Vorstin is a popular music and entertainment venue in Hilversum, a lively Netherlands ‘media city’ in the centre of the country. Vorstin’s striking gleaming steel exterior is visually cool and interesting, and its two entertainment halls – with 850 and 275 capacities respectively – stage 4 or 5 shows plus one or two private or business events per week – a fast-moving environment with plenty of variety.
Photos: by Louise Stickland
The venue has recently made a large investment in new Robe moving lights, with the purchase of 20 x PAINTES, 20 x LEDBeam 350s, 24 x LEDBeam 150s, 8 x LEDBeam 350 FWs and 16 x Tetra1 LED moving battens for their big hall together with eight Robe Spiiders that were part of a previous Robe investment 8 years ago and some other new luminaires. The new fixtures are rigged in the Big Hall on four motorised trusses and an upstage fly bar.
The Small Hall, which hosts bands, comedy as well as local school musicals, end of year productions and live radio shows every Saturday afternoon, now has 10 x PAINTES, 12 x LEDBeam 150s and eight LEDBeam 350 FW’s – the latter are with a fresnel-wash style beam for smoother edges and better colour homogenization. The control console in the small hall is an Avolites TigerTouch II.
The venue is run via a foundation on behalf of the city and is a hub of the local community.
Photos: by Louise Stickland
Chief LX Alice Boeschoten explained that this lighting upgrade was originally planned before Covid and delayed due to the pandemic. While they considered several brands and products, the experience of the previous Robe fixtures was instrumental in informing choices for this investment.
Many of the artists playing Vorstin will bring their own lighting designers, while others will be lit by Alice and her team. She gets to light at least one a week every time requiring a different genre, style and creative approach.
Alice has worked at Vorstin for 6 years, after starting as an intern whilst studying technical theatre in Utrecht. She then did four and a half years as a freelancer before accepting the chief LX post in 2023 where she works closely with William Calis, head of production and buildings manager.
Photos: by Louise Stickland
left to right Twan Schipper (Controllux), William Calis (Vorstin head of production and buildings manager), Alice Boeschoten (Vorstin chief LX) and Maikel Sakkers (Controllux)
The very first Robes luminaires in the house were LEDBeam 100s installed in the Small Hall in 2015 for Radio 2’s Saturday afternoon Music Café broadcasts at the time.
The 16 x Robe Spiider LED wash beams and 16 x DL4S Profile luminaires – delivered in 2016 – were specified by then technical manager Maikel Sakkers – who is now an integral part of the lighting technical sales team at Controllux, Robe’s Benelux distributor.
These 2016 Robe products replaced their previous moving lights which were from a competitor brand dating back to 2010 when the venue opened. It is built on the site of the former De Tagrijn youth centre that was destroyed by a fire.
The latest Robe lights arrived in batches, starting in summer 2023 with the PAINTES and the LEDBeam 350s completing the picture earlier this year.
Photos: by Louise Stickland
Alice loves the brightness and colours of the PAINTE and comments that they are a big step up from the first generation of LED moving lights.
She enjoys having good quantities of LEDBeam 150s and 350s as it allows you “have plenty of scope and get really imaginative”. They will often try and use the LEDBeam 150s’ in ‘ACL-style’ arrays … harking back to the days of the classic ‘ACL bar’ lighting effect, still much loved and something etched into the annals of stage lighting history, especially for music shows.
Alice is also very enthusiastic about the Tetra1s, especially for dance events where speed and variety of dynamic effects are vital for building multiple unique looks that can keep pumping for hours on end along with the music. While she would love some TetraXs at some stage, for now the Tetra1s are “a great asset” to Vorstin.
Photos: by Louise Stickland
Alice, who is also the regular LD for the band Steam Sister, has a penchant for metal music and always relishes the chance to light this genre with multiple dramatic contrasts that are ideal for high-impact lighting, but she loves any chance to be creative. “Every day is different here and all of it is invaluable experience, especially designing and running the shows.”
Incoming LDs are also impressed by the latest lighting set up. “These are both excellent overhead rigs for people to work with, and the extra floor packages further boost the creative potential,” Alice noted.
William, also a musician and still actively gigging with his band Station Six when time allows, while by his own admission more of an ‘audio guy’ appreciates that whenever they rock up to a venue with Robe on the lighting rig … they know there will be a good looking lightshow.
Photos: by Louise Stickland
