The newly reopened state-of-the-art IMPROV Theater in Tempe has undergone extensive renovations and updates, including a redesign in lighting and upgrade to LED fixtures.
Richard Rutherford, vice president of Rutherford Design production company based in California, specified 36 Chauvet Professional COLORado wash luminaires to light the large stage, also chosen for their flicker-free capabilities.
The stage in Tempe is much bigger than in a regular IMPROV venue,” Rutherford said. “There are 350 seats on lower level, and 150 more on the balcony. Because you’re so far in the balcony, video is played on a screen and we use high-definition cameras. This is why the lighting is very important.”
Using the COLORado fixtures, Rutherford was able to cover the basic front, side and rear positions, which are always critical in TV lighting. “The COLORado lights gave us plenty of output, great adjustment of color temperature and flicker-free operation that is unnoticeable even with our HD cameras. The recordings look excellent.”
Rutherford said that a goal of IMPROV theaters has always been the maintenance of the classic “comedy club” look. The upstage brick wall and logo always needs to read well, both live and on video. The attention to the upstage fixture placement is always critical, as well as creating light positions for performer key lighting.
“In this particular venue, we were able to create excellent upstage positions, as well as mid stage locations left and right,” he added. “Both COLORado 1 VW Tour and COLORado 1 Tour fixtures provided excellent output and efficacy. The video recordings and the live audience visual experience are excellent and creatively flexible.”