Cody James created the lighting and production design for Yellowcard’s current Ocean Avenue 20th Anniversary Tour with the help from CHAUVET Professional.
“This design was built on two main ideas,” explained James. “I wanted to have no blank space, but at the same time I didn’t want the stage to feel cluttered. Also, I wanted the whole thing to have an almost organic feel, something that felt natural and didn’t take away from the band playing their first shows in seven years.”
His design fills the stage with looks from three large video walls and a collection of intensely bright lighting fixtures rigged in irregular patterns at different heights.
Helping James and his team (Paul Maloof, Peter Therrien and Henry Bordeaux), create this setting are 24 Color STRIKE M, 14 Maverick MK1 Hybrid, and 12 Maverick MK1 Spot fixtures. Like the rest of the rig, these CHAUVET Professional units were supplied by JDI Productions.
“The Color Strike Ms are our main source of saturation and punch to have the lighting distinguish itself from the video wall,” commented James. “It really stands out when I use effects across the plate or the tilt function to convey certain moods at different points throughout the night.”
James is relying on his Maverick fixtures to make statements throughout the rig that complement the images and trippy synth waves that are displayed on the video wall during the show. The strategic positioning of these units was critically important to James’ vision of creating looks that are both full and open. The designer credits United Rigging in helping in this effort.
“United Rigging deserves a lot of credit for supplying the rigging I need to make this show a reality every show,” explained James. “Teamwork has been essential on this tour because we’ve had to do a lot of different things well to make this idea work.”
