What is this lighting instrument?

[Andrew Pendleton]

I saw James Blake's show at the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC, this past weekend, and they used a lighting instrument that neither I nor my theater/dance lighting-designer boyfriend could identify -- I guess it's probably mostly used for concerts? It sort of looked like a satellite dish, with a large, shallow circular reflector facing the audience, and an arm holding a lamp in the middle of the circle, with no lens. I guess it's some sort of scoop, but not a regular theatrical one. Here are some random pictures of it from instagram, unlit, dim, and bright, respectively:

http://instagram.com/p/gUcpV_tEcN/
http://instagram.com/p/gPJmgsK8Qa/
http://instagram.com/p/gUeRQmkQSQ/

Anyone know what this is?

 

[hobbsies]

Pretty cool looking. Some sort of scoop thing with a warm lamp/bulb. Looks like a candle almost crept there's no flickering.

 

[Les]

That is a Mole Richardson Sky Pan. Motion picture lighting has been making its way in to concerts regularly for the last few decades or so. They seem to really like the aesthetic appeal along with the warm glow caused by the amber drift from those high-wattage lamps. U2, among others, have been known for this. Another example for this would be the Molefay, which has been a staple in blinder effects for years. Originally designed for location lighting, the Molefay has been picked up by tours for its ability to simply throw a whole lot of light over a large area.

Sky Pan


Molefay

 

[Andrew Pendleton]

Huh, cool. Mystery solved. Crazy how knowledgeable people here are... I tried to figure it out by Googling and wasn't getting anywhere, but got an answer here within five minutes. Thanks a lot!

 

[JD]

Also known as "How to set fire to your drummer!"
http://instagram.com/p/gUeRQmkQSQ/#

People underestimate the amount of heat these things throw! (During my "rock" days, I only set fire to one drummer, and it was just his hat )

 

[JohnD]

Conan's LD must like that look too.

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Bardwell McAlister and Kliegl Brothers also made similar fixtures.
There is a thread here with another one of these.
http://controlbooth.com/threads/mole-richardson-type-205.33740/

 

[Judge]

Also known as "How to set fire to your drummer!"
http://instagram.com/p/gUeRQmkQSQ/#

People underestimate the amount of heat these things throw! (During my "rock" days, I only set fire to one drummer, and it was just his hat )

Apparently you can set fire to things with Sharpies! Never tried (but now obv. I am going to)