The design team at Evoke Collaborative has created immersive environments for Madame Tussauds and Merlin Entertainment for over a decade. Tussauds 42nd st. approached lead designers Herrick Goldman and Kara O'Grady to design an experience that would transport visitors inside the New Year’s Eve ball mounted in Times Square and viewable from their 2nd floor parapet gallery over 42nd St.
At Madame Tussauds, it is NYE all year round. Since December 2018, guests can experience the Times Square countdown, as the neon lights flash, confetti fell, fog machines blast and Sinatra sings New York, New York, in the middle of July even! The venue is in a landmarked building and the gallery has a commanding view of 42nd Street.
Not wanting to occlude the view of the visitors, Evoke chose to mount 143 meters of TMB Firefly Floppy Flex Digital RGBW product to the glass fins and the top and bottom of the gallery windows. This served to create the sense of being inside the iconic ball and also to attract attention from passersby below. Tussauds has lots of competition on 42nd street and it's important to stand out in the crowd. The versatility of the Floppy Flex product allowed complex programming and not a small amount of flash and pizzazz to be added to brightness of the Broadway Marquees that compete for attention. Several challenges were involved in mounting the project, including syncing with audio and video for the countdown moments. Programming via cue server pro allowed each department to collaborate freely.
The show runs fluidly from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. The faux neon then continues to dance into the wee hours entertaining the denizens of Times Square with exciting chases and effects. It's always a pleasure to add dynamism and excitement to the lights of Times Square.
Gear
- 143 Meters TMB Firefly Floppy Flex Digital RGBW
- 21 ProPlex Floppy Digital Drives
- 1 Cueserver 2 Pro
- 3 City Theatrical Show Baby
- 1 grandMA 2 Rental.
Team
- Lighting Designer: Herrick Goldman
- Associate LD: Kara O'Grady
- Programmer: Benny Kirkham
Madame Tussaud's team
- Design: Kael Elliot
- MT NYC: Leslie Lehman
Vendors
- TMB
- Mainlight