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Tom Kenny uses Elation indoors and out at 2024 CMT Music Awards

Lighting Designer Tom Kenny utilized Elation lighting for both the indoor and outdoor stages at the 2024 CMT Music Awards earlier this spring. The lighting package, supplied by 4Wall, included Proteus Excalibur, Artiste Mondrian, and Dartz 360 luminaires, among other fixtures.

Broadcast live from the Moody Center on the University of Texas campus in Austin, performances took place inside and on an outdoor stage in front of the University of Texas Tower. Lighting direction for the indoor show was by Felix Peralta, David “Fuji” Convertino, and Michelle Griesmer, with Han Henze and Matt Piercy handling lighting direction on the outdoor stage. Production design was by Anne Brahic, her fifteenth year working the awards show.

Kenny was in his twelfth year designing for the CMTs. After familiarizing himself with the songs, he worked closely with the production team regarding camera angles to make sure the lighting looked compelling for the millions of at-home viewers, and after rehearsal time tweaked the lighting to ensure the artist was fully satisfied.

Kenny says he strives to make the lighting unique each time, adding drama while staying within the architectural look that Anne Brahic and her team have created. Video, naturally, was a dominant aspect of the look and the designer worked purposefully with color to blend lighting with video, harmonizing the LED screens with complementary lighting.

Elation lighting was prominently featured, especially outdoors at the UT Tower stage, where IP65-rated Proteus Excalibur beam effects were required to withstand rain while lighting up the entire skyline. Kenny placed the Excaliburs upstage on the deck, behind the band.

Additional to the Elation package were Dartz 360 LED beam/spot fixtures. Kenny positioned them throughout the house and on the University walls in the outdoor rig. He says the Dean of the University loved how they lit the buildings and foliage. “It’s always an interesting life being a lighting designer for CMT as they’re always breaking the rules on where a location should be”, shares Kenny. “It’s what makes these shows fan favorites.”

The CMT Music Awards made their return to Austin for a second consecutive year, after more than twenty years in Nashville, fully embracing Texas’ current status as a hotbed of country music. Inside at the main show, Production Designer Anne Brahic highlighted the city of Austin and its Congress Street Bridge with an asymmetrical set that extended to the heights of the venue and into the audience.

To cover the space, a large lighting package was used to light both set and talent and included Elation’s 51,000-lumen Artiste Mondrian LED profile fixture. The Mondrians were used both in the main show and throughout the outdoor rig at UT tower. “They cut through the strong video sources with the strong palettes created by Trevor Burke and Kat Folts”, says Kenny.

Art Director was Gloria Lamb; Jonathan Stoller-Schoff was the Asst Art Director. The main show team included: Cole Kiracofe (Gaffer); Michael Smallman (Best Boy); Alex Flores (Lighting Crew Chief); Matt Weede, Daniel Teeter and Taylor Moore (Lighting Techs); Loren Barton (Media Server Programmer); Zach Peletz (Content Director); Michael Moxon (Video Crew Chief); David Imlau, Tom Armbruster and Brandon Oosterhof (LED Leads); Russell Eia, Ryan Hollis, Austin Stengle and Kenny Stanley (LED Techs).

The Remote Stage UT Austin Tower team included: Daniel Fly (Gaffer); Brian Monahan (Production Electrician); Adam McIntosh (L1); Jake Riddell and Amy Sunshine Ross (L2s); and Ivy Weede (RoboSpot Tech).

(Photos: Rick Kern/Catherine Powell/Getty Images for CMT)

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