The Royal Ballet and Opera faced the challenge of renewing a 25-year-old lighting rig at the Royal Opera House while maintaining an uninterrupted repertory schedule across opera and ballet productions. Home to world-class opera and ballet performances, the Covent Garden venue operates with rapid daily changeovers, often moving from a morning rehearsal of one production to a completely different evening performance within hours. Any new lighting system needed to support this pace, ensure long-term consistency for returning productions, integrate with an existing fixed rig philosophy, and allow a phased transition without disrupting overlapping shows still reliant on the legacy system.
Led by Lighting Project Manager George Townsend and the Royal Ballet and Opera Renewal Team, the venue selected Martin MAC Viper XIP fixtures as the foundation of a new core rig, installing 90 units across overhead, proscenium, front-of-house and dome positions. The selection followed an extensive evaluation process, including a large-scale shootout at the Backstage Centre in Purfleet with input from in-house teams, visiting lighting designers, broadcast specialists and peers from other major UK institutions. Jack Champion, acting Head of Lighting, said, “When we first saw the Martin MAC Viper XIP we knew it would have a place in our rig – the question was how many and where. The build quality combined with the form factor and the output were a formidable combination.”
Beyond photometric performance, the decision prioritized build quality, serviceability and long-term support, with Martin’s UK-based support infrastructure and training resources playing a key role. A phased installation strategy allowed the new rig to be installed beneath the existing system, enabling productions to transition gradually. The project was further supported by a year-long virtual visualization process within the Royal Opera House’s digital model, with Martin working closely with the venue to address visualization accuracy and firmware development needs related to framing and shutter behavior.
The completed installation has become the backbone of lighting across all Royal Ballet and Opera productions, delivering greater flexibility within the fixed rig and reducing the need for supplemental fixtures and trusses. Designers are now able to relight productions more efficiently, with shows returning to the stage as expected after periods off repertory. The IP-rated MAC Viper XIP fixtures have also improved maintenance workflows by reducing the impact of dust and environmental contamination in the overhead rig.
With the renewal now fully operational, the Royal Opera House has established a modern lighting infrastructure that supports its demanding production schedule while preserving consistency and reliability across seasons. As Townsend concluded, “The MAC Viper XIPs are really solid units. I’d describe them as a thorough workhorse fixture: solid, consistent, and now in use across all our productions.”
