Bristol-based Enlightened, one of the largest event suppliers in the south west of the UK, has invested in Ayrton Perseo Profile IP65-rated fixtures, supplied by Ambersphere Solutions, to service its busy events schedule.
Enlightened specialises in full production services, supported dry hire, design, and delivery of permanent installations, as well as sales, skilled repairs and maintenance to a diverse range of clients and venues.
“Corporate and private parties and events, large outdoor events in winter, festivals in the summer, installation, sales – basically, we do everything for everyone!” said Head of Hire and Production, Dave Thorpe. “Bristol is a good hub for small to medium companies to which, along with many small companies and theatres all over the country, we cross hire equipment. We therefore make a point of only investing in the very latest in top quality entertainment technology.”
Enlightened’s diverse fields of operation demanded a fixture that could also do ‘everything for everyone’. “When we make new investments, we look for a product that will fit into at least two markets,” explained Thorpe, “and that is exactly what happened with Perseo. On the one hand, it is a waterproof fixture but equally capable of working in a theatre environment; I also know that it will fit into any rock and roll or festival stage that we will do in the summer, and will happily sit outside at one of the large scale events we supply for the winter. We have a regular client in Scotland who will have a consignment of Perseo in operation from mid-October to January and I know the fixture will be fine. The lights are brilliant!”
Thorpe was not an immediate convert to Perseo when it first arrived on the market in 2019. “We had a gap in our stock for a decent size workhorse profile, especially since we had a lot of outdoor work, so it was on our radar, but at first, we weren’t confident they would also be suitable for indoor work.
“However, as we saw them specified more and more on events, and saw other companies buying them in serious quantities – including those to whom we cross hire – we decided to reconsider. On closer inspection we discovered just how good a fixture Perseo Profile is: the optics are great, the effects all work properly, it does everything, and it does it really well. A final winter of waterproofing our existing non-waterproof stock finally swung the decision for us. We invested in Perseo this March to get ourselves prepped and ready for the mass onslaught of outdoor work we have lined up for this summer.”
On receiving the new Perseo Profiles, Enlightened immediately sent eight units to Bristol Old Vic for a 5-week stint on Wonderboy, lit by lighting designer Aideen Malone who was the first to use the new units. “Wonderboy needed both subtle and supersaturated colours which the Perseo units did brilliantly,” added Malone. “And rather than having to specify a choice of light or heavy frost, the Perseos have the flexibility of both. The Ayrton optics helped us achieve many precise awkward framing angles easily.”
“They did a storming job,” said Thorpe. “Despite Aideen’s initial request for Ghibli, the specs matched the Perseo Profile in almost all but IP-rating, so they were totally interchangeable, which was perfect from both our perspective as a rental company and the lighting designer’s as an artist.”
Enlightened purchased the Perseo Profiles from Ayrton’s exclusive UK distributor, Ambersphere Solutions. “We have had a great relationship with Ambersphere for years and they always provide an excellent, reliable and honest service,” added Thorpe. “Perseo may be slightly more expensive, but for a little bit extra you get a whole lot more. The pricing of them is sensible across the country and that, combined with their popularity, means we will have a swift return on our investment.”
He concluded: “We kept coming back to the fact that all the alternative options had their failings and were not suitable for that cross over into indoor applications, but Perseo ticked all the boxes. That’s what pushed us. It really is that light that works in all situations.”
