UK – The Claypaky Scenius Spot is being championed for its superior output, colour and optical quality by lighting designer Dan Williams who is using the award-winning fixtures as workhorses on the video-heavy production of ‘Anarchytecture’, the current European tour by British rockers Skunk Anansie.
The fixtures were recommended for the Anarchytecture rig by the production’s lighting supplier Buckinghamshire-based lighting design and rental house Siyan. Siyan recommended 12 of the Scenius Spots to compliment the tour’s dominant floor and flown LED video package.
“The main issue with working with such a strong video element is getting a fixture that is bright enough to hold its own and stand out against the screens,” says Dan. “The Scenius Spot has absolutely no problem with this.”
The innovative spot fixture is capable of producing a 120,000lm luminous flux from its OSRAM 1400 discharge lamp; making it the perfect solution for Anarchytecture’s onstage front and key light. “The front light the Scenius Spot provides against the LED wall ensures the band looks sculpted when lit,” says Dan.
To create the show’s stand-out colour pallets and punchy back and beam light Dan utilizes the Scenius Spot’s advanced colour engine options powered by its innovative CMY and linear CTO colour system.
“Even when the production’s entire video wall is displaying full camera content, the Scenius Spot still provides great colour tone,” says Dan. “Optically the fixtures look great. They have a fantastic bright, sharp beam with an impressive zoom range (8°-48°). The gobos are strong and the light output remains punchy even when the fixture is zoomed completely out.”
In addition to the Claypaky Scenius Spots, Dan uses one strategically placed A.leda B-EYE K20, Claypaky’s pioneering LED wash, beam and effects fixture. The B-EYE K20 sits upstage centre behind lead singer Skin, to create majestic silhouetted air effects that complement the LED screen’s evolving graphic display and dramatic movements of the band’s lead singer.
“Skunk Anansie’s tour and production manager, Stumpy, came up with the production brief,” says Dan. “The look is centered around the full LED-screen on-stage backdrop that included screens across the drum riser to give the impression that the drum set is floating in the centre of the stage. A lot of care was taken to not make a big light show but to incorporate the album influences sensitively into the design.”
Due to the Scenius Spot’s performance on the Anarchytecture tour Dan, who has worked with bands such as The Vaccines, Rudimental and White Lies, feels confident in the fixture as a workhorse for future designs that incorporate a large LED video element.
“Siyan definitely wins points for recommending Scenius Spot to me,” says Dan. “I wouldn’t hesitate to specify the fixture again.”
Skunk Anansie’s sixth studio album Anarchytecture was released on the 15th January 2016. The eponymous European tour comes to a close on the 27th May in a sold-out gig at the O2 Ritz, Bristol.