AUSTRALIA – NEW ZEALAND: Sydney’s iconic National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) played host to a landmark evening as more than 100 industry leaders, creatives, and influencers from across Australia and New Zealand gathered for the official launch of “LSC: The New Home for ROBE in ANZ.” The event cemented the new distribution structure for Czech Republic-based moving light and LED pioneer ROBE Lighting s.r.o., alongside LSC Control Systems and Avolites, with immediate product availability now established for the region.

The appointment of Darren McLanders as Robe Sales Manager for ANZ adds further weight to the new setup, bringing together a formidable trio of market-leading brands under one roof. About the event and the journey ahead, Darren stated, “It was great to see such a good turnout at NIDA and so much interest in Robe ANZ’s activities. There’s some hard work ahead for sure, but I am looking forward to all the challenges and rewards that will come with getting this market-leading brand the visibility and success it deserves.”

For attendees – spanning lighting designers, programmers, technicians, engineers, and venue operators across rental, theatre, corporate, and the arts – the event was an immersive showcase of technology, creativity, and community. The evening buzzed with activity and discovery, as Robe International Product Specialist Dave Whitehouse led a highlight session spotlighting the company’s T-series fixtures, designed specifically for theatre and performing arts, alongside other recent innovations. Visitors also enjoyed rare “backstage” access to demo areas featuring Robe technologies, sneak previews of pipeline products, and live showcases powered by LSC UNITOUR racks, GenX Dim/Switch units, and APSX Power Distribution systems.

Entertainment came courtesy of Dave McCormack & The Polaroids, with lighting design by Hamish Lee (Colourblind Studio) and programming support from Alex McCoy, seamlessly integrated with Avolites D9 consoles. Each song in their special set was lit to highlight the distinct capabilities of different Robe fixtures, creating a playful yet powerful demonstration of the brand’s creative reach. Colourblind were also involved in designing lighting for other areas of the event, with director Lynden Gare providing control of LED Video elements from an Avolites AI server and T3 console.

The presence of Robe CEO and Founder Josef Valchar, Global Sales Director Michel Arntz, and Robe Asia Pacific Managing Director Jens Poehlker underscored the importance of the region to the company’s global growth strategy.

Michel underlined the importance of the Australian and New Zealand market to Robe: “From the global perspective, this is a hugely significant territory with a lively production, performance and arts scene and an existing healthy, strong rental sector. Robe has already gained a good reputation, and we see a lot of potential growth here. Acquiring LSC last year has now given us fantastic possibilities of increasing business and market share for Robe and all its brands.”

Michel and Josef also commented that they were confident that Darren was the “perfect individual” for the job with his enthusiasm, extensive contacts, excellent communication skills and enormous energy and passion for the industry.

Extra production gear was provided by Robe rental partners Harry The Hirer, Chameleon Touring Systems, Theatricks Productions and Lux Imperium, together with some of the Robe and LSC house products installed at NIDA.