Clay Paky Sharpys and grandMA2 Get the Justin Timberlake Experience on His New World Tour

	Justin Timberlake's 20/20 Experience world tour with Clay Paky and grandMA

Justin Timberlake kicked off his 20/20 Experience world tour in Montreal and Clay Paky Sharpys, Sharpy Washes, and the grandMA2 console were out in force. A.C.T Lighting is the exclusive North American distributor of Clay Paky fixtures and MA Lighting products.

True to its name, the tour is "an experience rather than a show," says lighting director Nick Whitehouse. "It's very visual with lots of projection and lighting and a lot of new technology. We got pretty creative with everything and had fun putting it all together."

The tour is in support of Timberlake's third studio album, which has a sophisticated vibe. The singer will play dates in North America, Europe, Australia, and South America. Solotech is the lighting company for the tour.

Whitehouse programmed the tour on a grandMA2 console with Jason Gangi, who is also the tour lighting director. "I like using grandMA2 best," Whitehouse says. "They have developed a 3D tracking system for us; our video server feeds 3D info to the MA, which interprets it to the lighting rig. Lots of companies have tried to pull this off before, but MA has succeeded. Every light on the rig can follow Justin around the stage."

"We did seven weeks of rehearsals," Whitehouse reports. "The gear really got a work out -- 20 hours a day." On the tour "the whole rig is hidden behind a scenic back wall and ceiling. We have 80 Sharpys and 130 Sharpy Washes mounted on trusses, and all of them come through a grill and look amazing. When they're not on you don't see them at all. And when they're on you can't see the grill."

Whitehouse selected Sharpys because he "needed something that was powerful, lightweight, and low power. And they tick all those boxes."

Although the tour is still in its early days the lighting designer says "everything is working great -- all the Sharpys and the grandMA2 are holding up really well. The guys at A.C.T were awesome, too. A.C.T's support has always been incredible. Day or night, we could make one call to A.C.T and get anything sorted out."

See A.C.T Lighting at PLASA Focus: Nashville, February 18 - 19, 2014.