Singapore – The Singapore Ballet's production of 'Swan Lake' at the Esplanade Theatres by the Bay, Singapore' has created a new artistic experience by combining the classic ballet with innovative lighting technology. For this performance, Singapore-based lighting designer Adrian Tan utilized 32 Robe ESPRITE moving lights (16 Profiles and 16 Fresnels) to reinterpret the beauty of classical ballet with a contemporary sensibility.
This 'Swan Lake' production marks its third re-staging at this historic venue and the Singapore Ballet's second collaboration with the Metropolitan Festival Orchestra. It gained particular attention as it was the first time that Robe ESPRITE served as the primary lighting fixture.
Silent Illumination: The Choice for Perfect Immersion
Adrian Tan, who has worked on numerous productions at the Esplanade Theatres, had previously encountered noise issues with existing moving light systems. Especially during opera performances, where singers demand absolute silence "where not even a breath can be heard," fan noise often became a significant distraction. Having become extremely sensitive to noise through these experiences, Adrian was immediately impressed by the ESPRITE's astonishing quietness.
For this 'Swan Lake' production, all ESPRITE fixtures were rigged above the stage, with the fly bars (rods used to hang and move stage equipment) at a height of approximately 10 meters. Adrian described the ESPRITE's output as "amazing," stating, "I never had to go to maximum output, and they worked perfectly as a top wash." This testament highlights the ESPRITE's exceptional light output and efficiency.
Reinterpreting the Classic: A New Horizon for LED Lighting
This 'Swan Lake' aimed for a very classical interpretation, requiring the lighting to leverage the latest technology while also delivering the warm, soft aesthetic of tungsten lighting. Although the moving lights were never visibly in motion during the performance, they created subtle yet powerful lighting effects throughout the work.
As a designer, Adrian Tan places immense importance on the subtle nuances and textures of pastel colors. Prior to experiencing the ESPRITE, he felt that the warm colors of no other LED fixture were "warm enough." However, he was greatly surprised to find that the ESPRITE perfectly rendered the warm, sunlight-like 3000K (Kelvin) light he desired. He added that the ESPRITE meant he didn't need to spend much time on color mixing, and specifically, the color temperature whites perfectly expressed the very specific tones he wanted.
In particular, for the lake scenes, he was able to achieve a satisfying tone of approximately 5600K, and again, the ESPRITE allowed him to express the right nuances and textures with little effort. Adrian describes himself as someone "obsessed with extremely subtle linear dimming and elegant, sophisticated pastels, cool steel tones, and just the right warm whites." He emphasized that "most manufacturers do saturated blues and reds well, but pastels, especially with LED sources and mixing, are a whole new art form," praising the ESPRITE's superior color rendition capabilities.
Innovative Lighting: Combining Efficiency and Flexibility
Adrian stated that using the ESPRITE and moving lights for the beautiful and complex gobo scenes required for this production was "significantly faster" than before. He also noted the added advantage of being able to repurpose the same fixtures used for creating gobos for entirely different applications just minutes later as the story unfolded. This demonstrates the ESPRITE's exceptional versatility and flexibility.
Adrian also highly praised the color temperature of Robe's T1 series, which he was already familiar with. "Again, even with an LED source, the dimming and CTO (Color Temperature Orange) capabilities are excellent," he stressed. He works extensively on the most demanding performance genres for visual presentation, such as opera, ballet, and contemporary dance, and in these genres, Robe products have consistently delivered reliable performance.
Adrian recalled using Robe products since the early ColorSpot E AT series, noting their "excellent" CMY color mixing even back then. He also does a lot of work at Singapore's Gardens by The Bay, where Robe's architectural lighting brand, Anolis, has installed products.
He expressed his confidence in Robe products, saying, "The equipment is reliable, well-designed and engineered, and you get what you expect."
Esplanade Theatres' Robe Lighting Upgrade
Adrian Tan recently lit a hybrid/contemporary dance piece at the Esplanade Theatres using new Robe fixtures such as the Robe PAINTES, FOOTSIE2s, and T32 Cycs. All these fixtures were part of the Esplanade Theatres' lighting system upgrade, which involved the introduction of a total of 170 Robe products alongside other fixtures.
Through this 'Swan Lake' production, the Robe ESPRITE has once again proven to be an innovative lighting solution capable of meeting the delicate requirements of classical performances while maximizing the advantages of modern technology. This suggests that Robe lighting fixtures will continue to play a significant role in various performing arts fields in the future.
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