A look at the Beatles LOVE Theater

By Lisa Nadile 

A group of about 65 WSC&E attendees and I were escorted backstage—and on-stage—today at NFPA’s special event: the tour of the Beatles(TM) LOVE(TM) theater at the Mirage Hotel.

Led by Douglas Evans of the Clark County Building Department, the presenters included Rich Muller of RJA Group, and Armin Wolski of Arup, Brad Geinzer of JBA Consulting Engineers, and Steve DiGiovanni of the Clark County Fire Department. Also on hand was Leu Strope, production manager of the Cirque du Soleil show, who gave us the scoop on the way the show works and how the performers and crew incorporate fire and life safety into their work.

The intricacies of the theater’s fire protection were hidden in a maze of rooms that curled underneath and over the stage. There is no theatrical fourth wall in Cirque du Soleil shows. The performance happens around, below, and above the audience—so the fire protection must as well. Just as the massive sound system uses every aspect of the show, with speakers and sound systems even inside the seats, so does the fire protection system use the design of the theater to its advantage in unique ways. It was a cutting edge display, both of artistic endeavors and of fire and life safety.

We were allowed on stage (I tried not to think about all the trap doors), and it was truly a wonderful experience to stand where amazing artists challenge our perceptions and inspire us, just as the Beatles still do with their music.

Comments

[Andrew Barr]

This was by far the best pre-conference seminar I have attending at NFPA. Very informative and interesting.

[O. Guilherme Decanini]

It was a special and unique opportunity to learn a lot about this kind of project. Incredible!