Alfie Boe, a Tony Award winning tenor, completed a successful UK tour with video designed by Stuart Merser of Vis-a-vis Video camera / projection package.
Vector management, Boe’s new management company requested Merser to direct the live video on the strength of his complex and powerful work for Il Divo.
Over time, Merser developed a distinctive visual aesthetic which works extremely well with this classical / musical theatre / pop crossover genre of music and style of performance. It was decided not to use LED screens or onstage video, this was so that IMAG combined with some carefully crafted pre-recorded footage should capture the vibe and ambience of the performance, and assist in scene setting for different segments of the two-hour show.
Merser provided his own Catalyst media server front-end control and requested XL Video to supply a three-camera PPU and side screen projection system. “I use XL for all my live projects,’ he states. XL supplied three Sony HXC-100 HD cameras and a Blackmagic Design 2ME mixer / switcher. The cameras were positioned at FOH, one in the pit on track-and-dolly and one hand-held onstage.
Stuart’s camera mix brought a classic cinematic feel to the show. There were lots of sepia and black and white, together with elegant noir-esque contrasts using the blacks and flare of the cameras, all of which amplified the diverse moods and genres of the music. At other times he introduced a flickering, juddering analog film style with quirky manual effects like hair-in-the-gate.
In some cases the IMAG was collaged with VT footage to anticipate the upcoming music, a technique that proved particularly effective for the format of this show. The Catalyst stored all the playback VT, and all the masks, effects and vignettes were keyed in over the HD feeds in the Blackmagic mixer, a method chosen for its zero latency and huge flexibility.
The mix was beamed onto two 21 x 11-foot side screens each fed by one of XL’s new Barco 26K projectors, which Merser reckons are “Super-punchy’.
