In
Papiamentu, the words “Su Legria” loosely translate as “his or her happiness.”
In that case, the one of the largest dance festivals on the Caribbean island of
Curaçao is very aptly named. Held the first Friday every January, Su Legria
brings locals and visitors together to free themselves from day-to-day concerns
and enjoy electronic house music performed with a distinctive island flair by
world class DJs.
In
keeping with this carefree spirit, Su Legria made it easy for visitors to party
on their own terms this year by having three different VIP sections. Although
each section put its own distinct twist on the festivities, all engaged the
audience with colorful upbeat lighting created by Jim Lo-A-Njoe of Massive
Productions and his LD Alexangelo “Chito” Hernandez, with help from a
collection of over 60 CHAUVET Professional Rogue fixtures.
“Su
Legria makes everybody feel welcome regardless of where they’re from,” said
Lo-A-Njoe. “Instead of having everyone stand in one general area, we broke the
audience space up into three distinct VIP sections, plus a general audience
section. The smaller areas made everyone feel more like they were a part
of the festival. We relied on the magic of lighting to support this feeling.”
The three
VIP areas at the festival were: the “Ultra Section,” where guests were placed
in the middle of the action by being part of the main stage; the first VIP
section, where guests stood in front of the stage; and the second (more mellow)
VIP section, where guests sat at tables to the side of the stage. (The general
section was still part of the action because the audience was able to stand
under the main roof.) Lo-A-Njoe used 24 Rogue R2 Spot, 24 Rogue R2 Beam
and 16 Rogue R2 Wash fixtures to cover all three sections with an array of
richly textured looks.
“We
relied on our lighting to support all of the sections and create three
different atmospheres that engaged people,” said Lo-A-Njoe. “The Ultra section
and the first VIP section (the one that faced the stage) were both covered by
roofs. We had a 26’ x 23’ roof over the Ultra section and a 45’ x 45’ roof that
ran over the other VIP section and the general audience area. We hung Rogues
from both roofs and relied on their rapid movements, gobos and changing beam
angles to create the look of a nightclub.”
Lo-A-Njoe
flew Rogue R2 Spot and R2 Beam fixtures on truss over the Heineken bar, which
sat across the dance floor from the first VIP section. Sweeping beams and
spots across the dance floor from this position added to the nightclub
environment. He also used the beams to highlight dancers on the stage.
In
addition to relying on the rapid pan-tilt movements of his Rogue fixtures,
Lo-A-Njoe counted on their color rendering capabilities to generate excitement
at the Su Legria festival and set the mood on its stage, which housed
performances by international DJ stars like Chuckie, Dyna, Gregor Salto and
others. Relying on color accents from his Rogue R2 Washes, Lo-A-Njoe created a
more subtle laid-back tone in the side stage VIP section. Adding to this
relaxed atmosphere were the color washes on scenic elements from the COLORado
1-Tri IP fixtures in Lo-A-Njoe’s rig.
“We’re
very proud of how this turned out,” said Lo-A-Njoe. “The design really made the
festival more intimate for fans, yet at the same time the looks were very
pumped up. I’m grateful to Ashric Martel of Fab Ash, the producer of the event,
for believing in our crazy ideas. We’ve been doing this for years, and it keeps
getting better.”
