Sophisticated Stage Design for European Dance Competition

The Eurovision Young Dancers competition is a biannual event with a long tradition. Hosted by the European Broadcasting Union, the show features performers between the ages of 16 and 21. A jury of professional dancers picks the winner through a point system.

The most recent EYD competition took place on June 19th in Plzen, Czech Republic, and was broadcast live in 12 countries. To undermine the artistry promoted by the event, the stage incorporated a sophisticated design with several loop elements. The agency Xlab was hired to create 3D animations and mood graphics, which were projected onto these elements.

Using the Ventuz software suite, Xlab designed an individual presentation for each dance performance, carefully balancing mood, lighting and music to generate a comprehensive atmosphere. To bring the graphics onto the complicated surface on stage, twelve Panasonic projectors were needed. The projection mapping and blending options inside of Ventuz turned the twelve individual streams into one homogeneous visual experience.

As every live show, EYD also featured artists’ introductions, interviews, and the jury statements. For these parts of the show, Xlab embedded a live video stream into the real-time graphics to provide every visitor in the audience with a good look at the actions on stage.

The show was a great success, especially for the winner Viktoria Nowak from Poland. But also the hosting broadcaster Czech TV and the agency Xlab stepped up to the plate and presented a flawless live TV experience.