Panasonic delivers realistic projections for theatre production Dr. Strangelove

Panasonic’s PT-REQ15K and PT-RQ25K projectors’ compact design and stunning 4K visuals are a perfect fit for stage projection

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Product(s) supplied: PT-REQ15 PT-RQ25K

Challenge

To bring the new Dr. Strangelove stage production to life with large scale atmospheric video backdrop projection spanning three large screens within the historic Noël Coward theatre.

Solution

Stanley Kubrick’s 1964 comedy masterpiece film Dr. Strangelove has been adapted to stage for the first time at London’s Noël Coward Theatre starring seven-time BAFTA Award winner, Steve Coogan. Panasonic PT-RQ25K 3-Chip DLP projector and PT-REQ15K 1-Chip DLP projectors were chosen to bring this iconic film to the West End.

"Panasonic REQ15 and RQ25K projectors tick all the boxes for theatre projection. In addition to brilliant colour reproduction, Panasonic projectors are small, quiet, and easy to rig."

A renowned comedy revival 60 years in the making

The universally loved political satire focuses on the fear of a nuclear conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States at the height of the Cold War – and is largely considered one of the greatest comedy films of all time.

Adapting the iconic film to stage for launch in September 2024 was the vision of director Sean Foley, Armando Iannucci and their creative team of producers, set, lighting, sound and video designers. They worked closely together to come up with the vision of how they wanted the adaptation to look, sound and feel like on stage.

Pivotal to the look and feel of the production are three large scale mobile video screens that form the backdrop of the iconic war room scenes. Designing the projections was a logistical and technical undertaking led by experienced video and projection designer Akhila Krishnan, supported by video system designer Mogzi, who worked out the technical details and the right equipment needed to turn the design into reality.

Panasonic’s projectors was chosen as the best for the job and was sourced and supplied by Stage Sound Services. The Panasonic kit included one PT-RQ25K 3-Chip DLP Projector using an ET-D75LE6 Lens and 7 x PT-REQ15K 1-Chip DLP Projectors, 3 of which using ET-C1U100 Lenses and 4 using ET-C1W400 Lenses.

Dr. Strangelove the West End show went live in September 2024 to glowing reviews, with many characterising the production as “visually stunning” with “atmospheric”, and “cleverly realistic”.

Defining how the screen backdrops should look: LED vs projection

Early in the process, the decision had to be made around whether the three large screens at the back of the stage should be created using projectors or LED screens. In the end, the aesthetics of projection won over LED, but how the projections would be executed within the set design and space on stage was still an issue.

Six months into production prep a set design 3D render was created, which gave the team a tangible sense of the space they had to work with so they could plan where and how the projectors should be positioned.

The three large screens displaying the video projections were designed to move in and out of set during the war room scenes which was a key challenge. This meant the projectors would also have to ‘fly’ in and out during the scenes. The projectors therefore needed to be easy to rig and robust enough, small enough and smooth enough to ensure there would be no projection ‘wobble’. LED would have been too heavy for this.

Sourcing the right projectors for the job

At this exact time, the Panasonic REQ15 projector came onto the market. Following a brief demonstration the team knew that the compact design and stunning 4K visuals of this next generation Panasonic projector would be a perfect fit. The clincher was the way that the C1U100 Ultra Short Throw lens attaches to the REQ15 as space was limited, and with quick scene changes the ability to angle and tilt the projectors smoothly through any axis was crucial.

Three Panasonic REQ15s are used in rear projection connected to the three 3.5m x 4m vertical screens, as well as four REQ15s projecting onto the screens from the ceiling (two on each side using the C1W400 lenses) that perform image blending. These are positioned to project around a large circular lighting truss that sits above the war room table on the main centre stage. A Panasonic RQ25K, the world’s smallest and lightest 20,000-lumen 3-Chip DLP 4K projector, is also positioned behind the audience projecting onto the front of the stage.

Small and compact Panasonic projectors are easy to position and deliver brilliant colour and contrast

Positioning projectors for theatre productions can be tricky. Projection angles need to be precisely calculated, which is often a laborious manual process. Panasonic’s web-based features help with positioning the projector whilst in situ, with these angles able to be replicated across other projectors when positioned correctly. This simplifies the overall installation process.

The brightness and vivid colour reproduction of the Panasonic REQ15 projectors was also notable.

Akhila Krishnan comments: “I was very impressed with how the projectors handle colour and the blackout. Even the graphic mode handles colour exceptionally well. This was quite astonishing.

"We have a lot of video content that is very unforgiving in the show, specifically all the plane sequences. They’re flying over snowy landscapes so we’re working with white and grey tones with very little contrast between the two. There’s always a danger in projection that the grey and white tones wash together. The Panasonic REQ15’s internal gradation smoothing software however handles colour grading beautifully."

Panasonic projectors: The perfect fit for theatre and film

Dr. Strangelove ran through mid-January 2025 before moving on to Dublin. The team will have just one week to pack up the set, ship it, and reconstruct it.

The London show has been such a hit that it has since been announced that it will also be live recorded for cinema broadcast and will be made available on the NT Live library so many more can access and enjoy the show online.

The team are thrilled with the performance of the Panasonic projectors used on Dr. Strangelove and are confident that the projection rig will work for broadcast and that the show will read well on camera.

"The performance of Panasonic’s projectors made it an easy choice to increase our stock levels of new units. The flexibility and versatility of the REQ15K in particular allows us to supply this unit to customers on a variety of projects."

Panasonic delivers realistic projections for theatre production Dr. Strangelove

Challenge

Solution

Defining how the screen backdrops should look: LED vs projection

Sourcing the right projectors for the job

Panasonic projectors: The perfect fit for theatre and film

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