A story with heart

17 April 2012

South African Idols winner, Dave van Vuuren, hosted the Christmas Extravaganza on the 16th December 2011 in the Ballroom at the ICC, Sandton. What made this event so special is that it was held for people with disabilities, paraplegics and those on life support.

The full rock concert was free of charge to disabled people and their care givers / partners, and the audience, some 2 000 people, ranged from children to senior citizens.

Kurt de Preez from Pan Tilt was approached to do the lighting for the event, simultaneously finding out that he was a distant cousin to the Idols star. Kurt then asked MGG Productions to assist with the project. In the end, a group of rental companies joined forces to offer their services and gear, free of charge.

MGG provided lighting, AV and trussing, including two 8m x 4m screens and two Christie 10K Projectors while Pan Tilt provided lighting gear with Kurt programming the show. Thank you to Matrix Sound who provided sound and also to Craig Kilian at FogTech who provided 8 x LCD Screens for the stage, graphics, camera work and crew.

“Nothing was done half heartedly,” said Kurt, and the show included superb performances by Dave van Vuuren, Brent Harris (Just Jinjer), Richard van der Westhuizen, Erin Fourie and Vilje Maritz. “The audience were blown away,” he adds. “It really was a feel good event to finish the year.”

The set and floor arrangement was kept as simple as possible, with general use of straight trusses and two screens onto which footage was projected.

The biggest challenge was the safety and security regulations of the ICC. “Safety was quite a thing,” said Kurt. With so many guests wheelchair bound, it was paramount to have all safety procedures in place in case of an emergency and / or evacuation of the building.