Signify has announced that its intelligent effects luminaire, the Philips Vari-Lite VL10 BeamWash, has delivered a dynamic performance for the European tour by British singer-songwriter, Tom Odell on his Jubilee Road tour.
Lighting Designer Joe Beardsmore is among the first to have used the VL10 BeamWash on a touring show. With a set ranging from gentle, solo ballads to big, high energy rock numbers, he looked for lighting fixtures capable of producing endless effects versatility. The Philips VL10 BeamWash delivered this, along with the brightness, beam quality and colour palette typical of the Vari-Lite brand. “The VL10 honestly blew me away,” Beardsmore said.
Beardsmore has worked with Odell for two years. “Tom trusts me to complement his show with my best design ideas,” said Beardsmore: “For this tour, I wanted to add some more theatrical elements, to supplement some of the quieter songs in particular. On the UK leg, I used 6 VL10s on the rear truss for big looks, scaling down to single spots for each band member, and punching up for big beam looks and bright washes for the rockier songs. I love that Tom is happy to have a dark stage. I like dropping down to a blackout between most songs, and then building again.”
The Philips VL10’s flexibility helped Beardsmore when he delivered the shows which were rich in contrast and atmosphere, a fitting visual complement to Odell’s varied musical palette. And, when the UK tour transitioned to Europe, Beardsmore experimented further with the Philips VL10’s impressive battery of effects. “In Europe I’ll be aiming for more flexibility.” Beardsmore said: “On some shows they will go onto back- or mid-trusses in the air, while for others I’ll place them in an arc on the floor, for a mixture of mid-air effects and silhouette looks.”
Beardsmore concluded: “Other fixtures come nowhere near to the precise subtlety of this light. When we drop down to maybe one or two lights for a solo number, if I have a gobo rotating or animating, it needs to be super-smooth to not detract from the music – and the VL10 just delivers.”