A lot of Art and Technique in the Laser Show

Brasília - Federal District

The people of Brasília has been visiting its Planetarium more frequently, lately, than they usually do. And this does not mean that the interest for non-artistic stars has increased, but it is due to the Cosmic Laser Concert, a laser ray show that has made great success in citys such as Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre.

Lucila Oliveira, the producer, and Soraya Bittencourt, operator, are responsible for the Cosmic Laser Concert that will be in town upt to the 2nd of September, running in the Planetarium. Today there will be sessions at 19:30, 20:30, 21:30 and 22:30pm. This schedule is also valid for next Saturday and Sunday. On Tuesdays and Fridays, the sessions start at 20 and 21h and prices are Cr$1,500 for adults and Cr$ 1,000 (students).

The equipment responsible for the beautiful images projected in the dome of the Planetarium is a very special one: there are only five of them throughout the world. All of them are stationary in Planetariums in the cities of Los Angeles, New York, Tokyo, Paris and London. The one that is now in Brasília is, thus, the gypsy of the family, and has been in several Latin America countries prior to Brazil for the first time in 1980. When it returned to Brazil, last year, it was put in the hands of the present Brazilian team: Lucila will care for the launch of the laser ray show in its first presentation in Rio, and Soraya was selected, after carefull tests, where the musicality and rhythm, besides motor coordination were decisive requirements, as well as the electronic know-how. In the Cosmic Laser Concert, says Lucila, "the laser beam enters the scene in the art world. Untill now, it was quite known in sciences areas such as medicine, electronics, etc. We are now exploring its artistic possibilities, as if it were a type of image synthethizer.".

Upon seen the unbelievable perfection with which the images get formed, come alive, and start to dance in the dome of the Planetarium, some people think that the show is coputarized, and that Soraya simply presses the "on/off" button. Nothing like that: what makes the show so dynamic is exactly the fact that it is created there, at each moment, according to the inspiration offered by the musics selected for the sound track (here in Brasília the repertoire includes rock, classic muisc, jazz and a few pieces of electronic music). Even more: the public is invited, at the begining of the show, to actively participate, applauding when they like certain effects, which thus will be used with more or less frequence during the entire concert.

This feast of light, color and sound will follow, after Brasília to Salvador, where another surprise will marvell the public: the laser will be shown outdoors. It will be projected directly on the wall of a building at Bahia's capital, which will serve as a giant screen, 20 meters wide. <