EVENT FOCUS
and concert season with shortages likely, I contracted suppliers early: Solotech for audio, lights from Colour Sound Experiment, video from 4Wall Entertainment, TAIT for staging, Ataka for local riggers, BPM SFX for special effects and lasers, Eat to The Beat for catering and DNG PEC for local crew. They are all companies I have enjoyed long, strong relationships with, so I not only wanted to make sure we secured them, but it meant budgets were fixed well in advance, which was important for the clients. We also brought in our own CP security and COVID-19 testing teams”. The Wembley Square Red Carpet Stage was the first time that The Wembley Arena Square has been used for a live performance. Symphotech took the lead on health and safety and site use in discussions with the Wembley Park landlords, Quintain. “There have been red carpet events on the Square before, but this was the first time it’s hosted a stage as well,” Barrington noted. “In Singapore, there is lots of space around the venue to do the outdoor element of the show the clients are used to – that is not the case around Wembley. We brought in a covered stage, but the limited space in the Square meant that we had to dismantle barriers and carpet and secure the stage between the shows to allow for ingress and egress. Evolution Stages and UK Events Group gave us attentive, flexible service and working in that area was a great success.” Barrington worked with Managing Director, Will Hodgson, who focused on the health and safety aspects of the red-carpet element and
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supported him on site throughout the weekend. Also on the job were Symphotech’s Dominic Walker and Jason Quinn, Stage Managers; Mish, Amy, Souren and Grace on artist liaison; and Russell Pate looking after HallyuTown management alongside Scott Leven looking after site safety. With 14 artists all coming with their own entourage, the logistics were challenging. “We have been through a lot of changes to make the design work in Wembley,” Nash revealed. “Simon has the patience of a saint to take on a lot of updates for 14 artists being channelled through one director. We treat them all as headliners, with full production throughout the show, so it’s been full-on from the moment we started rehearsals. We’ve also run constant COVID-19 testing – something that was thrown into the mix last minute, with it now being a requirement to re-enter South Korea.” Yet despite the challenges, Nash was very pleased with the results. “The appetite from the fans for bringing K-Pop to the UK was instantly apparent – we had 20,000-plus people register interest for tickets within 24 hours of announcing the dates,” he concluded. “The pandemic reduced the size of our team, so we refined our processes and infrastructure coming back to make this work. Without bringing in Symphotech, we would not have been able to deliver this show – especially given how detailed the Koreans are with what is a very technically advanced production.” www.hallyupopfest.com www.symphotech.co.uk
Symphotech Director, Simon Barrington; TEG Live Europe’s Promoter Representative and Operations Manager for HallyuPopFest, Alex Nash; Symphotech’s Will Hodgson.