Justin
Bieber, one of the most universally recognized pop icons of the 21st
century, is enjoying the commercial success and critical acclaim of his
excellent fourth studio album, “Purpose”, the campaign for which currently includes an extensive world tour.
Lighting
for the tour has been designed by Cory FitzGerald with the rig including Robe
Pointes plus two BMFL Spots which are being utilized as rear follow spots.
It’s
Cory’s first work for Bieber. When he came on-board, the production design
created by production manager Chris Gratton and creative director Nick DeMoura
was already evolving, together with video content produced by Michael Figge of
Possible.
After
listening to a detailed brief from Nick and Chris, Cory wanted to make the
lighting as flexible as possible to create “a wide diversity of looks and help
transform the space,” taking the video content, which is a huge element of the
stage design, as the base images and building on it from there.
Fifty six
Robe Pointes are rigged on the upstage trusses and under the downstage flying
catwalks, which are used for many scenes and effects, primarily as the high-powered beam lights for which they are renowned.
“They are
great fixtures” he states, “fast, punchy and with lots of tools under the hood
to create multiple looks with a single fixture.”
He especially likes the dual prism.
The two
BMFL Spots work hard throughout the show as rear follow spots. “We really take
advantage of their brightness on this,” explained
Cory. Having used them extensively on other gigs, he was again impressed with
the intensity, animation wheel, colors and
diversity.
“The
BMFLs give us full control of beam size, color and strobe effects from the
console, which can then be cued into the show like any other lights, giving the
rear spots a life of their own,” he commented.
Cory
programmed the show with the help of Davey Martinez, and Nick Van Nostrand is
lighting director and operator on the road. The lighting equipment is being
supplied to the tour by VER.
They have
a tight load-in schedule in order to get it all up, running and programmed
during production rehearsals but everyone is delighted with the results, “it
was a true team effort and a great
process to be involved with,” confirmed Cory.
Each song
has a totally different vibe, and lighting and visuals form an important part
of unfolding the narrative and producing the right ambience. All of Cory’s
lighting palettes are very specific to each number as well as being connected to
its relevant visuals.
Bieber is
known for being a great live performer and commands a very special engagement
with his audience and the production has been designed with this and many other criteria in mind.
Cory has
been using various Robe products in his work for some time and thinks the brand
is in a “really good place’ right now, with innovations constantly being
developed and a solid set of standard products that is
very useful.”
Cory
FitzGerald has been in the industry all his life, starting his lighting career
as a pre-teen during a school summer camp. He’s based in LA now, but has spent
many years in New York and now focuses on designs that integrate lighting and
production design elements like video, set and automation. Other recent artists
he’s worked with include Bruno Mars, Jennifer Lopez, Beyoncé & Jay Z, Gwen
Stefani, Meghan Trainor, Skrillex, Troye Sivan and Zhu.
http://www.robe.cz
Photos : Steve Jennings
