Townsville Civic Theatre recently invested in the new Acme Lighting technology. The ULA Group team worked closely with Nate Leslie, senior lighting technician at the venue, to specify the best lighting technology suited for their theatre and the type of shows and performances they host.
“As touring companies and hirers are constantly looking for more effects and creativity in lighting, the Townsville Civic Theatre saw the need to expand on our existing LED and moving light rig to facilitate these demands”, says Nate, sharing the background information which lead to the purchase. “To enable our standard lighting rig to be as diverse and effective as possible, we were looking for fixtures that weren’t just a one-look-wonder, and could fulfil a multitude of purposes”, he explains.
During a shootout of many fixtures within the category, the Acme lights outperformed the other brands and were an obvious choice for Nate and his team.
“We purchased 10x Acme 20R BSW Spartan moving head fixtures, in dual cases. They are very versatile with amazing punch. The Spartan delivers a very powerful beam, however it’s wide zoom also allows for full stage coverage for colour wash and gobo texturing, without scrimping on the intensity output. Their CMY colour mix, smooth zoom, dimming and gobo range, have been a wonderful compliment to the theatre,” Nate confirms.
They have also purchased 18x Acme 400Z LED MultiPARs for overhead and backlight stage colour. “This unit was selected over several other units from other industry manufacturers due to its strong colour, silent operation and smooth edge/blend. An added bonus was the quick zoom function. To be able to DMX adjust beam size is a great feature, but with the much quicker zoom it also open up possibilities for dynamic effects”, says Nate. “Another reason for the decision was the use of a deeper blue LED chip, assisting in deeper colouring to the stage. The range of colours and selective focusability of the zoom has been a great resource for lighting design and programming”, he adds.
Since re-opening the Civic Theatre in July, the new Acme lighting fixtures have been used for variety concerts, rock bands, as well as productions of Les Miserable and Strictly Ballroom.
