The entire show , which runs about 35 to 40 minutes , has just over 250 lighting cues .
VIDEO DESIGN Several rooms in The Magic Hour feature the projected artistry of Multimedia Designer Mark Eugster . In the Library , patrons suddenly find themselves projected onto multiple book covers , an effect that both delights and surprises . Similar video capture is used in the living room , where it morphs into an all-encompassing travelogue of all the places we wish we could visit . In the bedroom , projected rain blends with rippling lighting effects before the fury of a volcanic eruption engulfs the room and sends you careening down the Lava Stairwell where you see the devastating effects of human action and inaction on the Earth ’ s fragile ecosystem . Finally , in the very last room , you see the full night sky including two large spheres representing the sun and the moon .
In all , a total of 17 projectors deliver this content , most of them being driven by a number of computers running Isadora software from Troikatronix . Eugster can ’ t speak highly enough about the software : “ Isadora is wonderful for a designer like me because it allows you to modify your content on the fly ,” he remarks . “ It ’ s really shown its strength on this project where we had all the creators collaborating together in the room – to be able to instantly try out different clips and then re-size them on the go , there ’ s no other software in this price range that comes close to the versatility of Isadora . Also , the software is also very well supported , both by its creator and by the huge community of users from around the world .”
Thanks to a generous sponsorship from Epson , The Magic Hour put five of its EV 105 Laser Projectors to good use in tight spaces where other projectors might have looked out of place . Designed for retail environments , the EV 105s sport a sleek round design that could be easily mistaken for a lighting fixture and feature on-board memory , which allows for playback to be triggered via network control .
Eugster does most of his content creation and editing using the Adobe Creative Suite . “ Each piece of software within the Suite is incredibly powerful enough on its own , but the fact that you can easily move content back and forth between the various programs makes this package unparalleled ,” he remarks .
SOUND DESIGN When the three producing companies looked at their pooled resources , it became abundantly clear that some outside support would be needed for the audio department . Innovation Lighting has a long relationship with Proshow Audiovisual and they were happy to come on board as the audio supplier for The Magic Hour .
Sound Designer / Composer Alessandro Juliani worked with Proshow to specify a mix of both powered and passive speakers to deliver over 30 separate tracks of audio throughout the venue . Two Macbook Pros , one for each floor , provided playback via QLab software from Figure 53 .
SHOW CONTROL Although Joel Grinke comes from a theatrical background , he ’ s spent much of the past few years working in themed entertainment with Vancouver-based EOS Lightmedia . This experience has proven invaluable as the market for immersive shows has heated up , and for The Magic Hour , he has put together a central show control system that is both powerful and amazingly simple to use .
While QLab is widely regarded as a live theatre product , Grinke feels its usefulness extends far beyond that and he continuously pushes to find new ways of using the software . For The Magic Hour , a central Mac Mini running QLab sends triggers to the five other audio and video playback computers , the ETC Ion , the five Epson EV 105 projectors , and two Raspberry Pis . To make operation of the show as simple as possible , Grinke has built a user interface using Node-RED . One click fires up a test cue for all the projectors , lighting fixtures , and speakers while another click starts the show . While there have been occasional crashes on some of the content playback machines , the central Mac Mini was rock solid throughout the show ’ s run .
THE FUTURE When asked about the future of immersive shows like The Magic Hour , the verdict among the creative team was unanimous – there will be many more shows like this in the not-too-distant future . Audiences enjoyed seeing something live but in a safe , controlled manner and word of mouth spread quickly . Our original run of Aug . 3 rd to 22 nd was extended two more weeks to Labour Day weekend for a grand total of 24 performances ( although , if you consider each time the show ran beginning to end as a performance , that number was actually well over 2,000 ). The show elicited a broad range of emotions while also making people ponder their own future and the future of our planet . As a theatre creator , that ’ s about the best you can wish for on a show – that it makes people both feel and think .
LIGHTING & VIDEO GEAR
Central Show Control ( all departments )
• 1 x Apple Mac Mini ( QLab and Node Red )
LIGHTING
• 1 x ETC Ion XE
• 1 x ETC Sensor Dimmer Rack ( permanent install )
• 48 x Astera AX3 Lightdrop
• 35 x Astera NYX Bulb
• 16 x Astera AX1 Pixel Tube
• 5 x Astera Titan Tube
• 52 x Chauvet COLORdash PAR H7IP
• 24 x Chauvet COLORband PiX
• 9 x Chauvet Rogue R2 Wash
• 4 x Chauvet Rogue R2X Spot
• 4 x Chauvet 4Bar Flex Q
• 16 x ADJ Saber Spot
• 6 x ADJ Event Bar
• 2 x ADJ H2O LED Water FX
Projector
• 4 x Robe MMX Spot
• 2 x Elation ACL 360i
• 20 x ETC ColorSource Spot ( various lenses )
• 4 x ETC Source Fours
• 6 x Strand 8 ” 2Kw Studio Fresnels
• 8 x Altman 6 ” Fresnels
• 2 x ShowLED Chameleon Star
Drapes ( 30 ’ x 18 ’)
• 3 x Astera Art 7 CRMX Transmitters
• 5 x Chauvet DMX 4 Portable Dimmer Packs
• 2 x Antari HZ500 Hazers
VIDEO
• 1 x Apple Mac Mini ( Node Red and
QLab )
• 1 x Apple Mac Pro ( Isadora )
• 1 x Apple iMac ( Isadora )
• 2 x PC ( Isadora )
• 2 x Raspberry Pi ( Pi Presents )
• 7 x NEC NP622U Projector ( 6,200 lumens )
• 1 x NEC M353WS DLP Ultra Short Throw Projector ( 3,500 Lumens )
• 1 x NEC P554W LCD Projector ( 6,000 lumens )
• 5 x Epson EV 105 3LCD Laser Projector ( 2,000 lumens )
• 2 x Epson PowerLite 2255U Projector ( 5,000 lumens )
• 1 x Panasonic PT-DW6300
Projector ( 6,000 lumens )
• 1 x Haier 32 ” Television
• 1 x Toshiba 40 ” TV
• 1 x Panasonic PT-DW6300 Projector ( 6,000 lumens )
• 2 x Marshall Compact HD Broadcast Camera
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