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Isabella Brutch

Professor John and Professor Sigmund

HFT 3395 – Entertainment Technology and Innovation

19 February 2021

Case Study 1 – Super Bowl Halftime Show

There was some concern about how the Superbowl Halftime Show would look this year

due to the pandemic restrictions. During Super Bowl LV on February 7th, musical performer, The

Weekend, went above and beyond to shatter those expectations.

The heavy use of technology played a huge role in the execution of the performance. The

show utilized various lighting, visual, and audio technology such as a handheld microphone,

instruments, backtrack, fog machines, LED screens, fireworks, LED wristbands, and wireless

lighting. This enhanced the performance. An elaborate stage was implemented on the upper

seating sections of the stadium. The lighting of the stage changed through transitions of songs

and beat drops. Over 22,500 live audience members were provided LED wristbands and had

adapted LEDs for the cardboard cut-outs (Editor, 2021). People at home didn’t think the stadium

looked empty, which would have diminished the appeal of the performance. The dancers wore

LED wristbands and there were “flares”, LED masks, and “light-up eyes” on face shields

(Editor, 2021). This ensured that the extra dancers/performers would be seen. The dancers only

wore the LED wristbands on the field during, “Blinding Lights”. The lighted crowd and

fireworks were shown more than any other song and there was a heavy emphasis on flashing

lights, due to title of the final song. Fog was especially prevalent on beat drops. The LED side

screens helped the audience see the performance.

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There were various design elements utilized throughout the show. The opening of the

performance consisted of a Vegas inspired 3D form set up. This was the subject and area of

interest; it was positive space (Matthews, 2016). The seats around the stadium and when the field

and stage were not in use, were negative space because these areas were around the subjects

(Matthews, 2016). The stage consistently used a triadic color scheme. The stage color would

transition from blue, red, and gold. Many times, blue was the main color and there would be gold

outlines. This demonstrates value and light, which consists of color contrast, emphasis, and light

and darkness in a space (Matthews, 2016). After the Vegas prop set, the blue stage was on both

sides and there was a gold opening in the middle. The red outfit of the performers contrasted

with the blue stage and the green field. On the field, vertical lines of light can be seen. The

backstage hallway consisted of an ornament texture. It added visual interest and repeated patterns

(Matthews, 2016) of the light bulbs, arrows, and displayed words on the wall. Technology was

integrated into the design. This was evident through the huge middle screen backdrop. There

were visuals of the moon and sky. The stage in the seating area looked like 3D city buildings. It

also provided different vantage points and background angles. The colors changed and there

were words emphasized on the stage.

Something that could have been done differently was the gold backstage hallway part. It

was filmed using a shaky front camera angle. Although it was an interesting change of scenery, it

set a completely different tone from the performance. It would have been better if the visual and

recording stability quality was the same as the other stage locations. However, the overall

performance exceeded expectations and was a pleasure to watch.

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Works Cited

Editor, L. D. (2021, February 7). PixMob Adds High-Tech Solutions For Super Bowl LV

Halftime Show. Retrieved from Live Design:

https://www.livedesignonline.com/xlive/pixmob-adds-high-tech-solutions-for-super-

bowl-lv-halftime-show

Matthews, D. (2016). Special Event Production: The Resources. Routledge.