Based on the original screenplay of Sleepless in Seattle, Sleepless: A Musical Romance, is the first new indoor musical since theatres closed in March. PRG were on hand to support with lighting, video and LED.
Peter Marshall, Director of Theatre for PRG worked closely with Lighting Designer, Ken Billington, a longstanding client of PRG on both Broadway and the West End. Billington was supported by Associate, Dale Driscoll and Programmer, Victoria Brennan.
Billington used a lighting rig mainly consisting of Mac Viper Performances along with PRG’s new Icon Stage LED profile with lots of GLP X4 wash lights and X4 Bar 20 battens supported by ETC Revolutions and Source Fours.
The musical, which is live at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, is housed in the old Fountain Studios sound stage, which proved tricky to achieve the usual positions of a standard theatre set-up. This meant a large amount of trussing was required to mimic the normal theatre positions and each position had to be created and was unique to the show. With this, any change, no matter how small, impacted the set up, so this was carefully crafted out and installed by Production Electrician Sam Floyd and his team with the support of PRG and rigging from Unusual.
The 106 sq m Everbrighten BR7 LED Display consisted of 426 Active LED tiles spread across 10 LED Columns and 2 LED Banners, which created the backdrop to the show. The key focus was to achieve a 10-bit colour on the LED walls. For the server, Video Designer Ian William Galloway selected the disguise gx 2c media server with Brompton M2 Processing and two Panasonic DZ21K projectors.
The production which is showcased to a socially distanced audience took the safety of all involved very seriously. The producers and venue followed current Government guidelines for and for added safety, Producer, Michael Rose and Damien Sanders sourced COVID-19 Testing which could be done within an hour. Everyone onsite was tested daily to ensure they could operate in a COVID-19 free environment.
Producer of Sleepless, Michael Rose said: “Peter Marshall and all at PRG have been the most incredible supporters, colleagues and friends on everything we’ve done, but in these most challenging of times, they have turned into saviours for our show and our industry. For that, I will always be grateful and humbled. Being professional with a heart and an understanding of what is needed is paramount for any new production – and PRG have got it in bucket loads.
Overwhelmed by Michael Rose’s kind words Peter Marshall, PRG’s Director of Theatre added: “It’s an absolute pleasure to be involved with this exciting new show and especially in the face of adversity given the current turbulent situation the live events and theatre market is facing. Thank you to Michael Rose, Lighting Designer Ken Billington, Video Designer Ian William Galloway and their teams for their enthusiasm, persistence and bravery with this show – the hard work has certainly paid off!”