Canto USA’s RETRO Series is Something New at The Old Globe Theatre

The Old Globe Theatre is one of the most renowned professional regional theatres in the United States and one of San Diego’s finest arts institutions. Originally built in 1935 it was modeled after Shakespeare’s Old Globe in London. The Old Globe has gone through several remodels and expansions over the years. In that time it has been home to nationally acclaimed artists, designers, directors, and playwrights. It was the recipient of the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre in 1984.

The Old Globe, along with most theatres, closed its doors temporarily early in the pandemic. This closure allowed them the opportunity to make needed upgrades to their mainstage venue halogen-based houselights and houselight control system. That hardware hadn’t been updated since a 1984 remodel, so they were long overdue for some much-needed attention. Considering the advances in LED the theatre thought it would be best to take advantage of the reliability and energy savings.

The Old Globe Theatre, San Diego, CA – Photo credit, Ryan Osborn. Trouble In Mind, Delicia Turner Sonnenberg – director, Lawrence E Moten III – scenic design, Nicole Jescinth Smith – costume design, Sherrice Mojgani – lighting design, Luqman Brown – sound design, Chandra R.M. Anthenill – production stage manager.

Chris Rynne, Director of Theatrical Applications at OCS Lighting + Control, had previously worked at The Old Globe as lighting director so he was familiar with the layout and needs of the theatre. After presenting and testing out several houselight LED upgrade options, the Canto USA’s RETRO series was concluded to be the best fit. “Cost and function were the deciding factors. We loved the dimming, ease of installation, color quality, and even distribution,” said Chris.

Older fixture cans and wiring needed to be updated and adapted before the RETRO installation. Coinciding with several other upgrades the theatre was making, the installation of the 27 RETRO-Passive 300’s was finished up in about a week. Some of the older fixture cans and wiring had to be repaired, updated, and adapted before the RETRO installation.

The Old Globe Theatre, San Diego, CA – Photo credit, Ryan Osborn.

Once completed both the production staff and audience were happy with the result. Everyone loved the color quality and dimming of the lighting. The retrofit to LED not only greatly reduced the houselight power consumption but the decreased heat output from the houselights reduced the work of the HVAC system. This translates to the Globe benefitting from substantial energy savings.  All of their houselight problems were solved.

“We were really happy with how the RETRO series performed.” Said Chris, “We hope to use it on the next project we’re working on.”

The Old Globe Theatre, San Diego, CA – Photo credit, Ryan Osborn. Trouble In Mind, Delicia Turner Sonnenberg – director, Lawrence E Moten III – scenic design, Nicole Jescinth Smith – costume design, Sherrice Mojgani – lighting design, Luqman Brown – sound design, Chandra R.M. Anthenill – production stage manager.

The RETRO Series Line of Products

RETRO-Passive® – Absolute Silence

Being fanless, the RETRO-Passive is perfect for sound-sensitive spaces like museums and concert halls. They also have heavier heat sinks to compensate for not having active cooling.

RETRO-Fusion™ – Lighter & Smaller

With the RETRO-Fusion being lighter and lower profile, along with a beveled top edge, it is able to squeeze into more shallow fixtures without having the lens protrude from the front of the trim ring. That reduces any type of glare. This new design opens up more opportunities and applications.

RETRO-Classic™ – Flexibility & Customization

The RETRO-Classic our original 0-100% phase dimmable (forward and reverse) variable wattage LED 2700K-6500K 80-97 CRI engine retrofit house light and most customizable RETRO in the entire RETRO family. They are heavier than the Fusion, yet lighter than Passive.

RETRO-PAR – PAR Lamp Replacement

The RETRO-PAR is easy to replace/install, modular, and customizable. Customizable features include active or passive cooling, different wattage outputs, and different optical beam spreads. It comes in PAR 38, 46, 56, and 64 styles, as well as custom.

RETRO-HPL

The RETRO-HPL is a direct replacement for existing Source 4 PARs in the marketplace, especially those used for house lights.

About CantoUSA

Founded in 2013, Canto USA is a manufacturer of houselight retrofits and followspots. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to our mission: “Our customers come first. In order to do this, we continuously train our team on the latest trends and needs of the industry, while at the same time becoming a trendsetter in the development of new products and technology that no other company has available.” 

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