It is the most visited ice show in the world - Holiday on Ice! This year, the production celebrates its 75th anniversary. "Atlantis" is one of two shows currently touring Germany and France, exciting its audiences with spectacular costumes, great choreography and impressive scenography.
Once again this year, PRG will return to Holiday on Ice's frozen world and support the show in terms of event technology. In addition to rigging and audio technology, PRG also provides lighting and video technology.
"Whenever we develop projects, it's the interplay between the design and what we have available in terms of budget, equipment and technology to meet the specific design challenges. It was very helpful to work closely together with PRG from the start, trying to find technical solutions to the complexities, within our budget."
One of the technical highlights of this year's tour are the ten automated Roll-up screens in the middle of the ice rink. For this, PRG uses six Panasonic PT-DZ21K projectors. The Roll-ups are controlled via DMX by the GrandMA2 console. The GrandMa2 console also controls the WO media server to track the different positions during the show. A completely redundant WO system is used as an output.
As a backdrop of the ice rink, we installed a large video projection. Two Barco HD projectors W f 26K project in different depths so that with the help of the WO system, the data is mapped and a 3D effect is created. The projections also emphasize the costumes of the figure skaters and thus create the magical atmosphere of the lost city of Atlantis.
"We had to find a tailor-made solution to deliver video content on the automated roll-ups. PRG developed a great solution for this, making all boards and media servers communicate with each other. The result is just great! "
In addition to video technology, the lighting has been carefully adapted to the scenario of the show. A total of 40 Icon Edges were used. This moving head is a fast beam, spot and wash luminaire; it contains a wide range of gobos and offers a lot of lighting effects, which benefits the tour.
"The combination of these video and lighting elements in synergy with the sumptuous costumes creates a wonderful and immersive show."
Holiday on Ice's Anniversary Tour is also a great success! In total, over 90 shows are performed. Till the end of February, the ice skaters will still enchant the audiences before Atlantis sinks back into the sea.
The 9th edition of the Longines Masters of Paris, European leg of the Indoor Grand Slam of Showjumping took place from Nov 30th to Dec 3rd.
This renowned competition is one of the most prestigious equestrian events worldwide, which attracts more than 50 000 spectators and is broadcasted in more than 120 countries.
PRG Belgium provided all lighting, video and sound for this 5* Event and premiered with 130 of its' new sports lighting fixtures the Ephesus Arena Pro 300 in Europe.
Bruno Sepulchre, Production Director EEM, explains: "PRG accompanies us on the Longines Masters since numerous years. Their team is aware of our needs in terms of technology, services and flexibility but also has the broad and fundamental knowledge of the venues. Affinities create themselves and the way of work is reinforced with every production we do together.
The Ephesus Pro 300 LED sports lighting fixture provides a high quality flood lighting which meets the lighting standards of every arena sport.
The field of play is lit uniformly without any glare, unwanted shadows or hot spots. It's an up to 50% energy saving spot lighting solution with colour tuning technology, which offers the possibility to flood the field in any colour from 3500K to 6500K and can be implemented in the show lighting to enhance the spectators experience. It is fully HDTV compliant and is rated IP66!
In addition to the lighting technology supplied by PRG, of which the lighting kit was composed of 130 Ephesus Arena Pro 300 and 32 Icon Edges for the competition area and 164 SGMs for the VIP zone and the seating zone of the spectators, PRG also provided three ROE MC7 LED screens and a comprehensive kit of 100 KIVA Acoustics.
PRG would like to thank Christophe Ameeuw, CEO of EEM, creator, owner and organizer of the Longines Masters, Matthieu Gheysen, Bruno Sepulchre and Frank Lombaers for the trust they place in our 360° services and thank our own team for their great dedication and their great team-spirit which was complimented by the client.
In February 2018, the Longines Masters Series will open its' doors in Hong Kong before heading to New York in April 2018.
Night of the Proms 2017 was yet again a magnificent success! The concept's ability to bring the notorious Antwerp Symphony Orchestra and the Fine Fleur Choir together with the voices of current pop artists simply creates magic, attracting people together from all generations and age groups.
This year again, PRG Belgium was commissioned to provide video sound and lighting for the tour that kicked off in Rotterdam, before heading its way to Belgium, Germany and Luxemburg.
For the NOTP Tour 2017, PRG has remained with the successful equipment list that was used for the previous year, nevertheless there were two customized new eye-catchers: One of them was the Piano Cube, a custom-made flying frame of 3m height by 2,5m width with PLED 205Q. Suspended above the audience by 8 cyber hoist on a horizontal track of 40m length and driven by a Whalberg System, the piano moved horizontally as well as vertically creating a stunning effect above the spectators' heads.
Furthermore, PRG installed 12 Video Pods, which were also suspended from on 4 x 12m length Whalberg tracks and moved above the scene, creating special effects combining PLED 205SC with the new PRG Icon Edges lighting features and 1 SGM P5 each integrated underneath. On stage the PLED208E2 created a backdrop of 25m width and 8m height.
In accordance with Arf & Yes's lighting design and in collaboration with Light Operator Olivier Demoustier, PRG supplied a lighting kit which was composed of 46 PRG Icon Edges, 96 Sharpy Washes, 18 Mac Viper Profiles, 3 Mac Viber Performances, 16 Robe Ledwash 1200's, 66 GLP X4Ses, 8 SGM P5s and 4 SGM P2s. On top of that we had 3 RJ Cyrano Followspots and 2 PRG GroundControl Systems installed to highlight the artists.
Patrick Demoustier was in charge of the configuration of the sound design. The equipment list was very much the same as the one from last year and composed by 36 x Adamson E15, 24 x Adamson E12, 36 x Adamson S10, 18 x Adamson E219 and 32 x Lab Gruppen PLM20K44+, controlled by 2 x Digico SD7, 2 x Digico SD8, 1 x Digico SD5. Nevertheless, there were some upgrades since the whole of the orchestra's microphone system was upgraded to a digital one.
Patrick Demoustier stipulates "This year, we decided to upgrade the speaker system to a complete Adamson Energia system. On top of that, the system is network-controlled via a Dante network and Lake processing. All speakers are powered by PLM20k44 + amplifiers.
Moreover, PRG invested in a new wireless Green GO Intercom system to replace the Riedel Acrobat.
Tour Head Rigger Stef De Raet and Assistant Rigger Dean Kessler were in charge of the setup of the rigging system, which required 124 active hoists and 368m of trussing were needed to suspend a spectacular 45 tons. In total PRG had 180 meters of Whalberg Tracks suspended for the automation of the piano platform and the 12 Video Pods.
Jan Van Malder, General Manager Entertainment, adds, "We would like to thank PSE, the promotor of Night Of The Proms, as well as the producer Alain Van Isacker for trusting PRG's know-how once again and making us part of this magnificent and successful production. Each year, we gladly go one step further and we aspire to work together again for the next tour!
This year's edition of Cap 48 has broken all previous records!
The big closing show of this years' CAP48 was broadcasted live on the Belgian national tv channel 'RTBF' on October 8th gathered more than 12,700 volunteers and was attended by many artists including Virginie Hocq, Adamo, Nolwenn Leroy, Christophe Willem and Julien Clerc. This year's edition managed to reach a record balance of 5 811 029 Euros!
Once again, PRG was the technical partner in terms of lighting, rigging and video for this big live show and delivered 60 tons of material, corresponding to 300m³.
The lighting kit consisted of more than 270 light projectors, Kinesys CM Varistar hoists and 370sqm of LED with a pixel pitch ranging from 3mm to 25mm.
A very special thanks to Jean-Jacques Marotte, designer of the show, Bernard Sauvenier, the producer and to the whole of our team which was managed by Laurent De La Haye, Account & Project Manager PRG and Mathieu Antoine, Project & On Site Manager PRG.
The 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIGAM) just closed its' doors in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan. Turkmenistan for the first time is opening up to the international scene and therefore this was a historic moment. The Opening and Closing Ceremonies, involving 7631 performers, are being held at the recently renovated Olympic Complex.
Balich Worldwide Shows, in charge of this production, put on stage a huge Ceremony and placed their trust in PRG's technical services to collaborate with them on this spectacular event.
The Opening Ceremony was held on September 17th, the closing ceremony on September 27th and was technically strongly focused on the use of video projection. PRG delivered 100 Panasonic 21K projectors for the floor projections, 18x Barco UDX 4K 32 projectors for the Center Cilinder and 8 Barco 26K projectors for the Yunta roof.
On top of that, we supplied 36km of fibers, 8 d3 4x4 mediaservers, an 80x80 lightware matrix, as well as a 33x33 lightware matrix.
Take a look at the SLIDESHOW of the opening & closing ceremony!
The flawless execution of the Opening & Closing Ceremonies has showed us again how the values of the production- and crew members are based on professionalism, determination and competence. PRG has 25 technicians working on-site making sure that the Closing Ceremony on the 27th of September will be just as astonishing.
Since a couple of years now, PRG has been the loyal partner for supplying audiovisual technology at the convention and meeting centre The Egg Brussels. Today, this successful collaboration takes a new step towards innovation and interactivity in the venue. PRG supplied and installed Digital Signage screens that will modernize future events at The Egg Brussels.
Digital Signage is a modern communication system. Each kind of information that the client wants to share with his public will be displayed on the screens who are installed at the different meeting rooms and auditoria in the venue. Off course, the content of the display can be adapted depending on the location of the screen, the auditoria that it represents, the kind of message that the client wants to communicate. Any time of the day, communication can be adapted. This intelligent and dynamic way of communication is possible thanks to a polyvalent software system, installed by PRG, that is connected to each screen with a WiFi connection. Basically, this system offers the client an efficient way to share relevant information on specific places over the whole venue.
The screens measure from 42 to 120 inch. All kinds of information can be shared on the screens: videos, pictures, the name of the speaker, time schedules of the event, etc. The possibilities to personalize your event are limitless.
During the summer season, from July 8th until September 10th, residents and visitors of the city of Strasbourg can enjoy an evening show at the Notre Dame Cathedral. The city of Strasbourg commissioned ACTLD to create an immersive show, titled "Le Ballet des Ombres Heureuses", in which the cathedral is playing the lead role being highlighted with video projections, lighting effects and sound.
Just like last year, ACTLD trusted PRG Belgium to provide and install all the lighting technology. The title of the show explains that shadow, in all of its shapes, is the main subject of the show. Different kinds of shadows are being created with video mapping and lighting effects. They tell a story that leaves room for personal interpretations, just as the designers aimed. The lighting is directed on the East- and Southside of the cathedral, as well as on the surrounding buildings on the "place du Château".
PRG used 36 of her newest PRG Icon Edge for this outdoor production, together with 16 SGM P5's, 16 SGM Q7's and 26 Martin Viper Performances. About 300 Gobos have been created especially for this show.
ACTLD also trusted in PRG to provide two 14 meters high Totem trusses. The difficulty here was that the client asked to use a very limited space on the ground to stabilize the truss, which PRG handled by providing a ballast of 15 tonnes for each Totem truss! We also built seven other Totem trusses, measuring from 5 to 8 meters high with 2 tonnes of ballast each.
The spectacle takes about 15 minutes and invites the spectator to be part of a 360 degrees immersive story. Last year, this summer event attracted more than 900.000 spectators. This year's show promises to be at least as successful! The City of Strasbourg decided to extend it for an extra week already!
The 32nd edition of the renowned Pukkelpop festival ended after 4 days of musical madness and festivities for its' 250,000 festival-goers.
In addition to the video technology on all stages, PRG Belgium was in charge of lighting and sound for the main stage, the Marquee, the Dance Hall and the Boiler Room.
This year's highlight was the installation of 250 PRG Icon EDGE in the Boiler Room. This new product has been specially designed and built for PRG. This was the first time that this new Icon Edge projector was used in such large quantities in Belgium.
The Icon Edge is a multi-function lighting projector, a projector creating great effects, which combines the characteristics of a normal projector with those of a Beamlight, in a very compact body-case with a new bulb.
The Icon EDGE distinguishes itself by its combination of Spot, Beam and Wash modes. The projector has 14 pre-installed colors via a CMY-Color-Mixing system, as well as 14 static and 8 rotating Gobos. The Philips Platinum 21R lamp from 470 watts reaches up to 20,000 Lumen. In Beam mode, the Icon Edge has a zoom range of 2 to 24 degrees, in Spot mode the range is of 2.5 to 32 degrees and in Wash it results in 3.5 to 40 degrees. The projector measures 45 cm x 32 cm and 71 cm high. Its' weight is of 31 kg.
Discover this new product in our slideshow and via this link (PDF).
ECA2 produced a spectacular opening ceremony on the Danube in front of the Budapest Castle and the Chain Bridge in association with the Cultural center MÜPA Budapest for the Opening Ceremony of the World Swimming Championships on July 14th.
PRG France, contracted as lighting, sound, video projection, scenic LED displays, and power distribution (Aggreko), supported this technical and artistic production by transforming the historic centre and the Danube into a full-fledged massive show, entirely run by time-code.
PRG installed just over 600 projectors, including 350 ROBE projectors (BMFLs, Spiider, Pointe), 70 new PRG Icon Edges, SGM P5s and GLP X4 Bars, everything controlled by five GrandMA2 lighting consoles.
The audio system consisted of a complete L Acoustics kit (K2/K1Sub/SB28/SB18/Kara2/Arcsll), with a DANTE broadcast network, two Yamaha CL1 & CL5 consoles and a Digital Performer station.
In terms of video technology, PRG installed around 300m2 of LED Absen X5 screens on the background display columns, 8 mapping zones on the stage by video projection with Panasonic PTDZ21k, a video projection on a water-screen (Barco's HDQ-40K VPs) and 100 autonomous HEX Panels with built-in media servers for the artists performing the choreography. The control booth had 4x D3 4x5 and 2x D3 2.5 servers.
This vast technical production was a joint effort between ECA2 and the PRG subsidiaries in France, Belgium, and PRG Projects, with technicians from across the globe (Belgium, France, Qatar, Estonia, Italy, Spain, China, and England). 1,800 working days were needed for pre-production, installation, and operation during the ceremony by our 42 technicians, operators and on-site managers.
The highlights of the ceremony were PRG Projects' Hex Panels, which in combination with the video mapping on the scene, the LED columns and the projection images on the water-screen and the illumination of the castle, the bridge and the quays, illuminated the city beautifully.
Magical laser effects and a magnificent firework also accompanied this spectacular ceremony.
Once again, ECA2 succeeded in producing an extraordinary show combining technologies, special effects, art and scenography.
We would like to extend our warmest thanks to our long-time customer ECA2 for the trust they have placed in our PRG teams for the last 18 years, resulting each time in high quality result and sublime performances, thanks to a flawless commercial, technical and logistical collaboration.
Everyone involved in this project demonstrated excellent teamwork to deliver a truly sublime show! Thank you!
The summer season is in full swing and the first big festivals have already closed its doors. PRG not only delivers audiovisual equipment to festivals this summer. We also support some Belgian artists during their summer tours, like Oscar and the Wolf! The band is well known for its impressive live gigs with a lot of bells and whistles on stage. Logically, expectations for this years' technical concept were high.
At the start of the show, the singer of the band Max Colombie appears on an elevated platform, covered with LED elements. Minutes later, the set piece gets more depth when we discover the band is playing underneath, inside a box, behind a see-trough LED wall. Ludovic Beun (Creative Director), Cate Carter (Light Designer) and Jan De Keyser (Production Manager) designed this remarkable construction. PRG Production Manager & Crew Chief Jo Vaes is responsible for a smooth course on site.
The LED construction is entirely custom made and developed by PRG. It's based on a structure of custom made frames with a total of 288 integrated MiTRIX panels. These LED features are chosen for their see-through aspect which makes the band members partly or completely visible at particular moments in the show. The LED screens are controlled by DX700 processors. These processors had to be integrated at the top of the structure, for the boxes to be completely hidden for the public. Inside of the LED box, we installed 3 cameras to make close-ups of the band members. These close-ups are projected on the front screen of the box. Simon Harris controls the LED panels with a Green Hippo Karst media server, delivered by Bryte Design. The video content was created by Milc and Cookies. PRG video technicians Bram Verboom and Jan Reyntjens complete the video team.
On the top of the LED box, PRG installed 10 Stormy Strobes and 10 Sharpy Washes. Some Impression X4 Bar 20 LED Strips are installed above and underneath the ceiling of the box as backlight for the singer and his band. Inside the box, we use 6 X4S Led Washes to highlight the musicians, combined with 3 SGM Q7 on the floor behind the band members to create extra backlight.
The set up is completed by side lighting on the stage. On both sides, we use 2 ETC LED S2 Lustr profile spots. The fixtures are installed on poles, covered with an Impression X4 Bar 20 LED Strip. The pole itself is fixed onto a baseplate on wheels to assure a smooth change over. The profile spots are combined with one rolling riser on each side of the stage that carry 6 Sharpy Washes. The whole lighting set up is controlled by a Grand MA2 full size with NPU. Anne-Sophie De Pickere and Ruben Simons are the PRG lighting technicians for this project.
The LED box is 9,2 meters large and is constructed in 3 parts for the load-in and load-out to go as fast as possible. The change over times on festivals are usually very tight. The three parts are brought on stage separately and then connected to each other. This allows PRG to build the whole set in less than one hour.
One of the challenges our team encountered during construction was to reassure the stability of this custom made set piece, for the singer to walk on top of the LED box. We added extra steel cables at the sides of the box to strengthen the structure. The result fits perfectly into the visually appealing show with confetti cannons, pyro machines and smokescreens. Accordingly, the first reactions regarding the new set up of the tour are extremely enthusiastic!
This successful outcome was only possible thanks to the great collaboration between Bryte Design, Tour Manager Stijn Smet, Production Manager Jan De Keyser, Creative Director Ludovic Beun, Pyro & Special Effects partner Dewico and the entire PRG crew!
The LED box was used for the first time at the Holland festival Down The Rabbit Hole. One week later, Oscar and the Wolf played in the Barn at Rock Werchter. Next up are the two weekends of Tomorrowland and finally, they will end the summer at the Lokerse Feesten.
On Saturday July 1st, a massive crowd travelled to the little Italian town of Modena. No less than 225.000 fans attended the Vasco Rossi concert in Modena Park last weekend. Never before, a one time concert has sold as many tickets!
The event of an unprecedented scale was coproduced by Big Bang and Live Nation Italy. Danilo Zuffi (Live Nation) contacted PRG Account Manager Wim Despiegelaere to develop the whole video production for the 120 meter large stage.
In collaboration with Tom Bilsen from StageCo, we developed custom made porches with video screens according the design of Show designer Claudio Santucci. PRG installed 4 automated porches each connected to a video screen of 15 meters height by 9 meters width. Between these, we built a large central screen on the stage of 18 meters width and 15 meters height. In addition to these we also provided 3 delay screens of 80 sqm each. All the screens were built out of see-trough 8mm pixel pitch LED. The porches were connected to 2 rails of 120 meters length to cover the whole of the stage. The proches - including the LED screens, the power generators that ran alongside and the lighting fixtures - weighed about 25 tonnes.
Watch the video-slider of the Vasco Rossi Concert 2017!
Vincent Ex (Project Coordinator PRG & StageCo) collaborated with Yves Winand (Production Manager video PRG) in order to guarantee a flawless functioning of the whole set. A d3 was used as media server , controlled by Nicholas di Fonzo and Marco Piva. The system was a 4x4 pro machine sending out not less than 14 feeds to the LED screens and a second 4x4 pro as understudy for full redundancy. Notch was used intensively to manipulate the 4 live feeds for realizing impressive real time effects.
Account Manager Wim Despiegelaere would like to thank Live Nation Italy for their trust in PRG and the opportunity they gave us to be a part of this gigantic project. Wim travelled to the show in Modena on the 1st of July. Take a look at the pictures he made!
The Tiziano Ferro Tour 2017 started in Lignano Sabbiadoro on the 11th of June and will end on the 15th of July in Florence, with a total of 13 stadium gigs all over Italy.
PRG Belgium was commissioned by Live Nation Italy and the show designer Claudio Santucci for the video and motion technology of the tour. In collaboration with video content designer Romain Sabella, PRG Belgium & PRG Projects created an exceptional performance, enhancing the emotionally intensive atmosphere of the stage, for which our customized contribution of a video ceiling in motion, including the catwalk on top and the video floor of the stage are the highlights of this magnificent stage.
In terms of video technology, PRG Belgium provides 2 ROE MC-18 LED screens (18m width x 9m height), 2 ROE MC-7HB LED screens (3,6m x 13,2m), including a motion system to open and close the video passage at the back of the stage.
For the flooring of the stage, PRG Projects created custom-made frames to integrate PLED207D video tiles (7m width x 18m length). The revolutionary aspect of the show remains with the moving LED ceiling (7,2m width, 19,2m height, in Pixled F12), also engineered and customized by PRG Projects.
In terms of automation, PRG Belgium worked with subcontractor Wi-Creations. The motion of the video ceiling consists of 18 EVO moving hoists, with a total weight of approximately 11 tonnes. There is also a 21m long track to open and close the back video wall, of which each screen weighs approximately 3 tonnes. On top of that, 13 EVO 500kg and 2 EVO 800kg moving hoists were supplied for the lighting trusses, water curtain and the laser pod. The whole of the motion was piloted via a Kynesys K2 control system.
Watch the vidéo of the Tiziano Ferro Tour 2017!
Considering the challenging build-up times which are knowingly very short in the touring industry, the PRG Crew consists of 13 people (10 video technicians and 3 for motion), in order to set up and dismantle the whole installation as fast as possible.
Wim Despiegelaere, PRG Account Manager, adds: "We would like to thank Roberto de Luca, Antonella Lodi and Alberto Muller from Live Nation Italy, for trusting us with this beautiful challenge and great collaboration! Once again this was a fruitful collaboration with our colleagues from PRG Projects, who made this special set possible with their engineering and customization know-how.
When 8000 participants join forces to eradicate poverty worldwide during the 11th edition of the European Development Days (EDD) in Brussels, this can only mean professionalism and flexibility are needed!
Commissioned by Media Consulta Event GmbH, PRG Belgium is proud to have been official technical provider in terms of lighting, video, sound and electrical distribution for the EDD 2017, which took place at Tour & Taxis this 7th & 8th of June.
In total this event represented 306 working days for our crew that managed 7 trailers (70t) of material - 480 lighting features – 60 loudspeakers, including wireless system, headsets and microphones – 50 plasma screens and 3 x big 16/9 front projections for the in total 40 convention and meeting rooms - and last but not least the power distribution for this event required no less than 650 x 16A channels!
The biggest challenge our team faced was the soundproofing of the 3 big convention rooms and 21 small meeting rooms at the same time, but we are proud to say that the 13 Sound Engineers made it happen flawlessly!
Our PRG crew once again has proven their professionalism and flexibility during the preparation, pre-production, set-up and the event itself for such a high security VVIP event.
Special thanks to Media Consulta Event GmbH, Phrenos and Frank Lombaers for this great collaboration! We are looking forward to the 12th edition and hope to be part of it again!