Romper stomper

Stomp’s international touring production recently played an eight night run at Dubai’s Madinat Arena. Ernest Godfrey, managing director of Artes Production and Rental, worked closely with the Stomp production team to bring the Dubai iteration to life.

“We began working with the production company three months before the show came to Dubai,” he says. “Once we received the equipment rider we were able to provide them with more or less exactly what they asked for, despite encountering a few challenges along the way.”

Given the primitive nature of the instruments employed, which include garbage bins and broomsticks, you could be forgiven for thinking that there would be significant issues relating to acoustics and sound reproduction. Godfrey reveals this was far from the case.

“They have an excellent sound engineer who tours with them and the team is well-versed in the show’s production requirements,” he says. “The production runs very smoothly in this sense.”

Rather than equipping each individual ‘instrument’ with a microphone, the production relies largely on two groups of four Sennheiser microphones located at the front and rear of the stage to pick up the ambient sound.

“We had to bring a number of microphones out from the UK with us because the models we were after weren’t available in Dubai,” says Guy Ongley, UK production co-ordinator for Stomp.

“In terms of sound reinforcement, the show doesn’t employ anything that is particularly cutting-edge. For example, there are only about 20 microphones used throughout the production.

“The main challenge we face comes from locating a sound reinforcement system capable of creating the desired effect in the auditorium.”

Godfrey says the Stomp production team specifically requested an older Turbosound PA system for the show, which proved difficult to source.

“They didn’t want the latest and greatest system available,” he explains. “They were looking to recreate a particular sound which the engineer typically achieves with an older Turbosound system which isn’t readily available on the rental market.

“Ninety-nine percent of technical riders we receive from clients these days specifically request we supply a modern line array system, so we found this rider quite challenging to accommodate.

“In the end, we had to work with another Dubai-based equipment rental firm to source various cabinets, which allowed us to put together a system that fulfilled their requirements.”

Ongley, who was working on the Stomp show for the first time, was also a little surprised by this choice.

“Modern systems tend to replicate higher-end frequencies, but this Turbosound system provides just the right amount of bias toward lower and mid-end bass frequencies,” he says.”These frequencies are predominant in the sounds produced by the show’s percussive arrangements.”

Production manager Paul Hennessy, who has worked on Stomp productions in a variety of countries, says he has become used to the bemused responses of equipment rental firms upon taking receipt of the technical rider.

“It’s becoming increasingly difficult to source these older sound reinforcement systems when we take the show abroad,” he says.

“Some rental companies can’t quite comprehend it when we request gear that is often up to 15 years old.

“The system we used in Dubai looked like it had been in storage for some time. The rental guys obviously thought they’d never hire it out again.”

Hennessy says that modern PA systems simply don’t provide the same bottom-end power that is typically supplied by older systems, which is fundamental to the show’s requirements.

“The power of our show from an audio perspective comes from the low- to mid- range. We could use a line array but these systems just don’t offer the same performance in that area,” he says. “By comparison, the older systems, which were designed for use with analogue mixers, lean towards delivering bottom-end power.”

While the production takes a relatively old-school approach to sound reinforcement, the lighting rig is decidedly cutting-edge and equally comprehensive in terms of the number of fixtures employed.

“This is a particularly demanding show in terms of lighting. The sheer volume of lights required is quite unusual for a theatre production of this size,” says Godfrey.

“The production rider called for an unusually large number of Source Four fixtures, which were to be positioned at a variety of angles. Ultimately, we had to bring a large number of fixtures in from the UK, as we couldn’t source the quantity required locally. Even if all the production companies in Dubai had pooled their inventory together, we would have only had half the number of lights required for the production. In the end, we purchased around 200 Source Four fixtures, which we now count as part of our inventory. It’s probably fair to say that we now have the largest number of Source Four fixtures available for hire in the Middle East!”

Hennessy says the lighting rider typically raises as many eyebrows among suppliers as the production’s sound requirements.

“When we toured China, the supplier had every moving light you could imagine, except for those we required for the show. Artes kindly purchased the lights we required for the show in Dubai, which is great for us, particularly if we bring the show back to the region,” he says.

The touring production also employs a dedicated lighting operator, who controls the output of the 206 Source Fours used during the show via multiple dimmers.

“We shipped our own lighting console over, which is an ETC Expression 3,” explains Hennessy. “We couldn’t locate a compatible desk locally.”

The show was put together by three parties based in three different countries with Artes in Dubai, Ongley in the UK and Hennessy on tour with the show.

Godfrey says Artes received the riders well in advance and liaised with Ongley to have the kit ready for the show’s arrival. The Stomp team had the local crew pre-rig the Madinat Arena. With the stage, masking, trussing and seating in place, Hennessy says his team was allowed to focus on fine-tuning the AV installation in the Madinat Arena.

“When we arrive at a venue, the majority of our touring kit has already been delivered ready for set-up,” he explains. “We never request that the lights and sound be pre-rigged – we always handle that side of things ourselves once we are on site.

“In terms of set-up, it’s actually quite a simple production. There are no special effects, no moving lights, no colour scrollers or pyrotechnics. It’s comparable to an old-school rock and roll show – the focus is purely on the performance of the cast members on stage.”

Indeed, Stomp is an unorthodox show, in that it combines intense theatrical and percussive performances.

The production itself is as equally disparate in that it employs a relatively simple set up that relies heavily on hard to source equipment. Ultimately, the volume of static lighting required and the challenge of locating a superseded sound reinforcement system could have proven sticking points for local rental firms. However, the resourcefulness of Artes and Co ensured the show’s success, while providing further evidence of the growing confidence of Dubai’s booming events production and equipment rental industries.