STAGECO NEWS Spring 2015

Page 1

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

AN OCCULAR FANTASY Building a Spectacle for Kuwait

The BRIT Awards 2015 Pioneering Spirit Inauguration K3 On Tour U2-1 In Times Square Berlin Wall: 25 Years On

SPRING 2015

Roc City Classic Goodbye, Earls Court Yuletide in Carcassonne Stageco: The Book ...and more

W W W. S TAG E C O. C O M


2

Diversity Is The Key INTERNATIONAL NEWS

IN THIS ISSUE SPRING 2015

3 • LADY GAGA & TONY BENNETT 4 • THE BELGIANS AND THE BRITS 7 • BERLIN WALL: 25 YEARS ON 8 • U2-1 IN TIMES SQUARE 9 • LES FÉÉRIES DE NOEL + STAGECO’S POLLSTAR AWARD 10 • A PIONEERING INAUGURATION + NEW CDM GUIDANCE 11 • K3: GIRL POWER ON TOUR 12 • OCCULAR FANTASY IN KUWAIT

Cover photograph courtesy of Laser System Europe

14 • ROC NATION CLASSIC 15 • GOODBYE, EARLS COURT 16 • MALTESE MISSION 17 • STAGECO IN HARDBACK

Daffodils are beginning to bloom and that’s always a good sign for us at Stageco, especially our crew who work hard all year round, in all kinds of weather... but a warm and sunny climate tends to be an obvious favourite. Bring it on! This issue of our International News bulletin hopefully demonstrates the diversity of Stageco’s activities around the world. For once, I have to disagree with our client Sir Mick Jagger – it really isn’t “only rock’n’roll”. In fact, over the last few months, we have been busy on a seriously interesting range of projects, covering a high profile fashion show, a pair of extravagant marine adventures, a grand opening event in Kuwait City and a Yuletide theme park in the south of France. And this doesn’t include the many corporate jobs that we prevented from mentioning due to confidentiality agreements. Naturally, music has also kept us active, with major awards shows and a U2 performance on World AIDS Day that was notable for Bono’s absence. We hope he is recovering well from his cycling accident. But there has been another project that has been brewing for the last couple of years and it about to be launched to our friends, families, clients and the industry at large. Geert Vandenbon’s book on the history of Stageco is a wonderful, enlightening piece of work – one that could only have been borne of genuine passion and interest in music, creativity, technical ingenuity and the chemistry that exists between people who are driven to succeed. I am immensely proud of what he has achieved, if a little embarrassed by the many photos of my younger self from decades past. Some basic details of Geert’s book appear in this edition. Happy reading... see you again in the Summer! Hedwig De Meyer, Stageco President

SPRING 2015

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS


3

A Cheeky Night In Brussels

When the world’s flashiest disco diva teamed up in Brussels with the laid-back master of American jazz, Stageco was there to put a roof over their heads… Recorded in New York City, Cheek To Cheek is a brand new album of jazz classics that showcases the successful collaboration between the legendary Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, artists from two distinctly contrasting musical eras whose shared love of the genre encouraged them to introduce songs such as Cole Porter’s ‘Anything Goes’ and Duke Ellington’s ‘It Don’t Mean A Thing’ to a younger generation. On the evening of the album’s release last September, Universal Music Belgium hosted a special one-off performance by Bennett and Gaga at the beautifully lit Grand Place in Brussels, as a prelude to the Fête de la Federation Wallonie – a series of concerts celebrating the French-speaking part of Belgium. Filmed with 4K cameras for worldwide broadcast, the production was assisted by Stageco who built a 16m x 9m arched stage with a transparent canopy in combination with a 14m catwalk that connected a B-stage with the main performance area. Headquartered just 30km from the Belgian capital, Stageco covered the small, 6m x 4m B-stage with a BJ-Roof and an

additional transparent canopy, whilst providing decking for disabled audience members and the cranes deployed for the TV cameras. Stageco crew chief Olivier Emoux led a team of 26 for the two-day production build, while Stijn Bortels headed an 18-strong crew for the load-out. They both reported to event production manager Erik Lybeer of EVL Productions who was working in co-operation with Geoffrey Campé and Stéphane Rischette of BME. “I was very proud of our crew,” said Stageco project manager Lies Rombouts. “This job was pending for quite a while and it was only a week before load-in that we received confirmation of the Bennett/ Gaga performance. “Some elements of the job were cleared just one day before we arrived on-site and right up until the end of our load-in the details about the camera cranes kept changing. Nevertheless, our crew managed to get the job done with a good spirit, delivering a great result as part of a happy production.” The [London] Telegraph’s Anne Billson described the show as a “cross-generational triumph” and as the ink of her review was drying, Cheek To Cheek débuted at No.1 on the Billboard album chart. A fine start for one of the most unlikely duos since David Bowie and Bing Crosby!

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS

SPRING 2015


4 The O2 Arena, London; February 25 2015

The Belgians And The BRITs

Show photography © John Marshall/JM Enternational Trophy styled by Tracey Emin

‘International Female Solo Artist of the Year’ Taylor Swift may have kicked off the evening with her No.1 hit ‘Blank Space’ but with artist Tracey Emin’s elegant neon signage filling the auditorium, London’s O2 Arena was far from a blank space when TV personalities Ant & Dec hosted the MasterCard-sponsored BRIT Awards 2015 on Wednesday 25th February. The first of many sensational performances, Swift’s lively opener was followed by fellow award winners Sam Smith, Ed Sheeran, Royal Blood, James Bay and Paloma Faith, along with Take That, George Ezra, Kanye West and headline-grabbing Madonna. The annual event has created its fair share of memories for both the public and the live production world since it began in the late ’70s. Back in 1997, the BRITs featured not only the Spice Girls’ ‘Girl Power’ showSPRING 2015

case but also Stageco’s début as staging provider. Eighteen years later, the 2015 edition served as evidence that Stageco’s role is as crucial as ever. Stageco became involved as a direct result of its work on Tina Turner’s Wildest Dreams world tour of 1996. Mick Kluczynski, then production manager of the BRITs, was a site co-ordinator for Turner’s tour and was immediately impressed with Stageco’s professionalism. Project manager Luc Dardenne takes up the story: “That’s when I first met Mick. When he returned to his office after being on tour, he excitedly told his team that he had found the new staging supplier for the BRITs, and we were delighted. Since then we’ve never stopped and I’ve personally only missed one edition of the show.” STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS


5 Madonna. Below: Project manager Luc Dardenne and crew chief Stefaan Vandenbosch.

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Show photography © John Marshall/JM Enternational • Crew photography © Mark Cunningham

FOUNDATION As usual, Stageco’s brief came from Technical Production Manager Tony Wheeler and Papilo Productions, under the auspices of BRIT Awards Productions. Accordingly, Dardenne worked alongside account manager Dirk De Decker and crew chief Stefaan Vandenbosch to provide all of the staging as well as numerous platforms and risers for spotlights, cameras and show control, with the help of regular crew partner Showstars. “Stageco effectively supplies the foundation of the show for others, like set company Steel Monkey, to build upon,” says Dardenne. “Our stage is 30 metres wide by 25 metres deep, but directly behind that is another stage area [18m x 20m] on which the performing artists’ changeovers and set pieces are prepared.” At the rear of the O2 Arena, Stageco provided a two metre high platform to accommodate the lighting and sound control consoles manned by PRG and Britannia Row. Lighting designer Al Gurdon specified eight spot platforms, while another platform was brought in as a monitoring control base for rigging motors. Dardenne: “This year, for the first time, we have added a winch platform for the spidercam, which was attached to two winch cables and ran up and

SPRING 2015


6

Above, from top: In rehearsal, two days before the show. Middle row: Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran & Paloma Faith in the ‘rain’. Third row: Take That, Sam Smith & Kanye West with posse. Below: The catwalk.

Show photography © John Marshall/JM Enternational Trophy styled by Tracey Emin • Rehearsal photography © Mark Cunningham

down the presenters’ walkway for a large amount of shots. We also supplied platforms for CTV’s camera crew, jib cranes and track.” LOADING IN Stageco’s work began six days before the show when the team arrived to unload its trailers on Thursday 19th. The following evening, after building the various platforms, tracks and risers, the Belgians concentrated on the stage. When Stageco serviced the last BRITs at Earls Court in 2010, it provided a team of 20 crew and 30 fully loaded trailers full of equipment. But

SPRING 2015

times have changed, along with demands, as Dardenne explains. “We were then also building a seating area for 400 dinner tables with 90m x 80m of steel, which was a big undertaking. But since it moved to the O2 four years ago, where the tables are either on the arena floor or in a party tent, we have gone down to just five trailers and an eightman team as well as the Showstars guys. “While it now involves less equipment and, ultimately, less pressure, it’s still the major commitment that it’s always been, and we are very proud to be associated with this world-class event.”

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS


S TA G E C

O

Berlin Wall: 25 Years On

HL

AND

for the main show element – a moving LED screen – served to frame the stages from end to end. The LED track was approximately 80 metres long including two bends. This was the first time that a project of this kind had been implemented outdoors: a horizontally travelling video screen measuring 27 metres wide x 11 metres high, and split into six modules. The track system and the kinetic elements were

D E U TS C

Thankful and yet contemplative: this is how over half a million people in Berlin celebrated the 25th anniversary of the historic fall of the Berlin Wall. Five years after the last commemorative event, Stageco Deutschland was again responsible for the main structural work. Two transparent Micro Arch stages were set up (one to the left and one to the right of the Brandenburg Gate) and linked by a runway. The substructure

implemented by WICreation, while XL Video, PRG (lighting) and POOLgroup (audio) were the other main production suppliers. The result was a thoroughly satisfied client and a show that left people with lasting memories of that miraculous day on November 9th 1989. Stageco Deutschland GmbH is proud to have played its part in the success of the celebrations.

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS

SPRING 2015

7


AG

EC O U

U2-1 In Times Square

ST

S

Commemorating World AIDS Day on December 1st, ‘U2 Minus 1 – Live In New York Tonight’ was the title given to a free, one-off concert by the Irish band, in a rainy Times Square. Frontman Bono was absent due to the multiple injuries he sustained in a bike accident, however, his role was covered in style by none other than Bruce Springsteen and Coldplay’s Chris Martin. Stageco US was delighted to support the New York event which was built up overnight. Headed by project manager Tom Frederickx, the company supplied an 81 metre long scaffolding wall, the front of house riser, eight delay towers and camera platforms amongst four trailer loads of equipment. Jim Ramacus, John Campbell, Tom Krof, Danny Ravas and Oskar Gentry formed Stageco US’s crew for the event. The concert, which attracted thousands, also featured Carrie Underwood and Kanye West, as well as contributions from US President Barack Obama and ex-President Bill Clinton. Presenting the show, Bank of America pledged to donate US$3 million to (RED), the organisation created to engage the public in the fight to end AIDS in Africa.

Performance photography © Kevin Mazur

8

SPRING 2015

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS


G

Ice, Ice Baby!

EC N

CE

and scaffolding. Project manager Thierry Nataf commented: “This is always a very special job for us and it was extra special because it was the 10th anniversary of Les Fééries de Noel, with a new design and new attractions.” WHATEVER THE WEATHER The project required a seven-day build and four-day breakdown, with a local crew supervised by Stageco’s Olivier Daulon and William Pacetti. Dirk Van De Goor was the R&D leader on the project. “It was a great example of Stageco doing a job on time, whatever the weather,” said Nataf, “and everyone involved enjoyed the success of it all.”

O FRA

From December 6th until January 4th, Les Fééries de Noel in Carcassonne, a medieval World Heritage town in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of the south of France, captivated families and young and old people alike with its generous seasonal offering of a giant skating rink, impressive ice toboggan runs, a big wheel, fair rides and street musicians. Since 2004, Stageco France has been providing services to the annual Yuletide event, specifically the infrastructure for the ice rink, snow carting and other equipment for bobsleigh tracks and Tyrolienne cable transport. For the most recent edition, Stageco France supplied four truckloads of decking system

9

S TA

On A Roll In Nashville

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Paul McCartney © MJ Kim

At the 26th annual Pollstar Concert Industry Awards on February 21st, Stageco was honoured to be voted Staging Equipment Company of the Year by concert promoters, booking agents, managers and other industry professionals. Further associated ’glory’ came when Sir Paul McCartney’s took the headline award of the evening – the Major Tour of the Year Prize – for his Out There world tour whose staging was provided by Stageco as part of a long-standing artist/vendor relationship. We warmly congratulate Sir Paul, Barrie Marshall, Mark Spring and his production team on winning the legend’s third Pollstar award – he previously won in 1990 and 2002. The Pollstar event was held at Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, USA.

SPRING 2015


O NEDE

AND

In Rotterdam’s Princess Alexia Harbour on February 27th, Stageco Netherlands assisted with the inauguration of the world’s largest sea vessel, the Pioneering Spirit. Constructed at the Daewoo shipyard in Korea and completed in the Netherlands, the ship – operated by Allseas Marine Contractors – measures 382m long, has a breadth of 123.75m and has a gross tonnage of 403,342 gt. Featuring a presentation by Edward Heerema, the founder and CEO of Allseas, and the man behind the concept of the ship, February’s reception attracted thousands of guests and was as grand as the ship’s impressive facilities. Commissioned by Production World’s CEO and producer Jeroen Backx, Stageco Netherlands built a Giant Arch of 42m x 48m with copious amounts of scaffolding to form a grandstand, staircases and walkways. Four electronic lifts were also

E

C

A Pioneering Inauguration

STA G

RL

10

installed in the dining room for artists and catering. Stageco’s project manager Eddie Slotboom said: “It took us three and a half weeks to build everything and the breakdown and load-out lasted for around 10 days. “The most challenging aspect was the site itself, being on the water. Trucks couldn’t be used so all our equipment arrived by ship and the crew travelled to work by water taxi. This size of the project already makes it one of the biggest and most prestigious of 2015 for us.” Jeroen Backx commented: “From day one of the advancing period to last day of the load out, Stageco gave us maximum support. In a complicated production like this, with all its logistical challenges, they were a very welcome partner and the best on the AutoCAD drawing table. I dare say they proved to be our No.1 supplier.”

CDM Guidance In the UK, revised HSE guidelines for the new Construction Design and Management (CDM) regulations will come into force on April 6th and will affect all event sites. Meanwhile, an industry group of staging providers – including Stageco – has collaborated to create a new guidance document. The ‘Guidance for the Management & Use of Stages and other related temporary event structures’

SPRING 2015

aims to clarity working practices within the temporary structures and staging industry. The comprehensive guidance is freely available from contributors’ websites to help anyone who has duties under the revised CDM regulations to prepare in advance of their introduction on April 6th 2015. It builds on the HSE (Health and Safety Executive) draft guidance issued on its website on January 9th

2015, following a considerable period of consultation by professionals within the industry. Tom Bilsen, Operations Director at Stageco, commented: “I am very happy that, as suppliers, we have collectively invested our time and expertise to arrive at an understandable, agreed, generally usable code, with very practical guidance for suppliers, organisers, promoters and even enforcers.”

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS


S TA

EC

K3’s Girl Power On Tour

O BEL IU

M

– loaded with material to build a 20m x 13.5m indoor stage – accompanied by a core crew headed by Dimitri Christiaens and the always good-humoured Seppe Cannaerts, both of whom did a splendid job. PRE-SHOW As the crew always had a very tight time slot of four hours to complete their pre-show work, they built the stage on wheels, enabling it to be rolled into the correct position once the production

G

A product of entertainment company Studio 100 and immensely popular in Belgium and the Netherlands, K3 is a Flemish all-girl band with a Dutch repertoire, mainly aimed at children under 13. The band’s latest tour – K3 Kan Het – kicked off on September 22nd at Antwerp’s and played in 10 venues before closing Ethias Arena in Hasselt on March 15th. Stageco Belgium supported the band throughout the tour, supplying one trailer of equipment at each location

11

G

was finished. The sides of the stage had to ‘float’ so they could roll over the existing ground support. An exceptionally large (14.50m x 1.03m) disabled access ramp was also built. At each show, a number of children were invited on to the stage to take part in the show, and it was always a possibility that one or more of them might be wheelchair-bound. Other venues on the tour included Amsterdam’s Heineken Music Hall and the Ahoy in Rotterdam.

Photography courtesy of Studio 100

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS

SPRING 2015


S TA

EC

An Occular Fantasy

O BEL

the company’s design experience and equipment previously seen in the form of the Giant Arch for Pink Floyd’s 1994 world tour and the Olympic Games in Salt Lake City. The structure featured two 20m wide x 16m high ovals connected together by truss links to form an ‘eye’. The first oval contained pyro and lighting fixtures while the second housed a water curtain and fountains. A basin was built at the bottom of the ovals to collect the water. Other work included the building of scaffolding structures for LED video screens.

Photography courtesy of Laser System Europe & Antonio Duarte Da Cruz

TWIN OVALS While Erik Lybeer acted as production manager, Wim Maes managed the Stageco side of the project, calling on Luc Dardenne’s skills as a designer. A custom structure using Stageco’s steel 750 tower system benefited from

M

provide the structures. High profile, big budget projects in strange locations tend to be the norm for LSE owner Patrick Awouters, and Stageco has been involved in more than its fair share of them.

G

STAGECO BELGIUM DEFIES OBSTACLES TO HELP CREATE MEMORABLE OPENING IN KUWAIT CITY

At the beginning of the year, Stageco Belgium shipped seven containers of equipment to Kuwait City in preparation for the official March 4th 2015 opening of Shuhada Park’s new Green Belt Garden, attended by the 5th Emir of Kuwait, Sabah IV Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah GCB, the Crown Prince and other dignitaries. The production of the event – which included a wealth of water, fire, lighting and laser effects – was run by fellow Belgian company Laser System Europe (LSE), which hired Stageco Belgium to

G

IU

12

SPRING 2015

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS


13

frame that was made even more difficult by a number of obstacles – the delayed arrival of the containers and heavy snowfall detaining the crew at a Turkish airport were just two of the problems to overcome. But eventually everything turned out well. Stageco’s crew reportedly did a fine job on-site, solving the challenge of

fitting the one metre pieces and trapezium-shaped items together perfectly. This was no mean feat as there is less margin for error with this design than with Stageco’s regular stages. It was yet another memorable and very special project to add to the company’s history book of technical achievements.

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS

SPRING 2015

Photography courtesy of Laser System Europe & Antonio Duarte Da Cruz

RESCHEDULED Antonio Duarte Da Cruz headed a Stageco crew of eight and all agreed on how unique this event was. In fact, preparations began in 2013 but the project was rescheduled three times until Stageco Belgium finally received the go ahead at the end of 2014. Naturally, this left a very tight time


SPRING 2015

EC O U

Stageco US was extremely excited to work with Roc Nation and the NBA recently when its client, Diversified Production Services, provided the logistical co-ordination and planning of the 1st Annual Roc City Classic concert in New York City’s Flatiron Square – an event that merged the interests of music and basketball fans alike. Despite freezing temperatures and a compressed time frame, Stageco US assisted the set-up and completion of the event, and began by manoeuvring two trailers of gear deep in to the heart of Manhattan. The company provided the two main audio towers, the two video support platforms, one spot tower with a video wall and front of house riser. While the production and steel crew worked through the night and into the day, Kanye West, Oklahoma City Thunder basketball star Kevin Durant and other special guests prepared for the evening’s festivities. They were met with an expectant and

AG

Roc Nation Classic Shoots To Win

ST

S

14

excited crowd of around 10,000 people. Although the cold wind and tight spacing served as a hurdle to the event, it did not serve as an obstacle to the thousands that attended – Jay-Z and Beyoncé being among them. DAZZLING The free-to-attend February 12th concert, which celebrated the following weekend’s NBA All-Star Game, exploded with great performances, dazzling lights and bass-heavy sound. After the show ended and the lights and sound faded into the night, the production and steel team commenced yet another fast extraction of the gear. Stageco’s crew, James Ramacus (chief), Ray Magnum and Fred Einhorn completed this process the following afternoon, ensuring that Flatiron Square was restored to her previous image within the bustling metropolis that is The Big Apple. STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS


15

Goodbye, Earls Court

At the Victoria’s Secret show, Stageco built 30m long, 20m wide and 9m high seating blocks on each side of the 34m long substructure for the catwalk, the main stage, the control tower and the 1,323 square metres of backstage area. Everything was built from scaffolding – there were 10 trailer loads of equipment – and built absolutely accurately, as the set décor had to fit on these substructures. Assisted by crew from Showstars, Stageco worked day and night shifts, led by Antonio Duarte Da Cruz (below right), who remained on-site for the following two events and, notably, the massive changeover after the VS show. Everything was broken down between events and a new stage was created with the existing stock of equipment. As the each show was smaller than its predecessor, Stageco was able to return any unwanted equipment at the end of each teardown. The stages for BBC Music Awards and Bombay Bicycle Club were standard indoor scaffolding-type stages. The production managers of these events were, in chronolgical order, Anthea Roy for OBO (the international creative and production management group that works on behalf of Victoria’s Secret), Tony Wheeler (BBC Music Awards) and Neil McDonald (Bombay Bicycle Club).

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS

SPRING 2015

Photography © Dimitrios Kambouris / Paul Stich / Mark Cunningham

Last December witnessed the last live events ever to be staged at London’s Earls Court Exhibition Centre, the iconic venue originally opened in 1887 and rebuilt in 1937, with a history of live music dating back to 1973 when Pink Floyd presented their new album The Dark Side Of The Moon over two nights. In the years that followed, the Floyd returned with their milestone The Wall and The Division Bell concerts, while the venue has also hosted memorable shows by Led Zeppelin, Elton John, Billy Joel, U2, Queen, David Bowie, The Rolling Stones, Sir Paul McCartney, Madonna, Oasis, Take That, Spice Girls, Iron Maiden and Muse among many major artists. As a live venue, the final curtain came down on the building on December 13th, when Bombay Bicycle Club performed the last concert and invited special guest David Gilmour to play the Floyd’s ‘Wish You Were Here’ as a tribute to Earls Court. The emotion was palpable. The last of three events that signalled the end of the road for the venue, the concert was preceded by the inaugural BBC Music Awards and the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show – the first to be held in London. And all three events featured the work of Stageco.


O

D E U TS C

Maltese Mission

S TA G E C

HL

AND

16

In September 2014, Stageco Deutschland undertook an unorthodox project in Malta. In celebration of Deutsche Vermögensberatung AG’s 40th anniversary, four AIDA cruise ships with more than 6,500 invited guests onboard headed for the historic harbour of Valetta where Stageco erected a 2,000m² platform. The total build took just under a week of day and night shifts. Nine trailers’ worth of construction material were used during this period to transform the harbour into an event area complete with infrastructure. The constructions were fitted into the harbour basin according to the client’s design specifications. The height of the main platform and the points connecting it to the quay had to be meticulously aligned to guarantee a clear view of the harbour’s historic façades and the show stage. All railings used (approx. 240m in total) were custom-built to match the design of the existing harbour railings. A special challenge was posed because the deep water harbour had to remain in operation throughout the entire assembly period, i.e. cruise ships were docking and leaving on a daily basis, which made materials logistics difficult. The vast majority of materials were therefore delivered to the building site at night. This was also the first time that a fully-equipped diving team was deployed on a Stageco construction site of this scale. All structural work was handed over on time so that the cruise ships were able to enter the harbour from 3pm onwards on the day of the event. Chief Executive of Deutsche Vermögensberatung AG, Andreas Pohl greeted the guests, after which the event was launched with international music acts including Gloria Gaynor and Kim Wilde.

SPRING 2015

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS


17

Stageco 30: Available In Hardback! MEET GEERT VANDENBON, THE AUTHOR BEHIND THE FASCINATING NEW BOOK ON STAGECO’S HISTORY Author and designer Geert Vandenbon has spent the last seven years researching the history of Stageco since it emerged through the development of the Rock Werchter festival, and the dynamic partnership of Hedwig De Meyer and Herman Schueremans. The result is ‘Stageco – 30 Years: From Werchter To The World’, a luxurious hardback book that will be treasured by anyone with a keen interest in stage technology, set design and the world of entertainment production. As De Meyer writes in his foreword, “We have been granted a fascinating life thanks to the world of touring. Watch, read and enjoy over 30 years of Stageco. We’re proud of it.” With more than 300 pages packed with rich, fascinating text and rare photography, the book is not only a journey through the trials, tribulations, innovation and milestone successes earned over Stageco’s 30-year existence. Along the way, it also serves as an in-depth study of how the live event production industry has radically changed since the naive days of The Beatles’ first stadium concerts of the mid-

1960s, and how technology has been developed to solve the challenges laid down by artists and promoters, and meet the expectations of audiences. ‘Stageco – 30 Years: From Werchter To The World’ is largely based on the countless interviews that Vandenbon has conducted with staff, crew, associates, clients past and present, and even family members. Vandenbon – who first came into contact with the company when he worked as the technical producer of the Tour of Flanders road cycling race – considers his extended meeting in 2011 with Mark Fisher to be one of the many highlights of his project. He says: “I was tremendously fascinated by the adventures… it’s the story of people who pursue their dreams. My admiration has only deepened.” The book, which also features an exclusive introduction written by the members of U2, is published in both Flemish and English versions by the author’s own imprint, Pinguin Productions, and is avaiable from Stageco’s website from April 1st 2015.

INTERNATIONAL OFFICES Stageco Deutschland GmbH Schäfflerstrasse 13 86343 Königsbrunn Tel: +49 821 440 22 0 Fax: +49 821 440 22 22 info.deutschland@stageco.com

Stageco Austria Heigerleinstraße 23/31 A-1160 Wien Tel: +43 1 48 11 513 Fax: +43 1 48 11 513 20 info.austria@stageco.com

Stageco U.S. Inc 8755 Vollmer Road Colorado Springs CO 80908 Tel: +1 719 495 9497 Fax: +1 719 495 9098 info.us@stageco.com

Stageco France sarl 158, Le Petit Palais 84800 L’Isle sur Sorgue Tel: +33 4 90 20 90 90 Fax: +33 4 90 20 90 31 info.france@stageco.com

Stageco Nederland b.v. Aalsvoort 14 7241 MA Lochem Tel: +31 573 25 63 02 Fax: +31 573 25 60 62 info.nederland@stageco.com

Stageco Deutschland GmbH Herzbergstrasse 120 10365 Berlin Tel: +49 30 54 98 72 40 Fax: +49 30 54 98 72 44 info.berlin@stageco.com

StagecoU.S. Inc Manheim 181 E. Stiegel St. Manheim, PA 17545 Tel: +1 866 782 4326

STAGECO INTERNATIONAL NEWS

info.us@stageco.com

SPRING 2015

Photography © Geert Vandenbon / Mark Cunningham

Stageco Belgium N.V. Kapelleweg 6 3150 Tildonk Tel: +32 16 60 84 71 Fax: +32 16 60 10 61 info@stageco.com


STAGECO CELEBRATING 30 YEARS

FROM WERCHTER TO THE WORLD

IF YOU CAN IMAGINE I T WE CAN BUILD I T


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.