Lightware’s signal management technology is at the heart of the video infrastructure for The Hunger Games: On Stage, the stage adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ dystopian novels which has opened at the purpose-built Troubadour Canary Wharf Theatre in London’s financial district – with more than 130sqm of Unilumin P3.9 direct-view LED central to the immersive visual environment.
The 1,200-seat venue stages the production in the round, with the LED surfaces supplemented by a 38m floor-level ticker and six balcony screens linking audience members to their assigned districts within the narrative. Two central scenic structures – the West Tower and East Tower – serve as both scenic elements and active video surfaces, with performers interacting directly with the LED during choreographed fight sequences.
At the core of the signal infrastructure is Lightware’s MX2-8×8-DH4DPIO-A matrix switcher, selected for its native DisplayPort support and full 4:4:4 colour processing. The unit delivers 4K60 video signals over HDMI 2.0 and DisplayPort with ultra-low latency across the multiple LED surfaces and screens.
Behind the scenes, Lightware’s Gemini GVN – a 1G AVoIP KVM system – handles the complex video workflow during post-production and rehearsal. A GVN-MMU-X100 Matrix Management Unit acts as a central control hub, coordinating communication between 17 GVN-HDMI-TX210AP-DNT transmitters and 12 GVN-HDMI-RX110AP-DNT receivers. The system provides remote access to media servers and workstations located back of house, with visually lossless 4K60 4:4:4 transmission over 1 Gigabit preserving image clarity across fast-changing, highly detailed content.
Technical solutions provider ArtAV, working closely with video designer Tal Rosner and senior video engineer Arthur Skinner, designed and supplied the video system.
Nick Joyce, managing director at ArtAV, said: “It was decided very early on that video would be the primary tool to immerse the audience as much as possible. It is certainly one of the more complex projects we have worked on.”
Joyce added: “The MX2’s native DisplayPort support and full 4:4:4 colour processing is critical to the production’s success. It enables uncompromised high-resolution performance, while its dependability ensures consistent video distribution across the multiple LED surfaces and screens.”
The Dante-enabled version of the Gemini GVN also provided audio routing flexibility, allowing animators to route audio from multiple sources directly to their workstations. ArtAV designed custom production desks supported by the Gemini system, each connecting via a single backstage link and capable of being daisy-chained or removed quickly – a critical consideration given that the venue was still under construction when the team began work.
Joyce added: “The scale of the space meant everything took longer than anticipated, so simplifying the production workflow became critical. By designing custom production desks supported by the Lightware Gemini system, we were able to create quickly deployable setups with minimal cabling, allowing the team to stay flexible throughout a long technical rehearsal period.”
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