Bryson

And it looks like it happened again, albeit on a much smaller scale: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/nov/06/ceiling-collapse-at-west-end-theatre-leaves-several-injured At the Picadilly this time. Although from reports it sounds like a leak of some kind was the root cause.

Looks like the underlying tech to Echoflex (as mentioned above) is made by a German company. The issue will be if if you can buy in small quantities: https://www.enocean.com/en/products/enocean_modules/

How about this? https://www.etcconnect.com/Products/Architectural-Systems/Echoflex/ (Might be a North America only product, looking closer. Shame - it looks like exactly the thing you need.)

For everyone who just went: "Who?": https://www.areafourindustries.com/portfolio/brands TL:DR: They own Tomcat, Milos, Litec and JTE.

I'm going to bump this because Richard is too classy to do it. If you're an ABTT member, the deadline is October 25th.

The old design doesn't preclude the use of a handrail on that side, though. (Well, in most situations.) It's just a little more awkward. I wonder if the OP could actually have a minimal handrail added and solve his harness issue. OP: How about a photo of your loading floor?

Obviously the design varies, but in most loading galleries I've been on, falling "into" the counterweight well is prevented by handrails with large enough gaps to get your arms / a counterweight through. The new front loading arbours (Thern Brickhouse, Clancy Frontloader and similar*) make the risk even smaller as there's no reaching "through" the handrail to be done. I certainly wouldn't specify a new counterweight system these days with the old style of arbour. Regarding the weight-dropping issue: This is particularly a concern in double-purchase houses where the wings may extend below the loading floor. That was the case in my last venue I worked in. We controlled it by managing access to the area below and having a call/response system for spotting the area below, but I didn't love the solution as it was very prone to failure. (Tape/rope doesn't seem to apply to people sometimes....) I was researching some kind of kevlar webbing catch net solution when I left but never got to installing it. * = A friend of mine owns the patent on those arbours and licences it to Thern / Clancy and whoever. Yay for Canada!

ETC make PhaseAdept: https://www.etcconnect.com/PhaseAdept/ Not sure if it's available in 230V / CE though. They also make EELV modules which may be a better fit: https://www.etcconnect.com/workarea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=10737460652 Again, not sure if they're a 230V product.

Also, the person who updates the website may well have already been told their services are no longer required. It's not unusual for these things to filter out by other means. Shame, I always quite liked Prolyte's approach to these things.

Take with a grain of salt as I work in Canada - current practice may differ in the UK - I haven't worked there for 10 or so years: We design in RF systems, most usually. Listen Technologies or Williams Sound. That comes with the full set of accessories (neck loops, earsets, headphones and so on.). Rarely, but sometimes, we put in a full hearing assistance loop, and occasionally we'll put in a secondary wi-fi, BYOD system as well. BUT: Mostly we do all that because it is required by law here...but hearing aids are a LOT better than they used to be, and we frequently hear: "Why did you make us buy all that hearing assistance stuff? No-one ever wants it...."

Yep, IATSE are totally established in Canada - I work with the IATSE 58/924/118 guys all the time - but I haven't seen anyone outside of North America.

That's an interesting concept. An "Any-Console" that's really just a PC, with built-in fader / encoder wings and drivers for all the various softwares, and a place to park your dongle of choice? Kind of fascinating. I wonder if there are any licensing hangups that would prevent it?

Indeed. The rate at which the inquest proceeded was ludicrous. Many people are deeply, deeply unhappy about how that part of the process took place, with extremely good reason. (For example: They dismissed any potential criminal proceedings as the accused rights to a speedy trial had been violated...) On the bright side, there are some very real implications for how these things are going to be done in Ontario going forward. (And, as Ontario has almost all the people, it will filter out across Canada too, eventually.) The Canadian Institute of Theatre Technology, Event Safety Alliance, Professional Association of Canadian Theatres, Canadian Live Music Association and the International Association of Theatrical Stage Employees have all been issued tasks by the Coroners Office with regards to improving this situation. There is going to be a lot more scrutiny of outdoor stages from the responsible authorities. One of the big things is that we're moving towards copying British Columbia's "Actsafe" model - having a publicly funded safety trade association that provides advice and training, but crucially not enforcement. This works extremely well in BC and I'm excited to see it getting adopted across more of Canada.

I spent many years running rental theatres. I don't do being the TD (Tech Manager in English) anymore, but there was always a downward pressure from clients on the number of staff assigned to a gig...but no corresponding decrease in their requirements. The one saving grace of my last venue was a solid wall between the lighting booth and audio booth so one person couldn't physically operate both. (Don't tell them about the iPad remotes, please!) And then you look at the old videos of stagehands in the 1920s and there are literally dozens on each show.... I wish! As for pay, last year, before moving inside Canada, I looked at possibly returning to the UK. What I found was that the jobs advertised that I was qualified for were still paying the exact same rates they were paying in 2008 when I left the UK. I'll bet the cost of living has gone up a bit since then...

Can we assume you have already asked the venue itself? Contact details on the first page of the pdfs found here: https://www.carriageworkstheatre.co.uk/plan-your-visit/technical-information-for-visiting-companies/

I assume he meant “they” in the singular, meaning Chris.

Indeed, the pictures on the website are surprisingly...candid. Maybe some frost or silk would help a bit. Also, getting further away that you might normally choose for a cyc fixture may help.

GLP are distributed by AVL Media in Canada. http://www.avlmediagroup.com They just happen to be in...Montreal. Give Claude Viens a call. He's a great guy and will help out.

The need to control movers, however basic, kind of locks out the Colorsource and the one I was about to suggest, the Jands CL. The MA dot2 is nice, but probably too expensive. It's up at ETC ION prices. In this "middle ground", the Lightshark is...interesting. I don't know anyone that's using it in regular use yet, but it's surprisingly powerful at the price point, and has a clever method for providing screens.

Not quite what you wanted, but if you like a challenge: http://www.dfd.com/ap.html

Is "Swisson tells me you ain't" the new "computer says no"?

Apparently it may be technically illegal in some states of the USA, as it has an unpleasant history - associated with lynching - and is considered likely to offend or displaying one can be seen potentially as threatening.

I love this: I wonder if the client had even the slightest inkling of the depth of technology required to facilitate this. Nice work.

"T Key, Square end" looks like it gets useful Google results.

I've read this sentence eight times and can't make sense of it. Am I having a stroke?