For Strike Productions, multi-tasking is considered the order of the day, so after having been awarded the official after party for the Durban July, they also took on the G and G live Marquee. Throw in the Vodacom VIP Suite and life gets infinitely more exciting. Three huge events on the same day, all running at the same time could be deemed as quite challenging, but with careful planning and serious skill, the team delivered a great performance.
The first step was to confirm that each venue had a project manager and a separate crew, ensuring that the client felt an element of undivided attention while the team simply got on with the job at hand.
The VIP suite for Vodacom was all about clean lines with no visible lights or sound. The breathtaking decor and lights created an ambiance in which guests felt welcomed and secluded, enjoying the video and amazing sound filtering through - without it being intrusive.
The Durban July after party was broken up into three main dance floors, a large entertainment area, as well as bars all around. Dance lovers would be guaranteed an evening of fun, good music and creative visual experience in a safe environment in which they could have a great party.
The main dance floor was like an optical illusion with LED screens of different sizes creating depth and giving varied dimensions. A 16m waved LED mesh was flown and directly behind the DJ there was a 2m x 3m x 6m LED wall. The DJ box was made from LED mesh cut in a half circle. The sound system was a Kudo line array 8 subs and 8 tops controlled by 3 x cdj 2000 and a pioneer 900 mixer and the lighting was on ground suport vertical towers with robe 700 spots, city skapes and lasers.
The Second dance floor was set outside in the gardens amongst the palm trees: the fantasy trance floor.The stage design was totally different, mainly made up of trussing. The DJ was 2 metres in the air on a deck with a huge projection screen behind him. Below him was a huge mirror ball which gave the illusion of it holding up the DJ platform. Staging was enhanced by LED strips giving extra dimension as well as visual effects. The sound system was kept the same as it was highly effective.
The third floor was the VIP dance floor which was more intimate and had its own bars, along with the visual effects and a different line-up of DJs.
The outside bar and chill area was fed with main stage visuals, sound and lighting in case people wanted to dance and have a party right there.
The brief for the G & G marquees was also all about clean, elegant lines with the emphasis on the guests being able to watch the race as well as the rugby simultaneously on four big LED screens. A 60m x 30m clear marquee was split into two with a claw in the centre, which made up the dance floor. The sound was a huge JBL line array system driven by 2 x cdj 2000 and 600 mixer and lighting was all new robe LED fixtures and LED pars giving the venue a glow of color.
The Strike Productions team rose to the challenge. Success was the order of the day and with excellent preparation and tight teamwork, it was a great event.
