Al Laith Supplies Il Divo Abu Dhabi Concert

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Al Laith Events Services – Dubai's new specialist event staging and roofing company – supplied a 25 metre, 3-bay Space Roof, complete with full stage decking system and two 12 metre high goalposts flanking the stage – for Il Divo's concert at the Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

It is the first time that the super-strong Space Roof design from Serious Stages and goalposts have been used in combination together in the UAE.

Al Laith won the contract to supply the concert for their ability to offer an aesthetically pleasing covered performance space plus all the other structural elements required on site in one comprehensive and competitive package.

Al Laith Events Services was again working for Flash Events, a regular Abu Dhabi based client. Al Laith's project manager was Jacques Smalberger, and he and his crew – numbering of up to 80 people - worked closely with site manager Jean-Carl Saliba, and Flash Events production manager Lee Charteris.

In addition to providing the stage and roof, Al Laith also supplied the gig with a 2500 seater grandstand, 2 VIP platforms and assorted other structures, including a FOH platform and follow spot towers.

The stage wings – to the back of the goal posts each measured 10 metres wide, giving an impressive 45 metre width-ways spread across the whole structure. The goalposts provided an elegant solution for hanging rear projection screens, and the Al Laith team also built scaffolding projector platforms 9 metres to the back of these. The main PA arrays were hung off the onstage towers of each goalpost.

Each arch of the Space Roof design can support a weight loading of 5 tonnes, so this gave sound, lighting and AV suppliers Gearhouse Dubai plenty of headroom for all the production equipment needing to be hung above stage. The top cantilever at the front of the roof offered additional downstage lighting points, conveniently right above the lip of the stage.

Either side of the Space Roof on the stage wings ‘cowshed' tents were installed as an integral element of the structure, providing cover for monitors, dimmers and other technical areas. The stage build was completed with a full set of walkways and ramps.

The 2-tier FOH platform was kept low, neat and unobtrusive so as not to interfere with any sight lines from the grandstand. The two 13 metre high follow spot towers were positioned at the back of the grandstand, fabricated from scaffolding and dressed in smart black draping.

The Space Roof skins are silver on the outside and black on the inside, which helps provide a blacked-out environment to maximise stage lighting and effects.

The overall build went extremely smoothly for Al Laith Events Services reports Smalberger, taking 4 days to complete, including all the other site infrastructure. For speed, they used a crane to aid the roof and goalpost construction process.

Al Laith Event Services' Jo Marshall comments, “It was very exciting for us to bring the Space Roof into the country and use it with goalposts for the first time, and I am sure that this will be utilised on many upcoming events.

Il Divo is the latest in a string of events and shows for which Al Laith Events Services – a new division of Dubai-based Al Laith Scaffolding – has supplied creative staging since its launch 2 months ago.

For more press info. on Al Laith Event Services, please contact Louise Stickland on +44 (0)1865 202679/+44 (0)7831 329888 or Email ‘[email protected]'. For more general info and to contact Al Laith direct, check http://www.allaithscaffolding.com or call +971 (4) 338 8882