Ed Sheeran - Mathematics Tour 2022

Saturday 23rd of April Croke Park Stadium Dublin, a 10-minute clock on the centre screen counts down the star’s arrival on stage to 8h30 pm. Showtime explosion.

Ed Sheeran kicks off the Irish leg of his much anticipated Mathematics tour, the first major outdoor concert in Dublin since the Covid-19 pandemic began. The Ireland shows mark the beginning of the popstar’s huge world stadium tour.

The grandeur of this spectacular stage set-up takes an expert vision to understand. What might look easy going and approachable to the audience, just like the artist himself, in reality has a great deal of technical complexity built in.

Sheeran’s mission to bring a refreshing concept of a stadium stage has proven a huge success with credits to design genius Mark Cunniffe, technical design by Wonder Works and on the WI side managed by Koen Peeters, our senior account and project manager.

When the hoops are assembled at stage height, a hinging system allows the hoop to be tilted to a horizontal working position for easy and safe installation of lighting and video elements.

Lifting a 6-ton heavy stack of 7 hoops and one roofette over a guided rail structure asks for a system that is capable of doing load monitoring and keeps control of any possible position deviation. In this case it is being handled by a group of 2 double reeved 2-ton automated chain hoists, controlled and synchronized by WIMOTION and operated on the spot from a handheld WIPAD by the production touring crew.

Then comes in the enormous levitating halo, the entire construction suspended from a spider web of steel cables attached to the 6 (not anchored!) masts. A 21m diameter 42-ton piece of see-through video scenery that goes up and down during the show. Controlled movements are created by 12 off 2-ton chain hoists in a double reeved configuration.

Mechanical as well as hydraulic compensation systems are in place to assure loads are equally spread over the cable net. Inside the halo are 18 hoisted LED chandeliers that can wave up and down. All 30 machines are controlled from a central WIMOTION desk.

Expert eyes will surely wonder about lifting momentum and weather circumstances. With the masts not being anchored to the venue ground, a vast amount of steel ballast is being toured to guarantee a stable black steel cable net system. 2 sets of masts and cable net are being leap frogged, whilst the unique production set comes in a day before the show, making for a 7 day turn around.

The law of physics times factor the law of touring and so a thorough risk analysis has been established by Blumano for all the WICREATIONS parts. Our inhouse engineer Wessel Fortuin was in charge of over 400 pages of calculation notes.

This colossal and highly innovative staging set was a group effort of many parties involved taking weeks of preparation, months of planning, engineering, construction and rehearsals. So many talented people were involved to create a show of that magnitude.

All halo and chandelier moves are being controlled by WIMOTION software and operated by Andrew Hilton, assisted by Kim Bennet-Abbiss.

• Creative Director – Mark Cunniffe
• Production Director – Chris Marsh
• Production Manager – Helen Himmons
• Tour Manager – Mark Friend
• Stage Manager – Matt Caley
• Site Managers – Ben Johnstone & Harry Ford
• Technical Design and Coordination – Wonder Works
• Structural Engineering – Cundall Engineering
• Audio System Design – Charlie Albin
• Video System Design – Phil Mead
• Steel System Fabrication – Stage One UK
• Stage Fabrication – Tait
• Set Fabrication – WICREATIONS
• Plectrum Fabrication – 23 Belgium
• Audio Supplier – Major Tom Touring
• Video Supplier – Colonel Tom Touring
• Lighting Supplier – LCR
• Pyro Supplier – Pains Fireworks

WICREW on site during initial installation

• Sam Melotte
• Kim Benett-Abbiss
• Jan Van Eyck
• Roel Ceyssens
• Kurt Verhelle
• Chiel Vandenboomen
• Lesly Van Rompaey
• WI project lead: Koen Peeters
• WI Chief engineer: Wessel Fortuin