Mark Taper Forum Upgrades to Eos Titanium

	Mark Taper Forum theater

The Mark Taper Forum, an iconic 750-seat Los Angeles theater, has been lit by an ETC Eos lighting system since the venue was a beta-test site for the board in 2007. Then this spring, Billy Morner, chief electrician at the Mark Taper Forum, saw a demo of the new Eos Titanium (Ti) desk. He knew instantly that he wanted it for the theater, and brought the idea up to the Center Theatre Group. The company, which strives to offer the best technology to guest designers from Broadway and beyond, decided to purchase a Ti. On April 15, the Mark Taper Forum became one of the first venues in the world to install the new Ti desk.

Ti includes many software and hardware features that add to its award-winning Eos-family functionality, including large-format, articulating multi-touch displays, a multi-touch encoder display, a solid-state hard drive and the ability to work with Magic Sheets. "The solid state hard drive is fast. There's no doubt about it. It's fast," says Morner. "I also like the screen size. This desk is beautiful. It feels good."

The Ti is the master console in the theater's lighting system, which also includes a new ETCNet3 RPU3 (remote processor unit) and Net3 RVI3 (remote video interface). The desk controls a mixed rig of conventional fixtures, LEDs, and a small number of moving lights. The first show to experience the new system is August Wilson's Joe Turner's Come and Gone, running from April 24 to June 9.

Despite the transition to Ti, the Mark Taper Forum's original Eos desk is not going to waste. The well-loved board is still in mint condition, so it was transferred to the Ahmanson Theatre, another venue in the Center Theatre Group. That means that three of the four theater spaces at the Music Center of Los Angeles are now controlled by an Eos-family lighting system. "I pick ETC because of who and what the company is. It's a no-brainer," explains Morner. "ETC is the industry standard for service and they have the best dimming and control products. Why would you go anywhere else?"