Aktuelle News & Schlagzeilen

TMS installs Elation KL Core at Holland Performing Arts Center in Omaha

Theatrical Media Services (TMS) recently completed a major lighting retrofit at the Peter Kiewit Concert Hall in Omaha, Nebraska’s Holland Performing Arts Center, selecting Elation’s KL Core IP LED light engine as the backbone of the venue’s new front and side lighting systems.

The Holland Center, home of the Omaha Symphony Orchestra, is among the nation’s premier performing arts venues. The 2,000-seat “shoebox” style hall, with its open design and maple interior, was purpose-built twenty years ago as a state-of-the-art acoustic space and hosts events five days a week during its busy season, ranging from symphony performances to touring acts, comedy, and rock shows. Over time, however, its original lighting system, a mix of standard ellipsoidals and early model LEDs, had past its prime.

TMS designed and supplied the new lighting system and supporting infrastructure. With help from Elation regional rep William Irwin, they organized a demo and shootout that led to selecting the KL Core IP as the optimal choice. The KL Core IP features a 400 W RGBMA LED engine and can be adapted as an ellipsoidal, Fresnel, or monolight. Its compatibility with third-party shutter barrels allowed TMS to repurpose barrel mounts from the venue’s existing Source Four fixtures and attach them to the KL Cores.

“That’s one of the reasons we were able to sell the Core specifically to this space”, says Michael Arch, Vice President of Production at TMS. “It allowed them the flexibility to use their existing inventory of barrels but added in the flexibility you get from a great color engine.” Arch spent nearly four years at the Holland Center as the house electrician and lighting designer before he and his partners purchased TMS last January.

“One of the challenges we faced with the previous lighting rig was that it used undersized profile fixtures and relied on conventional lighting, which wasn’t always conducive to focusing”, he continues. “I had been advocating for some time to bring in moving lights and upgrade to a new generation of LED fixtures in the front and side positions, where we ultimately installed all of the KL Core units.”

The KL Core IP’s light source offers a CRI of 94.9 and 16-bit CCT control from 2,400 K to 8,500 K, providing precise color consistency and tunable white light. The orchestra requires high lighting positions, and at the Holland Center, where the FOH position is 80’ away, each fixture’s 15,000-lumen output ensures bright, even coverage across the large stage.

The new system includes 76 KL Core IP fixtures (72 active), with 5° and 10° barrels for front light and 19° and 26° barrels for side positions. The KL Cores form the backbone of the front and side lighting systems, complementing the new LED moving heads overhead.

During the Covid pandemic, the Omaha Symphony expanded its video capabilities to engage audiences who could not attend a performance in person. That shift, says Arch, made high-CRI, camera-friendly lighting a top priority. “I had a fixture overhead running at 7,200 K and conventional fixtures out front at 3,200 K, so we had different color temperatures competing on camera”, he explains. “There was a real intention to get fixtures with very high CRI to ensure that everything looked correct when filming in the space.”

Replacing 750 W conventional lamps with 400 W LEDs has also delivered significant energy and maintenance savings. “Not having to replace lamps or gels, combined with the energy efficiency of the Cores, has been noticeable”, states Arch. The fixture’s IP65 rating also means that dust and other particulates are kept out of the fixture, helping to protect internal components and requiring less frequent maintenance.

The new lighting system debuted in September 2025, just in time for The Holland Performing Arts Center’s 20th Anniversary celebration on October 3, which featured the Omaha Symphony and local artists.

(Photos: Sarah Lemke/Bill Sitzmann/TMS)

www.elationlighting.com

© 1999 - 2026 Entertainment Technology Press Limited News Stories