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Benjamin Moffitt chooses Avolites for Foreigner tour

Lighting designer Benjamin Moffitt has been working for US rock band Foreigner for the last two years and has been a lighting professional for forty years, and for around twenty years of that period, he has been using Avolites for his lighting control.

Foreigner, founded in 1976, is one of the best-selling bands in the world and has been extremely active recently, taking to the road for “farewell” tours through 2022, 2023 and 2024, interspersed with Las Vegas residencies at The Venetian in 2023 and 2024, as well as some co-headliner tours. Dates are currently booked for 2025 and into 2026, when they will celebrate their 50th anniversary.

Some performances have seen original members rock up to join and play with the current lineup, notably original lead vocalist Lou Gramm, who was one of six founding members starting out in 1976, together with guitarist Mick Jones, drummer Dennis Elliot, keyboardist Al Greenwood, bassist Ed Gagliardi and multi-instrumentalist Ian McDonald.

Moffitt describes himself as “always an Avo Sapphire guy” when it comes to his control system and console of choice, and most recently has been appreciating the Sapphire combined with the Titan software. Now he is also starting to lean towards Avo’s D9 after a couple of uses and is currently putting a T3 controlled rig together for some fly dates.

When video was introduced to Foreigner’s stage set in 2023 during their Venetian residency of that year, in the form of a large upstage LED screen with extensive LED strips delineating the set, Moffitt decided to use Avo’s AI servers. He’d first utilised AI servers for video content on his own custom video servers for 3 Doors Down tours in 2021 and 2022, but for Foreigner expanded the system by also using Synergy for mapping the set lighting LED strips.

Synergy, Avo’s proprietary protocol that unites lighting and video seamlessly into one user interface, enabled pixel-mapping of the LED strips and control of these together with approximately 200 lighting fixtures via the Sapphire console. The lighting rig contains products from several brands, complete with a floor package and some custom pods on the deck, fabricated by rental vendor Premier Global.

Moffitt owns two Sapphire consoles himself. One is used as a previz board and is permanently stationed in his studio; the other is usually on the road with him. He also purchased a third and donated it to the Pipestone Performing Arts Center in Pipestone, Minnesota. This is where he grew up, and so he has always tried to give back to the community there. His sister runs a non-profit music school and directs many plays at the theatre.

Years ago, Moffitt helped the theatre buy a 2010 Avolites Pearl Rolacue and when time allowed, he would go in and give the rig a clean. About a year after the Pearl arrived, lightning struck - literally - and a power surge killed the Pearl. So Hellyeah, the band he was with at the time, sold them their old Pearl Expert for almost nothing - and thirteen years later that console was at the end of its run and needed replacing. In 2024, Moffitt installed the Sapphire Touch plus modern lighting which allowed the theatre to benefit from a dynamic and contemporary lighting system.

He is really enjoying this block of work with Foreigner and relished the two sets of Vegas residencies, noting that the Venetian’s venue staff and tech crew - led by production manager Scott Ava and head of lighting, Justin Miller - were a joy to work with. Foreigner goes back into the Venetian in March 2026, complete with an orchestra, to kick off the “50th Anniversary Tour” which is expected to run through 2026 and into 2027.

(Photos: Kamal Asar/Mark Schierholz)

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