Taking place every year at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre, the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Ball is one of the state’s largest fundraising events. For the second year, the experienced Rescue Ball Team behind the Regency Era-inspired night of entertainment brought in Forefront Productions.
With the desire of providing the most excellent and seamless experience for the over 2000 people in attendance, Forefront was able to use its extensive inventory to provide comprehensive Audio, Lighting and Video rig. This included a massive deployment of PixaPanel LED video screens, our Adamson CS10 and CS7 line arrays and a wide range of lighting fixtures.
AUDIO
With a full band, multiple items and keynote speakers across the night, the audio requirements for the event were significant. To provide excellent clarity and fidelity to every seat, Forefront relied on the advanced Adamson CS10 Line Array System As the main array, as well as its smaller brother, the CS7 Line Array, for Side Fill. This alongside the CS119 Sub elements perfectly fitted the occasion; ensuring each keynote speaker could easily captivate the audience, whilst also elevating the band’s performance and bringing ample energy to the dance floor.
Alongside the excellent PA, the deployment of a pair of DiGiCo consoles ensured that the front-of-house and monitor engineers could easily approach multiple performances and an extensive list of line inputs. The console of choice at Front-of-House was one of Forefront’s newest additions to its inventory, the Quantum 225, with a DiGiCo SD10 at monitors.
LIGHTING
To achieve a spectacular visual presence to match, the team at Forefront designed a lighting rig that would elevate every aspect of the night. This rig would include Martin Mac Quantum Profiles, Martin Viper Performance Profiles and Martin Rush MH11 Beam moving heads, as well as a number of PixaPanel FlatPar Quad and PixaPanel 4 way LED Blinders for vibrant wash and house lights. Creatively programmed on the grandMA2 light console, every element of the ball provided a visual feast for the eyes whilst remaining true to the theme and requirements of the night.
VIDEO
The team at Forefront would also need to consider the important video requirements for the event, including a variety of pre-recorded content, graphics, and image magnification. They would also need to consider the need for video displays in every direction, to account for the sightlines of every patron seated around a round table. To account for this, four large 5.5m x 3m LED screens were strategically positioned around the room, made up of a total of 132 PixaPanel E3 Panels and 66 PixaPanel T5 Panels, providing detailed and vibrant representation for every form of video content to be used on the night.
THE MOST IMPORTANT ELEMENT
More important than equipment, Forefront’s most valuable contribution to the event was its personnel, and the extensive experience they brought to the table. Well before stepping foot into the venue, the Forefront team were hard at work planning and prepping, ensuring every detail and element was accounted for. This process included constant and clear communication with the client – a vital aspect of the success of any event. On the night itself, the team at Forefront operated across all aspects of the production, ensuring flawless execution and the best result possible for the client and everyone involved.
It is a privilege to partner with Westpac Rescue Helicopter Services in 2023 and look forward to working with them again!
