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Stage Audio Works, Bad Weather Productions, D&B Audiotechnik, Blackmagic Design, and SAE Institute collaborate on Rocking the Daisies

South African event production company Bad Weather Productions (BWP) handled the creative technical needs for the Rocking the Daisies Festival, held in Cape Town and Johannesburg late last year. Said to mark the beginning of South Africa’s festival season, Rocking the Daisies hosts international artists from a diverse spectrum of genres across three days at Cloof Wine Estate, near Cape Town, followed by one day at SuperSport Park, Johannesburg.

With a decade-long involvement in Rocking the Daisies, BWP has played a part in the festival’s evolution. Notably, they pioneered the first hip-hop stage, TwosUp, in 2016, diversifying the festival’s music offerings. Over the years, the collaboration has expanded, with BWP leading the production design and execution across every arena.

“It’s been an incredible journey working with Rocking the Daisies over the last ten years, and watching it develop into one of the most diverse festivals in the country”, says Jonathan Bandli, Co-Founder and Creative Director of Bad Weather Productions. “This year, we were entrusted with handling the AV production for four stages in Cape Town and one stage in Johannesburg, making it one of our most complex projects to date.”

The resource challenges of working in Cape Town during the height of the festival season were overcome by strategically selecting specialised rental and events companies to provide equipment and support for each stage. BWP handpicked a team of 50-60 crew members, from lighting operators to front-of-house operators, with teams assigned according to specialities.

To ensure audio consistency, the festival opted for D&B Audiotechnik systems across all stages. “The lightweight form and versatility of both the V and Q series systems allowed us to overcome obstacles, such as flying the PA on a cantilever in high winds on the main stage or dealing with weight restrictions in the dome structure”, states Bandli.

In both Johannesburg and Cape Town, the main stage was equipped with arrays of sixteen J-Series mid-high loudspeakers per side, with flown J-Subs supplemented by ground-stacked B-Series subwoofers. On Cape Town’s Maybelline Stations stage, a D&B Q-Series system was chosen as the main PA, whilst the Savannah Beach Club, dedicated to showcasing local artists, opted for V-Series line arrays and V-Subs, supported by J-Infra large format subwoofers. A V-Series system was also deployed on the Heineken House stage.

On the main, Blackmagic Design solutions were chosen for capturing the event for IMAG. SAE Institute, one of South Africa’s leading creative media universities, partnered with BWP and Blackmagic to allow its students to work as interns at Rocking the Daisies.

BWP also highlights the consultation provided by South African audio supplier Stage Audio Works, who supplied many of the companies involved in the production. “We switched the structure of the main stage to a Stageco dome this year, and therefore needed to change the position of the PA system”, explains Bandli. “Having the Stage Audio Works team there to consult around the system design and give us feedback was critical to the show’s success.”

(Photos: Bad Weather Productions/Stage Audio Works)

www.badweather.co.za

www.stageaudioworks.com

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