TPI_May

ON THEROAD:Priscilla
get them to do as much as possible on the through, so it’s a very effective visual gag.”
scenic side — supplying all the scenery, the Stage One also developed the driver boards
10m diameter revolve, scissor lifts and the steel for the LEDs. “The LED system takes Art-Net
for reinforcing the ﬂoor — removing any need commands from the grandMA lighting desk,”
to discuss issues with a committee of different continued Gowans, “so we’ve worked closely
suppliers, which I’m happy to live without.” with the [Australian] lighting designer Nick
The scenic elements built by Stage One also Schlieper because we’re putting 40,000 LED
included a full proscenium, four smaller portals pixels in the middle of the stage. If you don’t
positioned at intervals upstage and embedded give the LD a voice in that he’s not going to
with LED ﬂex, and a ﬂown steel framed replica be too happy! So the lighting desk triggers the
of Sydney Harbour Bridge, resplendent in a video sequences and controls the intensity of
variety of lighting. the LED brightness output.
Added to this already impressive list were “We animate different images on the outside
sets for different sequences, such as the Alice of the bus using real-time video. In Australia
Casino and Broken Hill pub, and the glamorous we were responsible for creating many of those
Les Girls, consisting of a ﬂown, candy-pink, full animated sequences as well as testing the LED
height double staircase, featuring columns and system.”
embellished with glitter and fairy lights. The company developed a unique drive
wheel system to facilitate the realistic
BACK ON THE BUS... movements of the bus including a pneumatic air
Costing a cool £700,000, Priscilla herself is system connecting the lower and upper chassis
essentially a steel fra me over which there is a to give it a more realistic driving movement.
‘skin’ of Philips LEDs covered in another layer All of the show’s automation is operated by
of PETG, a form of plastic that was vacuum- Stage One’s renowned motion control system,
moulded to resemble the texture of a real bus. Qmotion. There are 22 axes of automation
Gowans commented: “As PETG is translucent on the bus, which is moved around on eight
we can put the LEDs close behind that layer motors — four of which control the positions
and if we light Priscilla from the outside she just of slew rings while the other four control the
looks like a dirty old silver bus, as she does for positions of the drive wheels.
the ﬁrst half hour. Then when we turn the LEDs Gowans, whose crew was working 24/7
on, we get the colour and movement coming in day and night shifts during the early set-up,
.Inspirations
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At SHOWTECH 2009 morethan
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38 • TPiMAY 09
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