Theatre Design & Technology - Spring 2017 - 23

INSTALLATION AND TESTING
was, at least for this project, satisfied.
The built components then moved into the Cellar
Once the wall was built and it was functional, atTheater at Playhouse San Antonio. The team that astention turned to making this work for the production.
sembled the wall and all of its components consisted of
One of the challenges the PiWall presented was that it
four people, including the author, Landazuri, Set Dedid not allow for individual display control. PiWall was
signer Ryan deRoos, and Technical Director Pat Smith.
essentially, as Landazuri put it, "one big dumb screen."
The team had to work collaboratively, essentially brainA mask in After Effects was used to be able to isolate
storming how to best proceed with building and installdisplays within the wall-first creating an initial rough
ing the wall. The displays were mounted 14 inches away
version just by using the elevation drawing, and then
from the back wall of the theatre to accommodate the
displaying it on the PiWall. The mask could then be edPis and their associated cables and power supplies. Each
ited in Photoshop, with the saved changes updated relaPi was installed as close as possible to its display, and
tively quickly to the live version on the wall. In this way,
the space between the displays was covered
in black duvetyne rather than a hard coverIntroducing...
ing, allowing for as much access as possible
for troubleshooting during tech rehearsals.
DMX Roll Drum
The Ethernet switch was located within easy
reach. Ethernet cable was cheaper than buying individual lengths, and the theatre already had large spools in stock, which saved
money, though not time.
It's worth noting that the displays
were all "found" displays, with the exception of two large rented ones. Several were
computer monitors the Playhouse owned,
while others were borrowed or sourced online. PiWall's code allows for this difference
in displays-resolutions do not have to be
identical across all screens. Issues did arise
with some of the displays and several had to
be swapped out with new ones during tech.
Because the Raspberry Pis had been "told"
Our new DMX Roll Drum is a fraction of the cost of competitive products,
the starting point of each display, anytime
one was replaced, the size had to remain
and it's way easier to install and program. Use it to raise and lower projection
consistent. A few Ethernet cables were rescreens, backdrops, lightweight curtains and more. It installs in just minutes
placed as well, but these were the only gearrelated technical problems during the entire
since the powerful AC motor is built right into the drum. Simply mount the
run of the show.
half clamps to your pipe, truss, or overhead points and you're done! Our new
That said, the team had to work around
DMX Roll Drum is also simple to operate. Program precise movement and
a number of oddities while using an untried
solution like this for performance. When
multiple limit positions using DMX.
working with software such as Isadora or
QLab, in the event a problem occurs, one
Custom order your DMX Roll Drum in sizes up to 39 feet wide. Manufactured
assumes an elegant solution has been developed within the software itself. PiWall was
by Wahlberg Motion Design.
not designed to do exactly what it was being used for: running more than four dozen
separate video cues that had to be called and
executed at precise times-some displaying video while others were still images and
some only on one display, while others took
the entire wall. The team did not have that
luxury here, so the solutions may or may not
© 2017 Rose Brand, Inc.
be elegant as a result. However, given that all
problems arose between load in and openNJ 800-223-1624 | CA 800-360-5056 | RoseBrand.com
ing night (a week and a half stretch), and the
Everything you need in production hardware...in stock
solutions all worked for this show, the team

WE'VE MADE THE ROLL DRUM...
AFFORDABLE!!!

S p r i n g 2 0 1 7

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theatre design

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Spring 2017