The main stage Inauguration and Keynote presentation were both held in a massive 80’x250’ pole tent. That tent was located in a large parking lot on campus behind one of the main buildings. While the size of the venue was impressive on its own, attendees were wowed upon entering the tent thanks to the staging inside. They were greeted by an incredible 30’x10’ LED video wall that served as the backdrop. On the screen featured image magnification (IMAG) of the stage and the RISD logo front and center. There were also eight 65” televisions lining the sides of the tent. This was to ensure everyone could have a view of the stage.

For audio, we hung a line array speaker system from a truss that was rigged above the stage. 9 moving head wash lights were also strung from the same truss. This allowed us to change the lighting from the podium during the investiture to the panel discussion chairs during the keynote seamlessly without having to change out the lighting fixtures.

One of the other main necessities for both the in-room audience as well as the viewers on the live stream was to have captions available to all. We leveraged a live stenographer that was listening in remotely using AI-Media’s iCap Encoder. This allowed for low delay captions on the stream and live in the venue on the screens for all!

A Bonded Solution

Because we were located in a parking lot for the main stage, we didn’t have access to enough power for the screens and equipment. We brought in a 45kW “whisper-watt” generator with 3-phase power which served as the pulse for the event. This was more than strong enough to power the entire event. The generator also stayed quiet enough to remain unnoticed by participants.

With any live stream we’re always sure to have a hardline connection as well as a backup. Because there was no internet available on-location, we had to bring in our own solution. We leveraged a bonded solution from Pop-Up Wifi. This took six sim cards from three telecom carriers (Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile), and bonded those connections together to create a fail-safe pipe for us to stream with.

We sent the live video stream to a Vimeo player which was then hosted on a RISD webpage for all students, alums and family members to watch.

Not one, but several locations.

While the main stage tent was a large undertaking on its own, there were several other locations along the waterfront which we assisted with. Lighting and audio services were provided to transform the outdoor cobblestone filled spaces into lively performance venues. This allowed for DJs to take over and create a party-like atmosphere. There was also a well branded and beautifully lit viewing space for the infamous “Waterfire.”

The final space proved to be the most unique and inspiring. The school invited the incredibly talented Jazz Pianist Jason Moran to come play for a small crowd of VIP guests in the Grand Gallery of the RISD Museum of Art. We provided microphones for the performance which were only needed for the speaking portion of the show. The acoustics in the room were ideal for the grand piano. The show left guests amazed by Moran’s talents, and was the perfect ended to an incredible day.