The rental of staging for any type of event is one of the most important areas to get right. If you are planning an outdoor event you will need to consider how the weather will impact your staging requirements. For example, is it likely to rain on the day of your event – if so you will need to think about keeping your speaker, band or singer dry – not to mention all of the expensive lighting and sound equipment that will be on the Phoenix karaoke.
You should also consider if the day is likely to be very sunny – to get the best from the stage roof you need to make it as dark as possible so that you can see the lighting or video screens that have been arranged, and try not to aim your stage into the sunlight when the sun will be setting – the audience won’t be able to see a thing! Having a large roof cover on your stage will help to protect performers from the sun – or any other extremes of weather.
As well as covering the performance areas themselves you should consider some covered areas backstage and to the sides of the stage – these can be used by the stage management team to store back line, sound, lighting and video equipment.
One of the biggest considerations when hiring any festival or concert staging is what effect the wind will have on the event. Wind speed and direction are critical when planning for your event. Careful planning should be given to the location of the stage, taking into account the direction of prevailing wind, the location of the stage and making sure that open faces of the stage are not open to the direct the wind will blow – this can make things very difficult if the wind speed picks up.
Careful onsite management should be taken to measure the direction and wind speed using wind-speed measuring equipment such as an anemometer. This will help the event organisers to know what speed the wind is at all times so that decisions can be made about whether an event should be postponed or cancelled when the wind speeds get too high.
When you are planning your event site please speak to one of our staging consultants to help you to locate your stage in the best possible position. Wind direction can also have an effect on the way that sound travels from your stage and may effect your nearby residents.
One final consideration is lightning – if lightning is likely you should ensure that all stage and staging equipment is earthed back to the generators and into the ground and comply with any local regulations.
Jill Hoad represents LMS Events – a specialist supplier to the event and entertainment industries for stage rental, staging hire and front of house barrier solutions. From Concerts and Festivals to Conference and Corporate, LMS Events have the experience to help with your event – whatever shape and size.
