STAGE TECHNOLOGY
94 AUDITORIA 2019 VOLUME ONE
Above, center and inset right:
For Kelly Clarkson’s Meaning
of Life tour, Tait built a 40 x
60ft main stage with a center
stage zip lift and a runway
leading to a VIP bar stage
six degrees of freedom: up/down, left/right,
backward/forward, roll, pitch and yaw.
The Linbury Theatre
Tait was also involved in the renovation of the
Linbury Theatre at the UK’s Royal Opera House,
which reopened in December 2018. To provide
the theater with a world-class auditorium, Tait
worked closely with the Royal Opera House for
power flying solutions, as well as with architect
Stanton Williams and theater consultant
Charcoalblue to deliver reconfigurable staging.
Tait’s scope was delivered in two phases.
The first phase involved engineering and
manufacturing four elevators. Installed in the
pit area, the elevators can be used to create a flat
floor as well as various raked layouts. To create
raked seating layouts at the front of the theater,
the elevators are used in conjunction with seating
wagons, demountable steps and pit rail barriers.
The second phase involved providing a new
overhead rigging grid equipped with a modern
power flying system responsible for safely
moving show scenery into place. Tait installed
20 fly bars operated by BT2-300 winches and
six variable speed chain hoists. The overhead
grid was designed to accommodate the BT2-300
winches with wire ropes running under the grid
Another fixed installation project saw Tait
flex its automation expertise to help bring
King Kong to life at New York’s Broadway
Theatre. Tait’s automation platform focused on
mechanically automating a 1.2-ton animatronic
ape to react to its surroundings in real time,
while facial expressions and internal body
movements relied on Global Creatures’ voodoo
rigs. Tait manufactured a gantry crane and slew
mechanism containing eight high-speed
BT2-290 winches complete with power diverters
and four automated swing arms.
Tait also installed two BT2-390 winches front
of house, allowing King Kong to lean past the
proscenium arch and into the audience.
The complex apparatus was preprogramed to
Tait’s automation platform giving King Kong
FROM THE START
Gemma Guy Hodgson says the sales and engagement process
has changed through the years. “For the permanent installation
side of the business, leads come in through a variety of
channels,” she explains. “We are finding more often that we
are being brought in from the very start of projects. Clients,
architects and designers are asking us to partner with them to
be involved in initial concept design and to carry out feasibility
studies for technical solutions and budgets.”