Fleetwood Mac is back on the road and Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330 fixtures have joined the iconic
band on the Fleetwood Mac Live 2013 World Tour.
The new tour, which began in Columbus on
April 4 and will wrap in Scandinavia in
October, marks the first for the band since 2009’s sold-out Unleashed
tour. This year is also the 35th
anniversary of their “Rumours” album, one of the most successful in recording
history with sales in excess of 40 copies.
It remained on top of the pop charts for more than 31 weeks and produced
four Top Ten singles.
Lighting designer Paul “Arlo” Guthrie of Minneapolis-based Toss Film +
Design is Fleetwood Mac’s long-time lighting designer. “I have to cater to four different personalities
(Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks) and bring
them together as one team,” he explains.
“For this show we have four big LCD panels and 32 Sharpy Washes on
curved lighting pipes, some of them on the floor, some on the rigs and some in
pods that come out. They hang on weird
angles and move during the show – some are on 45, 90 and 120º angles. They’re well featured – the main workhorse
washlight of the rig.”
Clay Paky’s Sharpy
Wash 330 is a compact,
lightweight 330W washlight, with the luminous efficiency, graphic and optical
performance of a 1000W fixture. It is extremely silent and quick and is fitted
with a complete CMY color system, special colors, 6.5°-48° zoom, mechanical
dimmer, beam shaping filter and motorized top-hat. It is an eco-friendly light, allowing
considerable running and consumption cost savings.
Guthrie says that he “tried to design a rig that moves and has dynamic
elements so I can change the look of the show.
I chose the Sharpy Washes because I needed something small and
bright. I was curious to see if I could
use them as a beam effect without any haze – the band doesn’t like to work in
haze.”
He discovered that “the beam reads really well in just the
atmosphere. With their great wash
capability they’re equally good as a tuning light that adds to the
theatricality of the show.”
According to Guthrie the Sharpy washes are “working great – exactly as
promised. They’re just fantastic. I think I’ll keep them! George Masek at A.C.T Lighting was awesome
with his support.”
George Masek, A.C.T Lighting’s Vice President, Automated Lighting, adds,
\”I always enjoy providing Arlo with new equipment choices, as his designs
are always creative and interesting. The small size and large output of
the Sharpy Wash fits perfectly into what he was trying to do and he’s always
been a brave early adopter and embraces taking new technology on the road! It’s
an honor to be associated with Fleetwood Mac and we\’re very proud that their
show represents the touring debut of the Sharpy Wash 330 in the US.\”
A.C.T Lighting is the exclusive North American distributor for Clay
Paky.
Francesco Romagnoli, Clay Paky Area Manager for North and Latin America,
adds, “Our new Sharpy Wash units have been embraced by a lot of
important lighting designers on this season’s major tours. Arlo and Fleetwood Mac are among the most
distinguished and we’re proud to support them.”
