms to 10,000-capacity arenas, this campaign marked a creative and technical coming-of-age for girl in red – and for her touring team. “Seeing our core crew grow alongside the show has been incredible,” Lewis reflected. “We took risks. We built something ambitious. And we delivered it consistently, with fewer issues than we’ve ever had. That’s the mark of a great tour – and a great team.”
VENDORS
Bussing – Beat the Street
Visas – WTA Consulting
Travel Agents – TAG and Travel 4 Tours
Freight Agents – EFM Global
Audio – Entec Sound & Light
Lighting / Video – Colour Sound Experiment
Video control (US) – Dark Matter
Video control (EU) – 4Wall Entertainment
Staging and automation (US) – Accurate Staging
Staging and automation (EU) – All Access Staging
Trucking (US) – Stage Door Transportation
Trucking (EU) – Stagetruck
CREATIVE
Creative Director – Isak Jenssen & Marie Ulven
Concept, Show Director & Designer – Human Person
Designer – Ben Dalgleish
Producer – Molly Leishman
Show Director & Content Designers – Frances Waite / Ian Valentine
Lighting Designer / Programmer – Nick Van Nostrand
MANAGEMENT / AGENTS
Manager – Ben Blackburn
Tour Director – Andy Lewis / JTW TOURING
Production Manager – Eric Wade / EZ Services
Agents – Carly James (CAA), Mike Malak (Wasserman) and Brett Murrihy WME
BAND
Musical Director – Avi Barath
Guitar – Martin Dybdal
Drums – Erlend Hisdal
Guitar – Bror Brorson
Keys – Viljar Dunderovic
Bass – Henrik Bakken
CREW
Production Coordinator (US) – Cady Claterbaugh
Production Coordinator (EU) – Sofia Vago
Stage Manager – Archie Brewis-Lawes
Stage Manager – Russell Duce
Set Carpenter – Jamie Dodds
FOH Engineer – Kris Derry
Monitor Engineer – Matt Wickens
Audio Tech – Kevin Gill
Guitar Tech – Rory Kay
Drum Tech – Cam Atkinson
Playback Tech – Andrew Burrows
Lighting Director – Eliza Moore
Video Operator – Evan Scott (US)
Video Operator – Alex Loftie (EU)
Lighting / Video Crew Chief (US-Leg 1) – Evan Nichols
Lighting / Video Crew Chief (US-Leg 2) – Sean Hedrick
Lighting / Video Crew Chief (EU) – Jon Ricketts
Lighting Tech (US-Leg 1) – Braden Pettigrew
Lighting Tech (US-Leg 2) – Cian Murphy
Lighting Tech (EU) – Ed Driver
Video Tech (US-Leg 1) – Richie Sanchez
Video Tech (US-Leg 2) – Andrew Jablon
Video Tech (EU) – Dave Worrell
