世紀經典舞台設計----U2 360° Tour Stage
Show Design & Direction, Lighting Design: Willie.Willians
Architect: Mark Fisher
Kinetic Video Screen, Concept & Design: Chuck Hoberman, Frederic Opsomer
Video Directors: Tom Krueger, Stefaan Desmedt
Lighting Directors: Ethan Weber, Alex Murphy
耗資1億美金製造，恢弘的舞台藝術品。
- 舞台設計的目的
The inspirations of "the Claw"
Willie Williams, who has worked on every U2 tour since 1982, is again a designer for this tour;
Mark Fisher serves as the architect. Williams had been toying with ideas for 360-degree stadium staging for U2 for a number of years, and presented sketches of a four-legged design to the group near the end of their Vertigo Tour in 2006. The inspiration for the "spaceship-on-four-legs" design, nicknamed "the Claw", came from the landmark Theme Building at Los Angeles International Airport. Early reports referred to it as being called the Kiss the Future Tour, though the name was later changed.
洛杉磯國際機場 Theme Building at LAX
- 舞台設計的流程
在現代，舞台、服裝、燈光、音效等，已成為一齣戲成功與否的關鍵之一，它們已不再只是各自分開的技術。因此為追求一齣戲在整體視覺上的協調，設計師與設計師之間將花費更多的時間作相互的溝通與調整。
因此舞台設計師在構思這舞台要發揮何種視覺作用時，是要根據活動的內容、表演的風格與導演整體的構想來決定的。相對的，導演也應要有設計師圖像式的思考方式，去揣摩舞台的整體畫面，互相熟悉對方的語言。
一個完整的表演演出是許多人長時間合作、協調的工作成果，它是要通過一系列不同階段的程序，並經過一連串反覆的溝通與修改，才能達到一致的形式。
這程序是三段式的：整體→細部→整體
第一階段的「整體」是指各部門在視覺效果上達成共識。這是構思的核心階段，亦是各方合作的關鍵。
第二階段的「細部」是在整體視覺構思的原則下，導演與舞台設計師各自分頭進行排戲與設計等細部工作。
第三階段的「整體」是將局部性的成果在舞台上組合，做適當的修改，最後達成演出形象上的統一。
一個舞台設計師在工作時其思維是流動的，不像畫家所關注的是畫布的二度空間，以及雕塑家所思考的三度空間的物體，因為戲劇是在三度空間的舞台上，另加上時間流動﹝表演者的表達﹞的呈現，因此在舞台設計師所關注的不僅是舞台內靜態的美術畫面，還有舞台上活生生的移動畫面。
同樣的，設計師在舞台視覺形象的構思、抉擇上，也應考慮到靜態空間與動態空間的協調，才不致造成舞台景物與表演風格上的突兀。設計師的想法不需要多，有時一個想法就足以貫穿一齣戲各場次的設計。
- 設計階段
草圖
設計會議後，舞台設計師對其他設計師的設計走向有了明確的認識之後，便開始描繪出腦海中的舞台畫面，這雖是一張粗略的草圖，但卻是設計師將抽象的概念具體化的第一步。草圖在設計過程中會因靈感的產生而不斷地發展，直到設計成熟為止。
平面圖
當草圖確定之後，舞台設計師須繪製舞台平面圖，所謂平面圖是舞台的鳥瞰圖，從圖面上可以很清楚的標示出牆、門、樓梯、平台等景片及道具的關係位置。導演可根據這張平面圖去設計演員的走位及畫面的安排，燈光設計師也須根據這平面圖去了解舞台空間的分配，進行光區的分割安排及分配燈具的位置。
工作模型
接著，舞台設計師必須製作一個簡單且合比例的工作模型，這可協助設計師本身能更清楚的由各個角度去觀察舞台的三度空間並加以充分的利用。
剖面圖、透視圖、正視圖
有了正確的平面圖之後，接下來便要繪製合乎比例的舞台剖面圖、側視圖、正視圖及透視圖。有了這些圖面資料，燈光設計師便可以計算燈光角度、選擇燈具，著手進行較為完整的設計工作。
彩色場景圖
所謂彩色示意圖是指上了色的正視圖或透視圖。設計師們在設計會議中，各自提出自己設計的色稿及正確的色票共同討論，協調出舞台、服裝、燈光的基本色調。定案 之後，舞台設計師就必須提出每一場景的彩色示意圖，目的在提供一個輔有色彩、質感及素材的彩圖，幫助演員、導演及其他工作人員預先感受戲的氛圍。
完成舞台彩色模型
當每一場的色調與質感決定之後，即可製作完整合於比例的彩色模型，它等於是一個完整大舞台的縮版，它可以用來檢視所有的視覺效果，可以預期舞台上將會發生的畫面，提供給導演及其他設計師對舞台整體視覺的完整概念，同時可供佈景製作的工作人員參考。
Design features of the Claw
The tour features a 360-degree configuration, with the stage being placed closer to the center of the stadium's field than usual.The stage design features a large four-legged steel structure that holds the speaker system and cylindrical video screen and hovers above the performance area. The stage is surrounded by a circular ramp, which connects to the stage by means of rotating bridges. Fans with general admission tickets can be placed both outside of the ramp, as well as between the ramp and stage. The stage has no defined front or back and is surrounded on all sides by the audience. The stage design can increase the venues' capacities by about 15–20%. Tiered football stadiums were preferred venues in this scheme, compared to flat fields or baseball stadiums, although a few of the latter added to the routing. As with many large-scale tours of its era, the U2 360° Tour will have both the workforce and the revenues associated with a medium-sized company.A concert stage; four large legs curve up above the stage and hold a video screen which is extended down to the band. The legs are lit up in green. The video screen has multi-coloured lights flashing on it. The audience surrounds the stage on all sides."The Claw" features an expanding video screen and elaborate lighting effects.
- 製作階段
舞台結構的製作
在專業的劇場中，佈景和道具的施工結構圖是由所謂的技術指導來繪製，並負責督導完成。然而為了施工的需要及清楚表達設計的理念，舞台設計師有時須將所有的佈 景及大道具的細部圖完成。雖然這些圖可以不必像施工圖那樣畫出每一個結構方式，但應儘可能在圖面上標示出各道具佈景的尺寸。這些需要和技術指導作充分溝通，以便能精確的估價、叫料，並且繪製精確的施工圖，讓工作人員能順利製作完成。
The difficulty of building
The stages are built by the Belgian company Stageco, and construction of each requires the use of high-pressure and innovative hydraulic systems. The steel structure is 164 foot (50 m) tall—doubling the size of the stadium set for The Rolling Stones' A Bigger Bang Tour, the previous highest—can hold up to 200 tonnes underneath it, and requires 120 trucks to transport each of the 3 sets constructed to support the tour.Each leg of the structure contains its own sound system.The cost of each structure is between £15 million and £20 million.As a result the tour is heavily insured.The size of the stage has led to some problems with its construction in certain venues. The band paid $2 million to raise the HD video screen in Cowboys Stadium for their concert in Arlington, and are paying $3 million to expand the Hippodrome de Montréal into a temporary stadium for their forthcoming concert in Montreal.The 360° tour crew consists of 137 touring production crew supplemented by over 120 hired locally.[18][19] Daily costs of the production are approximately $750,000, not including the stage construction; the majority of this comes from truck rentals, transportation, and staff wages.The tour is not expected to break even until the conclusion of the second leg.As the tour was announced, U2 guitarist The Edge said of the show's design: "It's hard to come up with something that's fundamentally different, but we have, I think, on this tour. Where we're taking our production will never have been seen before by anybody, and that's an amazing thing to be able to say. For a band like U2 that really thrive on breaking new ground, it's a real thrill." Lead singer Bono said the design was intended to overcome the staid traditional appearance of outdoor concerts where the stage was dominated by speaker stacks on either side: "We have some magic, and we've got some beautiful objects we're going to take around the world, and we're inside that object." He also said that the group's goal was for the show to not be too choreographed. Williams said the goal is to establish a physical proximity: "The band is just sitting in the palm of the audience's hand." At the conclusion of the tour, the intent is to leave the three structures in different parts of the globe and turn them into permanent concert venues.
The video screen descends during a performance of "The Unforgettable Fire". The screen is made up of video panels affixed to a pantograph.
The transforming video screen was designed by Mark Fisher in a collaboration with Chuck Hoberman and Frederic Opsomer. The screen was fabricated by Opsomer's Company Innovative Designs of Belgium, using LED pixels manufactured by Barco. The screen was purchased and rented to the tour by XL Video. It is made up of elongated hexagonal segments mounted on a multiple pantograph system, which enables it to "open up" or spread apart vertically as an effect during the concerts.The video screen is composed of over one million pieces; 500,000 pixels, 320,000 fasteners, 150,000 machined pieces, and 30,000 cables are needed to create the visual display at each concert. The screen is mounted on a cabled pulley system to enable the entire screen and pantograph system to move lower and closer to the band. The automation for the screen deployment was provided by Kineysis UK. The LED segments of the screen are weather-resistant, a feature important in the outdoor venues, and especially important to U2 who canceled shows during the PopMart Tour due to weather damage to the video screens.
- 演出階段
完成了設計、製作之後，緊接著便是面臨演出了，在演出前舞台設計尚有未竟的責任。在進入劇場之後，一切由舞台監督排定進度表裝台，當然，舞台設計對於整體的 畫面是最為熟悉的，而技術指導則熟悉如何去組裝，因此兩人需要密切的合作，如此才能順利完成裝台及換景的運作。當裝台完成後，燈光、服裝都將陸續登場，於 是在一次次的技術彩排中，設計師要不斷檢視自己的作品是否有任何的問題需要修改，讓舞台達到最好的效果。
正式演出
在演出的日程表裡會排定拍劇照的時間，設計師可以一景一景拍下所精心完成的設計，整理好工作日誌、各式的圖、模型及劇照，為這次的設計工程做一 個完美的句點。
the reflections of the concert
The tour has been subject to minor criticisms, at both the events surrounding the opening concerts in Barcelona, and the concerts in Dublin. When rehearsing for the tour in Barcelona, residents of the city complained about the band's noise after 10 pm, which was the time until which the city allowed the band to rehearse. The setup of the band's stage for the Croke Park concerts in Dublin was criticized by fans for only allowing seating around part of the circular-shaped stage, taking away from the 360° seating configuration that was used at other venues. One fan claimed that only 270° of seating around the stage was being utilized for the three Dublin concerts, and that there was no reason that the stage could not be placed in the middle of the venue.Additional criticisms about the Croke Park shows arose from about 80 Dublin citizens, who protested against the Dublin City Council for allowing the band's crew to dismantle the stage in the middle of the night following the three concerts, due to the loud noises caused by the crew. The protest blocked several crew trucks from exiting the venue, putting the tour behind schedule, and tour promoter MCD Productions delivered a letter to the protesters informing them that they could be sued for any of the tour's financial losses due to the protest.In addition to the loudness of the band's crew, the Dublin City Council decided to withhold the band's €80,000 bond, after breaking the 75 decibel maximum volume at all three of the Dublin concerts.
Like most concerts, tour venues have benefited from hosting concerts as well. North Carolina State University's agreement with Live Nation resulted in $166,000 in parking proceeds and $175,858 food and beverage concessions. Additionally Live Nation agreed to pay for replacing the sod on the football field where the stage and floor seating was located up to a cost of $250,000.
Like most concerts, tour venues have benefited from hosting concerts as well. North Carolina State University's agreement with Live Nation resulted in $166,000 in parking proceeds and $175,858 food and beverage concessions. Additionally Live Nation agreed to pay for replacing the sod on the football field where the stage and floor seating was located up to a cost of $250,000.
