The Opus – German Stage Prize – awards for theatre, opera, classical music and pop productions, distinguished by a new and creative approach to the use of technology, will be presented at the Prolight + Sound trade fair, which opens its doors in Frankfurt am Main from 12 to 15 March. Opus is given by a jury of experts for creative achievements in the use of technology and stage design in the categories 'lighting design', 'stage design', 'sound design, 'technical realisation' and, new this year, 'video'. The jury is made up of experts from the industry, associations and Messe Frankfurt, as well as trade journalists from the leading specialist publications, who make their choice from productions staged during the previous year. The awards ceremony will be held in the Pro Lounge, Galleria Level 1, at Prolight + Sound in Frankfurt am Main on the second day of the fair, 13 March 2008, 3 pm.

In stage design category, stage designer Stéphan Laimé has been selected for his work on the theatre production of 'Much Ado about Nothing' at the 'Burgtheater' in Vienna. For this Shakespeare play, Laimé made good use of the stage-technology available and employed it skilfully for the production. To this end, he adeptly integrated the changes of scenery into the setting. Classic elements, such as the use of around 30,000 litres of water during the tropical storm on the stage, were brought together using new techniques (lighting, sound and video) to create an interesting impression.


(c) Georg Soulek

An Opus goes to Günter Jäckle for the lighting design of Herbert Grönemeyer's '12' tour, which was distinguished, in particular, by the clever combination of video sequences and classic lighting design. In cooperation with Anton Corbijn, who produced a number of high-definition films especially for Grönemeyer's songs, Jäckle planned the stage lighting incorporating a 25-metre wide and nine-metre high video screen. Full use was made of classic lighting elements, such as blinders, spots and mobile rigging systems. Through the combination of these classic lighting elements with video clips, Jäckle created an impressive and new design concept for Herbert Grönemeyer concerts. Over the years Günter Jäckle created lighting design for Maffay, PUR und Afrika! Afrika. 


(c) Ralph Larmann

High-grade, large-scale productions in the classical-music segment demonstrate that events of this kind have a strong appeal for classic fans. Accordingly, the Opus in the sound design goes to Wolfgang Geisler of Pave Veranstaltungstechnik for the Classic Open Air in Nuremberg, a great feat, especially in overcoming the transit-time differences at such a big event. For the Classic Open Air, where some members of the 120,000-strong audience were as much as 290 metres from the stage, Geisler and his team used 12 delay towers, which were set up at various places throughout the grounds and controlled individually. Pave succeeded in meeting the special sound requirements of a classical concert and, thanks to the excellent synchronisation between the main PA system and the delay towers, was able to generate a homogenous and harmonious sound image.


(c) Wolfgang Geisler

The Love Parade was reborn in Essen last year and the response shows that it still exercises a huge power of attraction. The team responsible for the main stage of the final event have been awarded the Opus in the category Technical Realisation. The team, comprising lighting designer Heike Trebuth, Sebastian Kraas (Stageco) and Clemens Petzold, constructed a stage cube that proved to be a great hit with the huge mass of people at the final party. Weighing around 300 tonnes and covering an area of 800 square metres, the stage was the magnet and highlight of the event.


(c) Nadine Malzkorn

For the first time this year, an Opus is being awarded for a video project. The first winner in this category is video artist Chris Kondek for the realisation and integration of video sequences in the theatre production of 'The Tempest at the 'Kammerspiele' Theatre in Munich. The prominent use of video in this theatre production resulted in a 'spectacular multi-media show and lighting event', said the 'Süddeutsche Zeitung' newspaper. Chris Kondek has been working on 'Video in Live Performances' with, inter alia, Robert Wilson, Michael Nyman and Laurie Anderson, for over ten years.


(c) Tom Becker

With Opus – German Stage Prize – an expert jury of specialists, journalists and trade-association representatives have honoured creative achievements in the use of technology in connection with stage design at Prolight + Sound every year since 2002. Opus is sponsored by the Professional Lighting & Sound Association of Germany (Verband für Licht-, Ton- und Veranstaltungstechnik - VPLT), the European Association of Event Centres (Europäischer Verband der Veranstaltungs-Centren - EVVC) and Messe Frankfurt GmbH.

Opus – German Stage Prize – is an honorary award for stage designers, designers, technicians and planners. It carries no prize money and will be awarded for the seventh time in 2008.