POLAND – The conference Patrick Woodroffe held in Warsaw on 23 April 2013 was a huge success. It was the first time Poland has hosted an event of this kind, and the presence of personalities like Patrick was definitely decisive in attracting more than 300 professionals from the world of Polish show-lighting to the Capitol Theatre Club in Warsaw. They included lighting designers, lighting directors, rental company managers, show producers, television and theatre workers, tour organizers, specialist school students and – of course – the trade press.
The event was organized by Prolight, one of the most important Polish companies in the industry, which specializes in the sale and installation of technology for shows, such as lighting, sound, video and scenic equipment. Clay Paky, one of the companies Prolight represents, also helped organize the event.
Patrick Woodroffe retraced the greatest moments of his career during his lecture, entitled ŚWIECĄCE GWIAZDY (Shining Stars). He particularly focused on the preparation he did for Michael Jackson’s last tour, which did not take place owing to the singer’s death.
Using his personal diary, Woodroffe gave details of the various stages of the “This is it!” project, which was to bring Michael Jackson back to the limelight after twelve years of absence. The aim was to make him an everlasting success with an event that Woodroffe himself described as “the greatest show in history”.
His account then moved on to the lighting project for the opening and closing ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games . According to Woodroffe, the ceremonies needed a huge “organization machine”, which continued to work for months.
“Hosting one of the best-known and most celebrated stars of our industry was a great honour,” said Rafal Rzeczkowski, co-owner of Prolight. “We worked extensively with Clay Paky to persuade Patrick Woodroffe to come to Poland, and once he agreed we dealt with every detail of event organization. The big turnout was very rewarding for us and it shows how much interest there is in this subject in our country. It is an honour to have offered everyone such a wonderful training opportunity, with one of the leading experts in the industry.”
As happens in every important event, ŚWIECĄCE GWIAZDY benefited from the support of several partners: Oistat and Light School were the special institutional supporters of the event. Muzyka i Technologia, InfoMusic.pl, Sound & Light, Live Sound & Installation and Realizator.pl were the media partners. Lastly, TSE and E-Rental were the technical partners.
The Capitol Theatre Club is top Warsaw nightlife venue is a multifunctional building, designed to be both a theatre and a club at the same time. Since its opening, the Capitol Theatre Club has hosted art and cultural events, and has been met with favour from the general public. Several Clay Paky lighting fixtures are installed in the venue. The Woodroffe Conference gave us a chance to present these lights to the public, including the latest technology created by Clay Paky last year.
Pio Nahum, Clay Paky Marketing Manager, said: “The size of the audience at Patrick Woodroffe’s conference exceeded our every expectation. It is clear that interest in the “culture of light” is well rooted in Poland, and Clay Paky is pleased to organize events like this, which also have a positive impact on growth in our industry. I would like to thank the Prolight team publicly. They did a magnificent job and took care of every detail professionally. They provided a perfect setting to host an excellent speaker like Patrick Woodroffe.”