LED Source and Coemar Team Up To Award $20,000 in the LEDko ChallengeCincinnati Shakespeare Company (CSC) of Ohio was named the grand prize winner January 31 of the LED Source and Coemar LEDko Challenge, and will receive a complete LED lighting makeover worth $20,000. CSC was chosen among dozens of staging, education, studio, installation, and theatre professionals throughout North America who participated in the contest by submitting a video of their lackluster lighting systems to be considered for a complete LED lighting upgrade. As the grand prize winner, CSC -- which employs a resident ensemble of actors that put on nine main stage productions seen by more than 25,000 audience members each year -- will have their aging, energy-draining stage lighting replaced with eight Reflection LEDko fixtures by Coemar, the sponsor of the contest. The LEDko Challenge, which launched in October 2011, was created by LED Source in celebration of the launch of the new Reflection LEDko series by Italy-based Coemar. As the exclusive distributor of Coemar LED products in North America, LED Source wanted to get the word out about the launch and award a deserving organization with the latest in LED profile technology. "Although we received several outstanding video submissions, the group at CSC went above and beyond," says Marcel Fairbairn, president and CEO of LED Source. "We can't wait to deliver the new Reflection LEDko fixtures this month and show what a difference the right lighting can make in this setting." CSC was chosen as the winner among the top five finalists for their submission of a creative and humorous video demonstrating their "ancient" lighting system, which theatre employees said often caused blackouts and delays during rehearsals and performances. "Our current lights are basically the SUVs of the lighting world," said Brian Phillips, producing artistic director of the CSC. "We are so grateful for this opportunity, as it will change our lives and our art in a profound and meaningful way. The unique challenges of our theatre space make CSC, LED Source, and Coemar a perfect fit." Finalists were selected by a panel of experts made up of both LED Source and Coemar senior management, and the grand prize winner was chosen by fans on the Reflection LEDko Facebook page through a voting process. As the contest winner, power outages and outdated stage lighting will be a thing of the past for CSC, which has been producing classic Shakespeare performances since 1993 and educates more than 20,000 theatre students annually through its educational outreach programs. LED lighting will allow CSC, which produces classic multi-scene adventure plays, to seamlessly transition from a battle scene to a banquet in the blink of an eye, the company says. Reflection LEDko is a new LED fixture and the first LED profile delivering both soft profile and hard edge profile using mix-and-match optics. With this new technology, Coemar says it has created the first LED profile capable of projecting soft-edged profile light that can be used in the same way as traditional profiles and can obtain any color tone, shade and white light. Applying the Reflection LED technology as a retrofit makes it possible to reduce energy consumption from 500-650W to 150W. The LED lamps last up to 50,000 hours without loss of brightness, thus eliminating maintenance costs associated with traditional profiles, the company says. Because LEDs do not emit heat, Reflection LEDko is capable of utilizing images or gobos created with any standard printer and a transparency sheet. This technology allows users to project any image quickly and without cost, the company says. Reflection LEDko is one fixture that can virtually eliminate or significantly reduce all costs related to lamps, dimmers, scrollers, gel filters, heat, cabling, electricity and manpower. All LEDko series fixtures feature electronic 16-bit dimming, flicker-free operation with DMX controllable LED frequency from 500 to 5000 Hz and a bi-directional DMX512, Coemar reports. "We are thrilled to be able to provide the CSC with the revolutionary Reflection LEDko LED profile fixtures, which enhance the stage experience by providing an energy and space-efficient lighting solution," said Fausto Orsatti, vice president of sales and marketing at Coemar. "LED lighting will allow for more lighting versatility and no dimmers, resulting in a more streamlined stage production." The Reflection LEDko fixtures will debut on the CSC stage in time for either the late winter production of Sense and Sensibility or an early spring performance of The Grapes of Wrath. This is CSC's first lighting upgrade in five years. To view the winning video, go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYHrW1rWZCQ&feature=youtu.be. 
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