New Chicago Tonight Set Debuts
WTTW’s Chicago Tonight debuted a new show format on a brand new set this November, with the help of Chicago Scenic. The news magazine show is based on events happening in the Chicagoland area and includes interviews with special guests. WTTW producers hired New York- based Set Designer David Weller to work with CSSI Project Manager Ross Hamilton and WTTW’s Ron Yurgovich on the project. Dave Duwell led the fabrication and installation of the set for CSSI.

The new set was designed with multiple areas to create different camera angles and to give the show a variety of interview and commentary locations while highlighting the city of Chicago. The prime set areas include two light-box walls with scenes of the city, and large photomurals of day and night scenes of the city serve as backdrops.

Other set pieces included four large moveable kiosks; plasma monitors for on-screen graphics, a cherry veneer backdrop wall, and a curved cherry and Plexiglas bookcase to delicately display various art pieces.

News Anchor Phil Ponce was provided with a more comfortable desk with a built-in LCD monitor and an illuminated base stand, while News Anchor Bob Sirott was given a special circular table that is designed specifically for interviews.

Ronald McDonald House Charities Hosts a Star-Studded Fundraiser
With the help of Chicago Scenic, Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) hosted its annual Awards of Excellence gala to celebrate World Children’s Day. The unprecedented worldwide fundraiser, which raised over five million dollars, was taped at Chicago’s Arie Crown Theater at McCormick Place on Saturday, September 14th. The black-tie event featured a silent auction, reception, and star-studded performances by Celine Dion, Enrique Iglesias, and David Foster among many other famous artists. The concert event was then turned into a one-hour primetime broadcast as a one-hour prime time event on November 14th on the ABC Network.

CSSI was charged with designing and building the set for the show. Set Designers Tom Ryan and Ryan Hall designed a gigantic pair of arches as the focal point of the set. They ran the entire width of the 110-foot-wide stage, stood 35-feet-high at their tallest point, and surrounded a 70-piece orchestra and 100 choir singers on risers built for the event. To keep costs down the arches were constructed using standard theatrical scenic techniques in the CSSI shop. Kevin Taylor, Sue Kaip, and Amy Holsman of the CSSI Paint Department then painted the arches to represent all the continents and oceans of the world, as reflected in the invitations designed for the event.

Other scenic elements Chicago Scenic provided include an illuminated orchestral wall separating the orchestra and composer David Foster, platforms and covers in the house to allow for camera placements and celebrity pathways, and chiffon curtains to enhance special moments during the show.

CSSI Project Manager Ross Hamilton worked with Technical Director Don Garrity to coordinate the project and Ken Glucksberg served as the job lead. Michael Marto of Executive Visions was the Executive Producer for the event along with Ken Barun, President and CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities.

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