Merida,
the capital of Yucatan State in Mexico is a thriving, buzzing hub of culture
and industry, rich with Mayan and Colonial –- Spanish, French and British –
heritage and a lively contemporary arts and live performance scene, lots of
greenery and arguably, the best ice cream in Mexico!
Based on
the north west of this picturesque city is Total Show Pro, a full technical
production company delivering lighting, sound, video and staging – design and
equipment – founded by Claudio Pasos four years ago. Shortly after this they
invested in their first Robe moving lights with 10 x LEDWash 600s and then in
2015 added 10 x Robe Pointes to the inventory.
There are
three main project divisions to the company, the first one deals with weddings,
which is a massive business in the area with so many beautiful locations and
architectural masterpieces as well as the Gulf of Mexico coast only 35
kilometres away.
The
second division deals with the corporate event and brand activation marketplace,
which is also extremely busy for all the same reasons – the fabulous places,
buildings, gardens and event spaces plus the great energy and vibes of the city
– everyone wants to be in Merida!
The third
sector in which the company is actively engaged is providing productions for
live shows, concerts and music festivals.
The
warehouse is just 5 minutes out of the bustle of the old town city centre and
they now have 18 full time staff and naturally, a regular team of freelance
technicians.
The
LEDWashes were first bought to service the weddings market, and then the
Pointes were added specifically for concerts and music shows, where they were
increasingly appearing on artist riders.
Claudio – whose industry career started aged 12
drumming in a band – has been familiar with Robe since the brand first started,
going right back to the XT series and then the AT series.
The
popular music group, Banda Ysrael who are still very active in the Yucatan area
– even bought a set of white ColorSpot 575E ATs to enhance their shows for
weddings.
So, when
Total Show Pro started and became successful, he decided to carry on with Robe.
“It’s the
best decision I have made” he states emphatically.
He likes
the brightness and colour mixing of the LEDWashes together with its low power
requirements – always helpful for some of the local wedding venues!
On the
Pointes, he likes the intensity, the zoom, gobos and prism. They are his
favourite moving light right now!
When Robe
launched the Pointe, he was looking for a spot fixture with “beautiful gobos” and once he had thoroughly road tested the fixture, he knew it was the right
decision.
The
Pointes are used on all Total Show Pro’s high profile projects – although there
are alternatives available, for the leading projects Claudio uses only the Robe
movers.
Having
been familiar with the brand for over 12 years he comments, “The fixtures are
definitely getting smaller and lighter – there’s more space in the warehouse
and in the trucks – while the brightness and power is increasing constantly”.
He
believes that the potential for premium corporate event clients is increasing
in Merida and the region and he’s hoping to be able to increase his Robe stock
very soon.
Initially
Total Show Pro was the only production rental operation in Merida with any Robe
stock, but now the ball has started rolling and others are also purchasing so
he is also hoping to forge an alliance with other local companies so they can
kick-start a cross rental trade for the benefit of all.
http://www.robe.cz
Photo
by Louise Stickland
Image,
Claudio Pasos (in striped shirt) at the front on the right with some of his
crew, including commercial director Francisco Uribe Vasquez on the far left (in
light blue shirt).
