National Youth Music Theatre counts on Cameo
The National Youth Music Theatre (NYMT) in London has already won numerous awards for its musical theatre and musical productions. What makes it special is that the actors are all teenagers and young adults between the ages of 11 and 23 who are cast during extensive auditions. The list of famous graduates is long and ranges from Jessie J to Idris Elba and Jude Law. In the 2024 summer season, the NYMT performed three musicals at London’s Southwark Playhouse Theatre: “Into the Woods”, “Catastrophe Bay”, and “Our House”. Three different lighting designers were in charge of the lighting design. All of whom share a few things in common: the joy of working with young people on and off the stage – and a lighting rig consisting of various Cameo lights.
As the three musicals were performed virtually back to back, the three lighting designers – Jamie Platt (“Our House”), Beth Gupwell (“Catastrophe Bay”), and Aaron J Dootson (“Into the Woods”) – had to devise a common basic lighting rig that would work for all productions: from the fairytale musical classic “Into the Woods” to the folk musical “Catastrophe Bay” and “Our House” with its numerous scenery changes and up-tempo numbers.
Aside from using the EVOS W7 as wash moving heads, the lighting designers also leveraged the excellent combinability of the AZOR series: while the AZOR S2 spot moving heads were placed on the two rear trusses, the AZOR SP2 spot profile moving heads were used as front lights for gobo and aerial effects. PIXBAR 400 IP G2 IP65 RGBW LED bars, which were used as backlights on the floor and in the rear wall, rounded off the lighting rig. “Whether as a classic rear wall light or for backlighting door openings, the PIXBAR 400 IP G2 really impressed me with its output and uniform lenses,” explains Jamie Platt.
“This project is different from most other productions,” comments Bethany Gupwell, lighting designer for Catastrophe Bay. “The most important takeaway becomes giving young people the opportunity to get an insight into what we do and understand how a production of this kind works.” For Bethany, the direct support from experienced colleagues is invaluable for young, up-and-coming talent: “I studied lighting and design, it’s true, but I believe the in-kind support I was given outside of university was just as important. That’s why I am interested in projects such as this one, in order to try to pass on my knowledge similarly.”
“The NYMT is a fantastic platform for particularly talented young artists who are in no way inferior to their famous West End colleagues when it comes to passion, energy, and professionalism,” confirms Jamie Platt. “Not forgetting all those involved backstage – the stage managers, musicians, and technicians, who also work here at the level of major musical productions.”
The Cameo lights for the productions at the National Youth Music Theatre were supplied by Palmer Lighting, based in Eastleigh, Hampshire.
About the Adam Hall Group
The Adam Hall Group is a leading German manufacturer and distributor, providing event technology solutions to business customers worldwide. The target groups include retailers, B2B dealers, event and rental companies, broadcast studios, AV and system integrators, private and public companies and manufacturers of industrial flightcases. Under its brands LD Systems®, Cameo®, Gravity®, Defender®, Palmer®, and Adam Hall®, the company offers a wide range of professional audio and lighting technology as well as stage accessories and flight case hardware. Founded in 1975, the Adam Hall Group has developed into a modern, innovative company for event technology and has over 14,000 square metres of storage space in its Logistics Park at its headquarters near Frankfurt am Main. Thanks to its focus on value creation and service, the Adam Hall Group already has a whole range of international awards for their innovative product developments and future-oriented product design from renowned institutions such as “Red Dot”, “German Design Award” and “iF Industrie Forum Design”. In cooperation with the design agency F. A. Porsche, LD Systems® shows the future of pro audio design with its iconic MAUI® P900 column speakers and was recently honoured with the coveted German Design Award. Further information about the Adam Hall Group can be found online at www.adamhall.com.
The post National Youth Music Theatre counts on Cameo appeared first on Music Instrument News.
Source: musicinstrumentnews.co.uk
