"And even UNDER the stage..."

[canadachick]

Thomas- Thanks so much for the photos! There weren't any other pics of our lovely diva from sound check were there? I was at the Nashville sound check and concert and I LOVE the fact that she looks exactly how I remember. If you have more, could you please post them? Thanks!

[Belle Céline]

In one of the mp3's I have on my ipod of the Columbus show Celine says "Oh all of us here tonight on stage, backstage and even under da stage, thank you so much for welcoming us all back to Ohio, Columbus! Thank you so much for being here!!" anyone else catch the flub in that? She said Ohio, Columbus instead of Columbus, Ohio

[ks1981]

Glad you had such a gr8 experience and thks for sharing the info - and good luck with your future in that field of work.

[Thomas]

A bit more info on the stage for us tech lovers!

 

http://i35.tinypic.com/jqgsb4.jpg

The full stage was set up in the SED&F 17,000 sq. foot studio for technical rehearsals.

 

http://i38.tinypic.com/wlspw4.jpg

One of the first set-ups of the tour in the remarkable Osaka Dome in Japan.

 

http://i37.tinypic.com/2e2quir.jpg

SED&F fabricated the stage, stage machinery and rigged pivoting screen structures for this international tour. This is them practicing with the video screens. The outer screens were only used in Tokyo and the first Manchester show before they were removed for good, which seems a shame since they went to a lot of trouble to get them working by the looks of things!

 

http://i37.tinypic.com/50sil3.jpg

This photo of the SED&F team that worked on the project is printed on a steel plate that is fixed to the underside of the stage. The team travels with Celine worldwide!

 

Click here to visit the Scène Éthique website where you can download a spec sheet with other pics and technical info on the stage: http://sefabrication.com/project_celine.html

 

I love stuff like this!

[Timster]

Wow thanks Thomas. Love the firt pic - it's such a cool stage! I wonder where it is now? I wish they'd cut it up and sell it like they did with AND!!

 

I wish we could have some pics of Celine getting changed under the stage. I wonder how many people they have under there throughout the show?

Edited October 11, 2009 at 06:58 PM by Timster

[Thomas]

This bit is interesting!

 

http://i35.tinypic.com/f4pabp.jpg

 

"The set also features a “forest” that fans

out from troughs located along the edges

of the stage. A simple cam system deploys

the branches of the trees in a synchronized

motion."

 

This feature never made it into the show at all, that would have been cool! It's something you might have seen at A New Day, it looks quite theatrical. I wonder what they are made of? At first I thought fabric but surely they would just tangle and trip Celine up?

 

Just noticed you can see them clearer in their website banner. Looks like plastic branches, seeing them upclose I think it might have been weird and out of place actually. lol Looks pretty cool though!

 

http://i33.tinypic.com/2w6ti7k.jpg

Edited October 11, 2009 at 07:45 PM by Thomas

[Davey84]

maybe it's like those paper banners, that you can fill up by pumping air into it... it looks cool though!

 

 

I do wonder... a stage like this; (and like the LTAL tour) is it stored somewhere, or do they just dismantel it at the end of a tour?!?

[fab]

Following her record setting 5 year run at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Céline Dion has taken to the road with her third set built by SED&F. The “Taking Chances” tour will visit Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe and North America. The new set, designed by Yves Aucoin, features a central main stage section of 48’ X 48’. The main stage incorporates 11 lifts and two 28’ travelators.

 

Six of the lifts rise from and back to a zero position. However five of the lifts, Céline’s main central lift and the four corner musician’s lifts, rise from below a zero position and continue to rise above the zero position.

 

The central lift has a unique three-part mechanism that raises the deck from sub stage to stage level. The second step is the raising of a LED incrusted frame to 7’ above the stage. The deck can travel to any position within this frame. When it is raised to its topmost position, it can continue above the frame to allow the deck to revolve.

 

The travelators have a velocity of up to 2 feet per second. Because of their length, the travelators were awkward to load into the tour’s vans. An ingenious hinge system was devised to allow four feet at either end of the travelators to fold back for an overall travel length of twenty feet. The hinges maintain the proper tension on the belt so as to minimize adjustments at every take-in. The material for the belt was carefully researched since it had to withstand the rigours of the dance numbers while holding its fi nish of scenic paint.

 

Wings reach into the arena grandstands to complete the look when the set is used in its “in the round” configuration.

 

The set is built of aluminum and features a new decking design to accommodate the LED floor panels. The fully mechanically assembled deck allows for members to be reconfigured in the field when required. The structural properties of the decking allows for minimal structural support which keeps the underside of the stage clear for quick change booths and equipment racks. The structure of the four corner lifts and of the central lift serve double duty by also contributing to the support structure of the static stage elements. The set can be assembled in four hours and taken out in two hours.

 

Because the set will be used in many countries with varying code requirements, SED&F chose to have the set certified under the German TÜV standards which are recognized as being some of the most rigorous worldwide. The stage is designed with a 2:1 safety factor.

 

As the long time lighting designer for Céline and set designer for her “Let’s Talk About Love” tour, Yves Aucoin had a strong visual sense of the special features he wished to see featured in the set. Among these were the LED tiles incorporated into the deck and the LED screens used above the set in two concentric squares. Not satisfied to have the screens simply suspended above the stage, Yves wished to add dynamic movement to the screens of the inner square so as to be able to reconfigure their look. The inner square is made up of two 8’ wide LED screens per face. Each pair of screens is fixed to a common pivot which allows them to rotate independently 45° offstage and 45° onstage.

 

The set also features a “forest” that fans out from troughs located along the edges of the stage. A simple cam system deploys the branches of the trees in a synchronized motion.

 

Prior to the rehearsal period, the set was fully assembled and tech’d in our 17,000 sq. ft. staging area. Lighting and video components were also pre-rigged and tested in our studio prior to the launch of the tour.

[mirage]

those video screens were amazing!!

i loved the intro video on it, theye were huge, it's really a shame they removed those! In the bigger stadiums like Amsterdam, they would make an better impact, than those little screens!!!

 

http://i37.tinypic.com/2e2quir.jpg

SED&F fabricated the stage, stage machinery and rigged pivoting screen structures for this international tour. This is them practicing with the video screens. The outer screens were only used in Tokyo and the first Manchester show before they were removed for good, which seems a shame since they went to a lot of trouble to get them working by the looks of things!

[I Love You]

Wow did you see that light board, I love to use that. But first schooling for that. :o

[andreasm]

This bit is interesting!

 

http://i35.tinypic.com/f4pabp.jpg

 

"The set also features a “forest” that fans

out from troughs located along the edges

of the stage. A simple cam system deploys

the branches of the trees in a synchronized

motion."

 

This feature never made it into the show at all, that would have been cool! It's something you might have seen at A New Day, it looks quite theatrical. I wonder what they are made of? At first I thought fabric but surely they would just tangle and trip Celine up?

 

Just noticed you can see them clearer in their website banner. Looks like plastic branches, seeing them upclose I think it might have been weird and out of place actually. lol Looks pretty cool though!

 

http://i33.tinypic.com/2w6ti7k.jpg

 

Can you find more info about this???

[Timster]

maybe it's like those paper banners, that you can fill up by pumping air into it... it looks cool though!

 

 

I do wonder... a stage like this; (and like the LTAL tour) is it stored somewhere, or do they just dismantel it at the end of a tour?!?

 

I've always wanted to know this. What use would it be to anyone once they dismantel it though? I hope they have a big warehouse somewhere with the TCWT & LTAL stages in.

[kathy4]

hello thomas and thanks for sharing.

[bruno_oliveira]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tzo9mRw3APs

 

sorry if already posted the video

its from arcofab. the grids celine used during the tour

 

http://www.arcofab.com/admin/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/Celine-Dion-1.jpg

 

http://www.arcofab.com/admin/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/Celine-Dion-2.jpg

 

http://www.arcofab.com/admin/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/Celine-Dion-3.jpg

[Thomas]

Fascinating video! Everyone is like little ants running around building stuff. And seeing the show flash by so quicky was pretty funny! It makes it seem like so much effort for just a few seconds of fun. But worth it, of course!

[Timster]

Amazing video! Thank you so much! Reminds me of the ACDS stage setup video...

[Thomas]

The tour is featured in Mobile Production Monthly magazine. Nice little article on the audio/visual side of things and lots of photos.

 

http://i50.tinypic.com/qxsbo4.jpg

 

http://mobileproductionpro.com/publication...nthly_v2_i2.pdf

[Davey84]

oh i wanted to say, you can download it too, but you posted the link

 

great to see the people behind céline in the spotlights!