Philips Vari-Lite powerful new intelligent effects luminaire, the VL10 BeamWash, is delivering a dynamic performance for the current European tour by popular British singer-songwriter, Tom Odell. Lighting designer Joe Beardsmore is among the first lighting designers in the world to use the VL10 BeamWash on a touring show.

With a set ranging from gentle, solo ballads to big, high energy rock numbers, he looked for lighting fixtures capable of producing endless effects versatility. The VL10 BeamWash delivers this, along with the brightness, beam quality and color palette typical of the Vari-Lite brand. “The VL10 honestly blew me away,” he says. “Tom trusts me to complement his show with my best design ideas,” says Beardsmore, who has worked with Odell for two years.

Silhouette from the VL10s on the rear truss

“For this tour, I wanted to add some more theatrical elements, to supplement some of the quieter songs in particular. On the UK leg I used six VL10s on the rear truss for big looks, scaling down to single spots for each band member, and punching up for big beam looks and bright washes for the rockier songs. I love that Tom is happy to have a dark stage. I like dropping down to a blackout between most songs, and then building again.”

The VL10’s flexibility helps Beardsmore to deliver a show rich in contrast and atmosphere, a fitting visual complement to Odell’s varied musical palette. And, as the UK tour transitions to Europe, Beardsmore will experiment further with the VL10’s impressive battery of effects. “In Europe I’ll be aiming for more flexibility,” he says. “On some shows they will go onto back- or mid-trusses in the air, while for others I’ll place them in an arc on the floor, for a mixture of mid-air effects and silhouette looks.”

Magnetised by the precise subtlety of this light

Beardsmore concludes, “Other fixtures come nowhere near to the precise subtlety of this light.
When we drop down to maybe one or two lights for a solo number, if I have a gobo rotating or animating, it needs to be super-smooth to not detract from the music – and the VL10 just delivers.”

More information on the Philips Vari-Lite VL10 here