Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Musical Global Tour

Overview

With plans to give Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory a global glow up, Director Matt Lenz had a fantastical vision.

“It’s a rare gift to be able to return to a beloved and familiar project like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and have the opportunity to re-imagine it. I wanted this production to be even more magical and more visually engaging than ever before. I wanted surprises at every turn, truly taking the audience on a journey of imagination.”

The Broadway International Group production of the musical faced a common theatrical challenge. How could it preserve the visual magic and storytelling precision of a Broadway favourite, while adapting to a constantly changing touring environment?

It needed a visual system that could travel internationally, integrate seamlessly into venues of varying sizes, and still deliver a consistent and immersive audience experience. And the answer to that call was an LED solution capable of cinematic storytelling, delicate theatrical nuance, and reliable performance on the road; one that would invite audiences, quite literally, into Wonka’s world of “pure imagination.”

Working alongside:

• System lead integrator, Stage Sound Service
• Renowned Video System designer Mogzi
• Highly accomplished Video and Projections Designer Jeff Sugg
• Award-winning Tour Director Matt Lenz and,
• Broadway Asia’s Production Stage Manager and Resident Director extraordinaire, Drew Cipollone

INFiLED’s AR Series (now upgraded to the ARmk2 Series) brought Wonka’s fantastical world to life for audiences across the globe.

Partnership

The global scale of this production required a team of creative visionaries and technical partners who not only shared the same vision, but also had the right synergy. That came in the form of INFiLED and Stage Sound Service, a trusted rental company and system integrator that supplies our products to touring productions worldwide.

With Stage Sound Service as the technical backbone of the project, Mogzi, an experienced video system designer, played a key role in aligning the technical setup with the creative intent of the show.

On the creative side, Jeff Sugg, Video and Projections Designer, has been involved with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory since its Broadway debut in 2016. He closely collaborated with Tour Director Matt Lenz and the wider design team to reimagine the production’s visual language for an international audience.

Close oversight from Drew Cipollone, Broadway Asia’s Production Stage Manager and Resident Director, ensured that creative ambition and touring practicality aligned, resulting in a delectable Wonka stage spectacle for audiences worldwide.

 Challenges

Touring with a theatre production presents a unique set of creative and technical challenges. Creatively, Director Matt Lenz was very cognisant of striking a balance between honouring what audiences love about the show and bringing his own interpretation to it.

“For a title like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the audience will come in with certain expectations and I do believe that it is important to fulfill those to a degree. (I want to) try to capture the essence or spirit of the thing that they fell in love with enough to come to the theatre,” he says. “In a highly visual and fast moving show like this, it is easy to lose the human, emotional values, so I work very hard to ensure that that heart stays beating amidst all the other elements.”

On the technical side, one of the biggest challenges of taking Charlie to the world stage was adapting to varying venue dimensions, sightlines and technical constraints, while still delivering a consistent and immersive experience at every performance.

“The tour is designed as a fully self-contained theatrical world. It had to be capable of landing in vastly different venues without losing its magic or cohesion,” explains Drew Cipollone, Broadway Asia Production Stage Manager and Resident Director.

The global tour marked a significant creative evolution for a production that had already undergone multiple iterations. On Broadway, the video elements of the show largely relied on projection mapped onto scenic elements within what Video and Projections Designer Jeff Sugg describes as a “magical box.”

“The projection was used to differentiate the various rooms of the chocolate factory with lots of shadow work and delicate accentuations of the scenic piece,” Jeff explains.

As the production moved into subsequent touring versions, LED began to replace those scenic containers, but technical limitations shaped the visual language.

“The aesthetic was bound by the fact that the walls were 9mm pitch. As a result, it was imperative that the content didn’t lean on gradients or soft edges within the fades and design structure,” says Jeff.

While effective at the time, those constraints stymied the ability to create subtle fades, delicate textures, and painterly transitions – elements increasingly important to the show’s storytelling.

For the global tour, the creative team decided to start from scratch. Their aim was to develop a richer and more cinematic visual language, one capable of supporting both large-scale spectacle and intimate moments involved in the world of Charlie and Willy Wonka. That ambition brought heightened technical demands.

“As a video designer, my primary concerns with LED wall products are bit depth for colour rendering, viewing angle, weight, fades and gradients, and adaptable installation,” Jeff says. “The panels also had to be non-reflective to accentuate black levels and ‘disappear’ on a dark stage. All in all, it was vital to get higher resolution LED panels and high quality processing to make this happen.”

Alongside these creative requirements, the LED system also had to withstand the realities of international touring – frequent transportation, rapid installation, long operating hours and constant venue variation.

To address these challenges, the creative and technical teams had to rethink how LED technology would function within the production; not merely as a static backdrop, but as an active storytelling element.

The Solution

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Global Tour – LED elements

• INFiLED AR 2.9mm LED panels – 136 panels total
• Main stage LED back wall – 7.5m x 6m
• Two automated tracking LED sliders – 2.5m x 6m
• Brompton LED Processor (4 x Brompton SX40 and 8 x XD)

Drew says, “The choice to use the INFiLED AR2.9 Series panels was a collaborative one. While the producers at Broadway Asia provided final approval, input came from the creative team including the scenic designer, lighting designer, video/projections designer and production management.”

“Creatively, the challenge facing us was that the panels needed to support dynamic, cinematic and at times, surreal storytelling without overwhelming the core action onstage. Practically, they had to be tour-ready – reliable, flexible and efficient to install and maintain. The AR2.9 achieved this balance, fulfilling both the artistic vision and the operational demands of an international tour.”

A new scenic concept for the production was introduced, upgrading all LED panels from 9mm pitch to 2.9mm pitch, while adding two LED panel sliders to complement the back wall.  “These components act as a storyteller themselves, allowing the stage to expand, contract and morph in real time. They create cinematic moments, heighten the theatrical illusion, and help every audience member feel fully immersed in the magic, without ever overshadowing the performers or the story,” Drew says.

The AR2.9’s fine pixel pitch and high bit depth enabled smooth gradients, soft fades and detailed textures. This smartly addressed the limitations of previous touring versions of the show, ensuring the content felt painterly and dimensional, rather than screen-based. Its low-reflective surface helped preserve deep black levels on dark stages, allowing the screens to virtually disappear when the focus needed to remain firmly on the performers.

Wide viewing angles ensured consistent image quality, even when the panels were angled as part of the scenery, while the lightweight cabinet design and adaptable installation options made it easier to integrate the LED into sliders, portals and mid-stage scenic elements.

“The panels are highly resilient, handling frequent load-ins, load-outs and long-distance transport with ease. Installation and striking are efficient, helping keep the show on schedule,” Drew explains.

The Result

For Matt, the video elements made possible by the AR Series proved essential to the production. “They allowed us to keep the transitions very alive and fluid. The play also requires the characters to be in many different locations – and get there quickly – so the video was a real lifesaver.”

Drew says the AR Series “exceeded expectations on every front… Technically, the AR2.9 is dependable. Artistically, it amplifies scale, clarity and the sense of wonder that lies at the heart of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”

For Drew, the response has been overwhelmingly positive. “Designers praise how the screens integrate seamlessly with lighting, scenery, and illusions. Cast members benefit from the clarity and consistency of the visuals, which help them orient and connect with the space. Production staff value the system’s reliability and efficiency. Audiences often comment on how immersed and transported they feel to Wonka’s world,” he says.

By combining a re-imagined visual approach with the right technology and partners, this fantastical production successfully translated Broadway magic into a touring format, proving that theatrical imagination can travel anywhere.

If you’d like to know more about the ARmk2 Series or what support we can offer to help you bring your theatrical productions to life, please contact one of our INFiLED experts.