classic gear live is an exhibition that takes place at PLASA in london every year since 2023, and i've worked on it in various capacities since it started. it was borne out of a wish by lighting programmer rob halliday to display and preserve some of the equipment and ideas that shaped our industry, as well as passing on this knowledge to younger people in the industry like myself.
since 2007, rob has essentially crafted an entertainment technology historiography through his regular LSi column, classic gear. entertainment technology is a young industry, with the earliest known lighting console only dating back to 1935. the inventor of said console only died in 2001, and the inventors, technicians and users of many more consoles, lights, sound desks and more are still around to tell their stories. classic gear live is the perfect venue for recording these tales.
organising this is a logistical challenge -- there is no central warehouse with any piece you want easily reachable, like perhaps the centre of computing history in cambridge provides. a lot of it is in private hands; the personal stores of former industry professionals like jim laws' ancient lights and the historic stage lighting collective, deep in the warehouses of rental companies like PRG and white light, or languishing on the shelves of the companies who made them, like etc and avolites.
practically, classic gear live is less of an museum and more of a mixture of tutorials. everything is there to be touched and used and everything has someone who knows either a lot about what they're talking about or someone like me who knows enough to muddle through to talk to you about it! i always learn from my days on the classic gear live stand and i'm always honoured to have been a part of it. see you next year!