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IF ALL THE WORLDS A STAGE
Then the Hotel Ballroom is often the theatre playing host
to a wide variety of events. These can include -
CONFERENCES using audio visual aids
with either front or rear projection screen systems from overhead
projectors to multi media multi projector extravaganzas.
FASHION SHOWS with catwalks and stages
using high quality sound and imaginative lighting
WEDDINGS with the ability to change
the mood of the room according to the music being played and
the needs of those employed to video the wedding.
EXHIBITIONS where each display requires
a power point and spot lighting and some displays require
water and drainage.
PARTIES with a disco and some form
of cabaret entertainment.
PRODUCT LAUNCHES involving vehicles,
lasers, big concert sound and heavy lighting rigs.
With this in mind the venue is actually an
event space and should be be designed and built accordingly.
So below are:
SOME OF THE QUESTIONS ASKED WHEN DESIGNING
AN EVENT SPACE
THE LOCATION
Can you get equipment in easily ?
Can you get a vehicle in easily ?
THE FLOOR
Is it flat or raked ?
Are there pillars or other obstacles built
in ?
Is it carpeted ?
Are there portable platforms available to
build stages and cat walks ?
Is there a portable dance floor available
?
THE CEILING
Is it high enough for the audience to see
the bottom of the screen over the heads of those in front
?
Is it the same clearance height across the
whole room ?
Does it have chandeliers or other obstacles
hanging down ?
Are there any mirrored sections ?
Does it have adequate hanging points for
lighting and data projectors across across the whole room
?
Is it easy to run extra cables from one point
to another ?
THE WALLS
Can you stick things on them or hang things
from them ?
Can you hear sounds from the next room through
them ?
When you turn the lights down do they visually
disappear ?
Are there any mirrored
sections that could reflect spotlights back onto the audience
?
When you close the partitions can you leave
a gap for a rear projection screen ?
Are the doors big enough for equipment and
vehicles ?
Are there any built in projection screens
?
Can you mask the screens for multi and single
screen shows ?
Can you black the room out completely ?
THE SOUND
Does it buzz when you dim the lights ?
Are there good quality ceiling speakers
for general speech ?
Can you switch ceiling speakers to stop feedback
?
Are there enough microphone sockets around
the walls ?
Can an event operator control the sound from
the control table ?
Can you put the control table anywhere ?
THE LIGHTING
Can you light the presenter without light
hitting the screen ?
Can you light the audience evenly with no
light on the screen ?
Can you turn the lights out behind the rear
projection screen ?
Can you hang lights anywhere to light anything
?
Can you fade all the lights with one master
fader ?
Is there any florescent lighting ?
With tungsten on only, is the room still
bright enough to write ?
Are there 2" pipes in the ceiling to
hang lights from ?
Are there sockets by those pipes going back
to a central patch bay ?
Are there floor sockets going to the patch
bay (Lectern, footlights)?
Will the hanging points support a pop group
type lighting rig ?
Can an event operator control the lights
from the control table ?
Can you put the control table anywhere ?
Is there a balcony or projection box for
follow spots ?
Are there 3 phase 30 amp & 100 amp outlets
for extra lighting ?
Is the emergency lighting fluorescent, does
it white out the screen ?
THE VIDEO
Is there a dish on the roof for teleconferences
?
Are there cables and power in the roof for
hanging a video projector?
Where do you plug your video source in ?
Is there video patching for cameras, players,
video and data projectors.
THE CONTROL ROOM
Is the opening of the control room wide enough
for multi screen shows ?
And low enough to project slides without
shadow from the video projector?
Can one person control sound and lighting
easily ?
Is there enough room to store and maintain
the AV equipment ?
OTHER NICE TOUCHES THAT ARE APPRECIATED
The Air conditioning can be controlled from
inside the room.There are STD direct
dial phones available for organisers and clients.
There are direct lines available for computer
hook ups.All power points are marked
with their circuit breaker number.
The lectern light is not fluorescent and
does not shine on the screen.There
are 6 pin din slide projection control leads built in.
There is water and drainage for lasers &
exhibitions stands.
TESTS
A
SMALL CONFERENCE
A
small conference is being held in the section without the
control room.
There
is a rear projection screen, slides, video and 50 guests.
The
presenter is at the lectern.
The
house lights are up over the audience but not behind the rear
projection screen
He
is speaking, with speaker support slides on the screen.
He
can be heard through the ceiling speakers, the operator behind
the screen can hear him clearly.
He
comes to a point in his speech when he wants to show a new
30 second TV commercial.
With
one hand the operator fades down the lights, taking the already
dim houselights and the lectern spotlight together.
With
the other he starts the video and fades up the sound.
During
the video there is a change of speaker to the other lectern
so he presets the lectern light to come up on the other side
and brings up the mike on the other side also.
At
the end of the video he fades the lights back up with one
hand and stops the tape with the other.
A
new presenter starts speaking from the other lectern and he
adjusts the sound.
He
then sits for 30 minutes checking the slides are correct till
he changes the lights back to the other lectern again.
A
FASHION SHOW
The
ballroom is set with a backdrop, behind the backdrop is the
changing area, the stage is set in front of the backdrop with
the catwalk on a T coming from it.
Lights
are hung above the stage and catwalk so the guest sitting
near to the catwalk do not get the lights shining in their
eyes.
The
rig consists of many special lights for colour effects on
the stage and catwalk between scenes, during the scenes the
light is white as the show is being recorded on video.
There
are fashion posters around the wall, each one spotlit.
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