Look Solutions’ Cryo-Fog low-fog system is contributing to the theatrical magic of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast now enjoying an open-ended run in Mexico City. Four Cryo-Fog machines are used throughout the show as low smoke in forest scenes and around the castle exterior.
“Ten years ago Beauty and the Beast opened in Mexico City with four liquid nitro machines,” recalls Nic Phillips, the show’s technical advisor and programmer. “It was the first big musical for the producers and Disney’s first in Latin America. When they moved it to Spain all the equipment went with it. Since then this production and it’s equipment have been touring the world. Now back in Mexico for the 10th anniversary, the producers asked me to replace some equipment, including liquid nitrogen low smoke machines which were actually dangerous.”
Phillips had seen Cryo-Fog systems at work in the UK and liked their performance. So he ordered Look Solutions’ first available 120-volt Cryo-Fog models for Beauty and the Beast. The Cryo-Fog uses Look Solutions’ Low-Fog fluid and an external tank of liquid CO2 to produce dense clouds of low-lying fog straight from the nozzle.
Additionally, the Cryo-Fog features an adjustable cooling temperature which allows the height of the low fog to be varied. Fine adjustments of the pump are made in increments of one percent so any desired effect—from a tiny cloud to the thickest fog—can be produced. Heat-up time is approximately 10 minutes. DMX 512 control is standard; a control panel with LED display and simple symbols permits easy operation.
“The output of the Cryo-Fog systems is fantastic—we only have to run them at half to equal the effect we were getting with the liquid nitro machines,” Phillips reports. “The Cryo-Fog systems run a total of 20 minutes in the show, and their performance is extraordinary. The machines are an eighth the size and weight of what they used before, and we get better output and control, and significant cost savings. Cryo-Fog is consistent with all the other great Look Solutions products I’ve used.”