MARCH | BIGGER PICTURE
Leap into
action
What: Vault Festival 2019
Where: Waterloo Arches, London
When: 23 January – 17 March
Producer: The Heritage Arts Company
While the year’s start is not synonymous with festivals,
Vault is an exception. It brings nearly two months of
entertainment, with 400+ shows from more than 2,000
artists, featuring new writing in theatre and comedy,
cabaret, immersive experiences, late night parties.
Director Andy George told Access that the main
logistical challenges are the spaces themselves. “We build
the venues from scratch every year, so whether that’s
the rumbling of the trains overhead, network rail doing
engineering works above causing leaks in new places, or
the ongoing battle with humidity - there are always new
challenges every year that spring up where we might not
have had them before. It keeps us on our toes.
“Creating exciting spaces (both in the performance
venues and public bar areas) is key to what we’re trying
to achieve. We aim to do this through close collaboration
between our art director and our head of lighting. We
want the experience of coming to the festival to be more
than just stepping into a theatre. We want the whole
thing to be an adventure. We want to create spaces that
can spark a thousand conversations.”
Vault started back in 2012 using filing cabinets on their
side for audience seating, with some par cans borrowed
from White Light, and a couple of mackie thump speakers
on sticks. “Now in our seventh year, we install 12 venues,
5 bars, and 3 box offices in just 9 days, with full Lx, Sound,
Video and rigging,” George added.
Read the full article at accessaa.co.uk
• Lighting, rigging, power
and SFX hires: White
Light (Since its 2012
inception)
• Sound and video - Stage
Sound Services (since
2014)
• Seating rakes - Steel
08
Deck Ltd (since 2015)
• Lighting, sound and
video: dry hire, and
hosting White Light
apprentices for the
duration of the festival
• Install and de-rig: Steel
Deck