ACT Productions and IPS light Orange Bowl Halftime Show and Fan Fest with Elation

The Orange Bowl is a uniquely American tradition that combines the best in college football with top-class musical performances for a complete fan experience. ACT Productions of Miami Beach celebrated its 17th year producing the event, handling artist bookings and producing both the Halftime Show and Fan Fest. They partnered with Illuminate Production Services (IPS) as their lighting vendor on the productions, both of which were illuminated using Elation lighting fixtures.

The Capital One Orange Bowl, held on January 9 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, saw country music star Nate Smith headline the Halftime Show, while Lauren Alaina, a multi-faceted country artist, performed a high-energy tailgate concert at the Fan Fest stage before the game. Both performances benefited from lighting designs by IPS, using a range of all-weather IP-rated Elation products.

The Halftime Show and Fan Fest were entirely lit using Elation lighting rigs, including fixtures from the company’s PROTEUS and new PULSE series. ACT Productions handled everything from concept to completion, including specification of the lighting and sound packages and worked closely with IPS to realise the event.

Carlos Henao, technical director at ACT, commented, “The Orange Bowl Halftime Show is unlike any other event in the entertainment world. In a matter of minutes, five to be precise, our audio, lighting and staging teams have to build a ‘set’ that will both entertain and wow the thousands of fans in the stadium, but also the millions of fans on TV. This is no easy task. The planning and execution of those plans can make or break the outcome.

He emphasised the importance of selecting the right partners for each aspect of the production: “Though we have been working with IPS on various events for years, this year they were given the nod for the Halftime Show, and we couldn’t have been happier with the results.”

Henao explained that beginning with a design that promised to give the show a fresh new look, the IPS team showed that they were able and willing to think outside the box. “During the smooth 3-day setup process, it was readily apparent that their team was well prepared and excited about meeting the challenges that are always part of any production, especially a show like this one. IPS delivered results that wowed everyone - the artist, our client and the multitude of college football fans who watched. We are proud to have partnered up with IPS.”

The Halftime Show lighting design was led by Caleb Franke, with support from Michael Betancourt, both from IPS. Betancourt also handled the design for the Fan Fest stage, working closely with ACT to ensure the lighting reinforced the performance.

“It was a great pleasure working with ACT (Bruce, Barbara, Noemi and Carlos),” Betancourt said, “and knowing the challenges that we faced, the IPS team from East and West came together and did an amazing job!”

CEO of ACT Productions, Bruce Orosz, highlighted the collaboration, saying, "We’re very close with Michael and the IPS team and have partnered with them on major events in the past such as the Montreux Jazz Festival in Miami, and City of Miami Beach 4th of July celebration. We worked with them on last year’s Fan Fest and were very happy with the results, their communication, plans, design and their team.”

Orosz commented that they seek to change the look and feel of the show year after year, and this year chose to forgo the traditional Halftime Show fireworks in favour of IPS’s outstanding lighting design. He explained, “When IPS presented their design, we were so impressed that we cancelled the fireworks. The light show was so excellent, it provided all the spectacle we needed.”

Working on the Orange Bowl Halftime Show can reportedly be quite challenging for several reasons, not least the tight logistical circumstances they have to work within. Orosz explained: “Right when the last play of the first half ends, the referee throws his red cap onto the ground, which begins a 22-minute clock. That’s our signal to start moving all the staging, pre-set with lighting, through the tunnel and out onto the field. This year, we brought the stage out in four parts plus additional lighting setups on truss systems that flew in stage right and left. Everything had to be out, assembled, plugged in, and tested in five minutes. It’s a complicated maneuver.”

Lighting designer, Caleb Franke, added, “There are certain parameters we have to stick to in order to get the stages through the stadium tunnels and on the field in less than five minutes. Designing with very specific limitations and parameters is always something I enjoy because I feel I can be more creative. I see them not as limitations but as opportunities.”

Following Nate Smith’s performance, disassembly and load-out took place in just four minutes. Orosz said it all worked out perfectly: “We had a dynamite team of 100+ people to manage all the equipment, and it ran like a Swiss clock.”

The precision of the ACT and IPS teams and flawless execution ensured the performance dazzled the nearly 67,000 in-stadium fans, as well as millions more watching on television.

“It’s quite an undertaking but IPS delivered in many ways, and the lighting fixtures were incredible,” said Orosz.

IPS designed a fresh, multi-layered look for this year’s Halftime Show. Franke explained, “When designing, I wanted the set to have depth and elevation to it. The depth came by having 16 PULSE PANEL FX in the background attached to the upper 100 level of the stadium. This created an opportunity for big hits of colour and wash throughout the show. It gave the camera lens something to see in the background, which added a lot of depth and the PULSE PANEL’s 100,000 lumens of punch was spectacular!”

Franke calls the PULSE series “killer” and says they open up for a host of design opportunities. “Each light is almost like having three fixtures - the RGB plates, the RGB centre strobe line, and then of course, the white strobes. Having the PULSE BARs and PULSE PANEL FX allowed me to have them work together, and they punch very well,” adding that they also look really good on camera. One fun look featured the use of all the cold white strobes of the PULSE PANEL FX and PULSE BAR.

“It seriously lit up the stadium and made it look huge,” he furthered.

The design featured a myriad of IP-rated moving heads from Elation’s leading PROTEUS line, including MAXIMUS, EXCALIBUR, HYBRID MAX, and RADIUS.

On the field, Franke designed a 3-tiered look in both stage width and height - the downstage deck for the lead singer, the middle deck for the band, and upstage deck lighting via three tiers of lights. Beam and aerial effects from PROTEUS HYBRID MAX emanated from the top row with potent aerial beams from PROTEUS RADIUS radiating from the bottom two rows. Each row also had eight PULSE BARs in groups of two for a total of 24 fixtures forming the visual background for the band.

“We were able to achieve elevation with the tiers, and also, it created a great background of eye candy behind the band and artist,” the designer said. Located on the downstage edge of the artist risers as kickers to help light the performance were SIXBAR 1000 IP battens.

The upper deck of fixtures formed the main element of the design. “We were able to get great beam and gobo looks with the RADIUS and HYBRID MAX, as well as amazing colour and lighting hits with the PULSE BARs,” Franke stated. “Having the PULSE PANELs in the upper background and the PULSE BARs down on the stage was fantastic. The fixtures play well together and look great together.”

Down on the field, a truss cart on either side of the stage held five PROTEUS RAYZOR BLADE L linear effects and six PROTEUS EXCALIBURs each, with five RAYZOR BLADE L on the artist deck. The truss carts added width to the overall look of the show, Franke reported. Lastly, 12 PROTEUS MAXIMUS on the 300 level of the stadium provided the main key light for the stage.

“We also highlighted some of the logo graphics on the field with them,” Franke added. “The MAXIMUS are such a great fixture. They are a bright, smooth and a reliable fixture.”

"This year, we bulked up lighting on the third level and flew trusses full of lights stage right and left, adding depth and enhancing the visual impact," said Orosz. He added that lighting also came from FOH from the opposite side of the field and down onto the stage, changing the look and feel and matching up beautifully with the music.

Franke said that big beam looks using the HYBRID MAX, RADIUS, and EXCALIBURs were some of his favourites. “When the strobes and colour wash are off, and it’s just the beams shooting out, it looks amazing. We used this near the end of the show with a big beam sweep at the end. One thing about the RADIUS… they are fast! They can be a serious workhorse with that speed, and the beam is just so crisp and clean. Of course, it has a great set of prisms, gobos, frosts and colours as well.”

Technical director Henao emphasised the importance of having the right tools to tackle the challenges of large-scale events. “An important part of my job is to optimise the resources available to us,” he stated. “As with any production, the Halftime Show has unique challenges. In the 17+ years of our event, we’ve worked with products from varying lighting manufacturers, including some from Elation. Though I’ve been aware of Elation products for many years, in recent years, I’ve witnessed the company grow their product offerings vastly, including IP-rated fixtures. The majority of the events that ACT produces, including the Orange Bowl Fanfest and Halftime Events, are outdoors, so IP-rated fixtures are a huge plus.

“Equally as important is the fact that the offerings from the PROTEUS lines are powerful and impactful. The 50,000+ lumens available from the MAXIMUS fixtures, for example, meant that we could reduce our footprint yet deliver ample lighting on the artist and band for the broadcast. The PULSE PANEL FX fixtures were bright, unique and low profile, and the RADIUS, HYBRID MAX and Elation fixtures used onstage had the punch to project out of the stadium and add great impact to the show. All together, the show looked ‘larger’ than the footprint suggested, and all involved were proud to have been a part of it!”

Lauren Alaina’s pre-game Fan Fest concert was also said to be impressive, featuring Elation’s PROTEUS RAYZOR 760 wash effects moving head, PROTEUS LUCIUS profile moving heads, and DTW Blinder 700 IP. Lighting control came courtesy of an Obsidian NX2 console with NETRON nodes, used on both the Halftime Show and Fan Fest, ensuring reliable signal distribution. Atmospheric haze effects from Magmatic THERMA TOUR 800s added an immersive touch to the outdoor concert.

The Orange Bowl Halftime Show and Fan Fest are integral components in a full day of entertainment that extends from pre- to post-game. By creating fan experiences that match the energy and excitement on the field - with an assist from a state-of-the-art Elation lighting package - ACT Productions and IPS have elevated the standard for game-day entertainment.