The delighted crowd danced to the contagious rhythms of Margarita’s songs for two and a half hours, turning the experience into a real high energy Friday night party!

Ángel Alvarado - only 18 years old but already with expansive technical knowledge and experience - is a new member of the artist’s technical team.

For this show, he utilised 20 x ROBIN MMX Spots, 18 x LEDWash 1200s, 12 x LEDWash 600s and 28 x LEDBeam 100s plus 12 x ColorWash 2500E ATs, which he programmed and operated using a grandMA2 light console.

The full technical production for the show was supplied by Mexico-based Tama Producciones, which owns most of the lighting fixtures.

He explains, “I wanted to create something special and a fitting ambience for the occasion. The LEDWashes have very bright colours and this was perfect for matching with the energy in the show which required a very lively use of colour … so my attention was focused on these lights”.

He has been using Robe products around six months in various music projects and has always been impressed.

Fourteen LEDBeam 100s and six LEDWash 600s were distributed right and left of the main upstage LED screen. On the back wall, floor and above the LED screen were six  MMX Spots in each position. Overhead were ten LEDWash 1200s on four trusses.

Around the proscenium were four LEDWash 1200s and four MMX Spots per side … and  last but not least, all the ColorWash 2500s were on a truss just downstage of the pros.

José Alberto García Ramírez, Lighting Sales Engineer at Vari Internacional, Robe’s Mexican distributor, was present during the set-up and show, together with the regular staff of the Auditorio.

José Alberto García Ramírez, Lighting Sales Engineer from Robe’s Mexican distributor Vari Internacional and Mario Alberto Flores, in charge of Robe technical service at the company were present during the set-up and show.

Alberto commented, “This is the second year we have worked with Margarita and we support all their events. We really put our hearts and souls into both lighting and audio, to help get the best results”.

Alejandro Benitez, Margarita’s manager, comments, “I’m really satisfied with Robe and Vari’s support. The production has grown and has been enriched since we started using these lights, ensuring that we offer our audiences the best possible production values. For us it’s very important to have great brands and equipment associated with our show and also good relationships with everyone we deal with”.

José Luis Lozano, Purchasing Manager at Tama Producciones - in which Margarita and Alejandro are also partners – said, “We have an excellent relationship with Vari and always get positive feedback about them and the Robe units. The technical spec of the lights is amazing and Vari’s support invaluable”.

This performance also marked the launch of Margarita’s new album ‘Desde Mis Raìces’, the start of  a new tour plus the  launch of her son Jonathan’s solo career after being part of Margarita’s chorus for the last two years and an active music producer.

With 16 musicians, four chorus and 17 dancers onstage .. it was a busy show! There was  also a special appearance by Samuel “Samo” Parra ex member of Mexican group Camila and it was recorded by local TV channel Televisa for broadcast later.

Margarita and Technology

Margarita is considered a great exponent of the Colombian tropical cumbia music genre, especially in Mexico. Each show she extensively showcases her native country’s folk culture, which is why she was given the ‘Orden de Caballero’ title by the Senate of Colombia. (equivalent to a knighthood!)

An eclectic mix of different fusions between Colombian cumbia and other modern music have enthralled audiences for over 30 years... turning each Margarita show into a colourful, happy and dance-tastic party.

The look and production of the show has been instrumental in helping achieve this important connection with the live audience.

Margarita’s production has been in constant development and evolution throughout her incredible career, with the addition of more musicians, ballet and also the use of premium brands in each technical discipline.

Alejandro explained that their awareness of what can be achieved with continuity in the technical aspects has grown with experience, and they are now fully aware of how fundamental  good lighting, sound and video is to creating the best performances.

“I’m really satisfied with the fact that Robe products  are the highest quality! They are also  lightweight, fast and our engineers are happy with them. We are proud to be working  with Robe in Mexico,” he concludes.