Opera in the Quarry St. Margarethen | Perfect Light from Every Angle

Habegger and M-LUX light up the Carmen production in the quarry with Robe FORTE and ESPRITE moving lights

The quarry in St. Margarethen, Austria, is a natural spectacle that UNESCO designated a World Heritage Site in the early 2000s. It’s best known for the annual “Opera in the Quarry”, one of Austria’s most significant cultural events. In 2023, the international cast performed Bizet’s “Carmen” on 24 evenings throughout July and August. As long-standing technical partners of the production, Habegger GmbH, along with lighting designer Jacopo Pantani, created the lighting design for this modern staging of Carmen. Once again, Habegger relied on the expertise of Wolfgang Mair (M-LUX light engineering) as operator and programmer, as well as on the proven Robe FORTE and ESPRITE moving lights.

As with most opera productions, no lighting fixtures were allowed to be visible within the stage design. All 23 FORTE and 18 ESPRITE units were therefore housed in four lighting towers positioned to the sides of the audience area, and above the central front-of-house position. “Because of the long distance from the towers to the stage, we needed fixtures with high output that wouldn’t compromise on image quality, optics, or zoom range,” explains Wolfgang Mair. “Additionally, the director specifically requested that no follow spots be used.”

Wolfgang Mair was responsible for both programming and operating Carmen, using the Robe fixtures as key light and for highlighting scenic elements and the six rotating stage platforms spread across the 60-meter-wide stage.

Due to the side-mounted fixture positions, the lighting team made extensive use of the integrated framing shutter systems in both the FORTE and ESPRITE. These systems allow individual control of each blade and rotation of the entire framing module by +/- 60°, enabling fast, precise framing of performers and set elements.

FORTE and ESPRITE have proven themselves as true workhorses for both Habegger and Wolfgang Mair: “The fixtures are extremely reliable and withstand tough environmental conditions like dust, wind, and high humidity.” Logistics also played a key role in fixture selection during the open-air summer season: “Robe has a solid distribution presence in Austria through SIGNAL and strong availability for dry hire. Plus, Habegger has a large rental stock of these units we can always draw from.”

Text
Alexander Cevolani | EVENT Edit | eventedit.de

Photo
Andreas Tischler | andreastischler.com

More information:
🌐 operimsteinbruch.at

🌐 habegger-austria.at

🌐 m-lux.at

🌐 robelighting.de