Teddy Swims headlined the NRL Grand Final pre-show entertainment, delivering a performance that wowed both footy fans and armchair lighting critics alike!
 

The 33-year-old singer impressed the 80,000-strong crowd, opening with his hit single Bad Dreams, followed by The Door, before launching into a powerhouse cover of AC/DC’s T.N.T.
 

For his tenth year as Lighting Designer on the prestigious event, Tom Wright was thrilled to collaborate with Teddy’s UK-based creative team, TAWBOX.
 

“They’re the creators behind his current tour, which is running across the country,” Tom explained. “They came up with the bold stage design, and I built on that with the lighting concepts. They have a deep understanding of sporting ceremonies, but hadn’t previously been able to play with height, so the towers were born from those early conversations. They were incredibly receptive. Thanks to great communication and early track delivery for previs, the process ran smoothly and stress-free.”
 

Coming from a strong TV background, TAWBOX worked closely with Channel 9 early in the planning to ensure the show looked flawless on camera.
 

“They were involved from the start, and I think it showed,” said Tom. “Some of the shots looked like they were in a TV studio, not outdoors.”
 

This year, Tom was pleased to have a healthy budget, crediting Tony Davies, Managing Director of Chameleon Touring Systems, for being “very generous — probably because he thought Sharks were making the final… which didn’t quite go to plan!”
 

The rig was composed entirely of IP65-rated fixtures, except for 72 x ETC Source 4 Pars lining the walkways and front of the stage.
 

“We were competing with two other major outdoor gigs that weekend, so LED tungsten fixtures were scarce,” Tom said. “Generic LED Pars just don’t look great on camera when you’re chasing that warm glow. Chameleon was happy to place the classic tungsten sources under the stage — safe from the weather — and even if they got a bit wet, they could handle it.”

Chauvet Strike 1 blinders were mounted under the drum risers for their large presence and fast response.
 

“We could colour-tune them to match the Source 4s for consistency,” Tom added. “Overall, we wanted a big, warm, cozy lounge feel — with tungsten running through the entire look.”
 

One highlight came during The Door, where the team pulled off a clever trick. Using previs programming of the Source 4 Pars, they created a straight-line model in Depence4 to record a video clip for playback on all stadium screens.
 

“We then adjusted the real light colours to match the screens’ temperatures,” said Tom, “and suddenly it looked like we had hundreds of lights in perfect unison around the stadium.”

Complementing that were 64 x ShowPRO Quad 18 LED Pars, which looked fantastic in wide Channel 9 shots.
 

“Credit to Anthony Carlon, our crew boss — it was his idea years ago to use that handrail position, and it’s still a winner,” Tom said.
 

Encircling two-thirds of the stage were 24 x Martin MAC Aura XIPs, chosen for their speed, colour temperature, and IP rating.
 

“There was a beautiful moment in T.N.T. when we put them into a tight beam to create a crown effect around Teddy,” said Tom. “They’re punchy, light, and easy to rig — just clipped onto piping on the stage exterior.”
 

On the field, 16 x Ayrton Rivales sat in semi-circles behind the stage, with 3 x Ayrton Perseos in front for gobo flashes during T.N.T. and as footlights when Teddy stepped forward.
 

“We weren’t sure if he’d wear one of his signature hats,” Tom laughed, “so we added footlights just in case. Those Perseos are workhorses — solid, bright, and reliable.”
 

Tom’s current favourite fixture? The Martin MAC Viper XIP.
 

“They’re ludicrously bright,” he said. “You can go beam or wide, and they still punch through. The colours are great, and dropping a gobo doesn’t kill intensity — it’s remarkable.”
 

Twenty-eight MAC Viper XIPs were used — twenty flown, eight in the four towers — and they cut through everything.
 

“The roof fixtures handled all the front and backlight,” Tom explained. “The brief was for the set to feel theatrically backlit, and the Vipers nailed it, while the Rivales really became the centrepiece.”
 

Each tower housed two MAC Vipers and four GLP JDC Burst 1s for effects.
 

“It wasn’t a beam-heavy show — the client preferred blocks of colour and animation,” said Tom. “The JDC Burst 1s were so bright we had an inhibitor on them most of the time. Even in daylight, they were stunning — easily a big upgrade from the original JDC-1s.”
 

Programmer Jarrad Donovan ran an MA3 light console while Tom used an MA3 compact XT.
 

“We’ve both been on MA3 mode for six years — nothing else can program at that speed,” said Tom. “JD’s a wizard. Even though it was a one-off show, we built it all in recipes so we could adapt on the day to any creative or technical curveballs.”
 

The result? A show that looked “huge and polished,” with feedback praising its consistency and cohesion — another step up from previous years.
 

Credits
Client – NRL
Creative – TAWBOX (Bronski & Amber)
Lighting Designer – Tom Wright
Programmer / Operator – Jarrad Donovan
Production – The Helm
Lighting Supplier – Chameleon Touring Systems
CTS Account Manager – Luke Cuthbertson
CTS Crew Boss – Anthony Carlon
CTS Crew – Justin Boerst, Ryan Green, Nick Newman, Chris Masters

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Photos courtesy of the NRL