Additionally , the venue features an elevated 135-foot private deck overlooking Lake Ontario and the Toronto skyline from the eastern waterfront , four full-service bars , and upscale bottle service . “ You just can ’ t beat the views ,” Northam says as a side note .
The club itself operates one night a week , on Saturdays , leaving it available for other live and special events the remainder of the week .
To see the lighting and video system at full throttle , delivering a truly one-of-a-kind spectacle , Saturday is the best night to go .
“ I ’ ve had suppliers in town and arranged for them to go [ to REBEL ]. They said , ‘ Sure , we ’ ll check it out and have a drink ,’” Northam shares . The next day , though , he ’ d hear they didn ’ t leave the venue until the wee hours because of the almost hypnotic environment and , more specifically , the light show .
“ They had such a good time they didn ’ t realize they were there until 3 o ’ clock in the morning ,” he says with a chuckle – and that ’ s professionals who regularly work with entertainment technologies .
REBEL prides itself on providing theatrical lighting and video production , experiential storytelling , and engaging live performances that combine state-of-the-art video , lighting , sound , and special effects within a huge 45,000-sq . ft . space with a 65-ft . stage – a stage that ’ s typically inhabited by a renowned performer on REBEL Saturdays .
Beyond lighting , beyond audio , beyond décor , REBEL features what could be described as an immersive , interactive experience incorporating live dancers and entertainment as well as stunning visuals .
The main room boasts an entirely custom-built lighting and video system . Central to that is a moving truss system comprised of three concentric circles of truss that move independently – from the inside out , one 16-ft . truss circle , one 26-ft . truss circle , and a 36-ft . truss circle , all operated via nine Chainmaster Variolift motors and a Chainmaster XYZ motor controller .
As for the fixtures loaded onto each , there are 52 Elation ACL360i moving lights in total secured onto the rings . The rings also feature some 800 4- mm LED video panels lining both their inner and outer surfaces , all of which are controlled by one Madrix Ultimate control dedicated specifically to the rings ’ video elements .
Shooting through and around the truss are several C02 ( smoke ) elements as well as 24 Elation colour pendants suspended over the rings . While static , they can be used to provide pure white , multiple colours , and strobing during the nighttime hours and , additionally , as long-term , long-lived work lights .
Within the rings are a number of “ spokes ” – like those of a bicycle wheel – comprised of 126 , 8-m long SPI RGB LED lighting tracks controlled via the Madrix Ultimate controller . One way to describe them in terms of function is that they are similar to Barco ’ s now-retired Versa Tubes , but far sleeker . And while they definitely add to the wow factor , it ’ s the video elements that put the space over the top .
PHOTO : COURTESY OF INK ENTERTAINMENT
24 • PROFESSIONAL LIGHTING & PRODUCTION