Robe stands proud at Embankment, London

Proud Embankment in London’s West End is a venue defined by its world‐class cabaret shows. This iconic venue, situated on the North bank of the River Thames and at the heart of the UK’s vibrant metropolis, was determined to have a high-impact post‐Covid reopening. One of the first venues to open its doors after the second lockdown, Proud had undergone a transformative renovation, with a huge investment in its production values and the installation of 14 new Robe Pointe moving lights to accompany the talent, colour, and energy of the performances.

The new Pointes were specified by Proud Embankment’s in‐house lighting designer Jack Knight and purchased specially for the venue by regular lighting supplier, North London rental and installation specialist, Halo. The Pointes are a completely new addition to the existing house lighting rig and are positioned all around the stage with several on a goal post at the back, from where they provide the main effects lighting looks.

Robe’s highly versatile Pointe was an easy choice for Jack. “It is a properly ‘multipurpose fixture’ in every sense of the word,” he stated. “As well as being fast and virtually instantaneous in response, Pointes are hugely flexible with a great range of colours, gobos and effects that allow you to be highly creative.”

He adds that the small size of the luminaire is also ideal to create a cosy and intimate atmosphere in a vast, spectacular space with a double‐height atrium and high ceilings.

Robe Pointe

Jack has been using Robe products in his lighting work for about the last six years and has been the chief house lighting and sound technician at Proud Embankment for the last three years. In that time there have been various other Robe fixtures on the rig including MMX Spots and Spiiders, and overall, Jack considers the brand to be “highly reliable and a gold standard” in moving light technology.

A challenge in lighting the space is that the room is almost 360 degrees around the stage, so everything must look good from all angles. Effectively it is an in‐the‐round scenario.

Making this work for the range of shows and events is also one of the fun parts of being a resident LD and tech, explains Jack who must be prepared for anything! There are several ‘busking’ pages set up in the Avolites Tiger Touch II console containing basic building blocks from which he can evolve a slick-looking show almost on the fly, and with the Pointes to hand, he knows there is plenty of scope for producing great results.

Jack lights most of the Proud Embankment shows himself and also runs audio.

www.robe.cz

Photos taken by Alex Rice are courtesy and copyright of Proud Group, The Strand Photography Gallery Limited.