Steven Tyler – singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist best known as lead
singer of legendary American rock band Aerosmith – played a special high profile
concert in the David Geffen Hall at New York City’s Lincoln Center called “Out On a
Limb’, in support of Janie’s Fund, his new philanthropic initiative to serve abused
and neglected girls. Lighting the show was LD Nathan Alves, who used 12 x Robe
BMFL Spots to produce most of the major signature looks.
It was Nathan’s first work with Tyler and the focus was on emphasising the intimate
environment and the delicate subject matter inspiring Janie’s Fund and the launch
concert. So all the production was centred around the star as he related the
narrative of who he is and his personal journey to where he is now.
It was completely different from a standard rock show.
“Everything I did lighting-wise was designed to be unobtrusive – hiding the
technology and highlighting Steven,’ explained Nathan.
The BMFL Spots were positioned on the house fly bars and used as down and
backlights on the set structure.
Nathan likes the crisp, clean well-defined beam of the BMFL and the quality of the
light. “It was a perfect back-light fixture for this show and I also used them as band
specials,’ he commented, observing that the BMFLs also looked great without any
haze, which is one of the challenges of working in this venue.
Nathan thinks Robe is making big strides in the US touring market at the moment.
He’s seen the products in action for several years on overseas shows and said it’s
nice to see them taking off a bit here at home. As a company Robe seems to be
really interested in listening and perfecting their product line – you can’t ask for
more than that from a manufacturer!’
Tyler co-wrote the Grammy award winning “Janie’s Got a Gun’ with Aerosmith
bassist Tom Hamilton in 1989 about a girl’s revenge on her sexually abusive father.
His own statement said he intends to “leave behind something else in this crazy
world along with my music’ through activities with Janie’s Fund in partnership with
Youth Villages – a non-profit organization dedicated to assisting troubled children
and their families.
Tyler’s much anticipated first solo album is expected this summer.
Photo : Theo Wargo (for Getty Images)
