MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM Music Festival

This was literally no small task, but we leaped at the chance and got to work developing the incredibly complex, semi-permanent, festival site plan which included a ton of civil engineering and public works projects that stretched across a 5.3 square kilometer area. For over four months our teams were on the ground tackling the unimaginable, building what few dare to dream.

Over 14,610 individual fireworks which were perfectly timed to deliver a fiery burst of pyrotechnics. 

And when we say BIG, we really mean it. Standing an impressive 232.91M wide and 41.268M tall, this massive stage was wider than the Great Pyramid of Giza whose base extends to only 230.6M and could host 110,000 guests. In fact, this beast of a stage featured the largest display of continuous LED screens in the world, utilizing over 60,053,376 LEDs to shine bright. 

It was an epic, all-out, electronic dance music festival featuring over 200 artists, across 4 days on 7 stages.

42 DJs were positioned outside the venue’s perimeter and welcomed festival attendees as they made their way toward the gates.

SOUNDSTORM featured an entrancing 14,000-person dance pavilion, an underground four-stage music complex constructed out of shipping containers, each with a capacity ranging from 2,400 – 7,350. Guests could enter this projection-mapped town and stargaze in one of 4 luxe green spaces and even explore an underground cave lounge in MDLTOWN.

There were luxe lounges, 119 custom-built food, and beverage kiosks, graffiti art, along with 69 skyboxes and stunning VIP spaces.

We kept the grounds operating and the entertainment on track allowing guests to immerse themselves in the music surrounded by sway pole dancers, acrobats, and fire stilt artists.

MDLBEAST’s SOUNDSTORM was epic in every way. Its audacious design and scale were truly unprecedented, captivating imaginations from around the globe, and setting a new standard for live experiences. It was one of the most anticipated events of the year, setting records, and driving BIG results. It also earned media coverage in the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Harper’s Bazzar, EDM, Arab News, and Condé Nast Traveller among others.

MDLBEAST SoundStorm ’21 Production Credits

Executive Director (Events) MDLBEAST: Michael “Curly” Jobson
Executive Director (Operations) MDLBEAST: Jim Digby
Production Oversight & Execution: productionglue (A TAIT Company)
Creative & Design: Alex Reardon/Silent House
SoundStorm Screens Producer: Trevor Burk
Soundstorm Site-Wide, Non-Stage Area Lighting Designer: Stuart Pring
Underground 1,2,3,4 Lighting Designer: Samuel Tozer
DownBeast Design: Dan Hill, Chris ‘Squib’ Swain, Cassius Creative LLP
DanceBeast Design: Ian Tomlinson

Onsite Vendor List

8th Day Sound: Audio – Underground
AES: Events Service & Staging – Underground
Al Laith: Staging & Structure – Dance Beast, Down Beast, & Entrance Structures
Araib Construction: Perimeter wall, fencing, gates, asphalt
Arga: Traffic management
Brilliant Stages (A TAIT Company): Staging / Set – Big Beast
Bryn: Cabins and site support
Cassius Creative: Creative Design
Clair Global: I.T. / Radio & Comms
Coloursound: Rigging, Lighting, Video, Cameras—Underground
DJayGear: DJ Equipment
EPS: Barricades
ER Productions / PyroJunkies: SFX, Lasers
EMECO: Civil construction, trenches, gates
ESM: Security
Fiesta: Internal walling & decor/sculptures
Fireworks by Grucci: Fireworks
Frequency Coordination Group: RF Coordinator
Full Cycle: Security & Permitting
High Scream: Creative Design
Highlights: Environmental Lighting

Ginger Owl: Artist Relations, Staff Travel & Visas, Credentials
Irmarfer: Staging / Tent Supply— Dance Beast
JR Scenic: Scenic – Big Beast DJ Booth
Lightblueww: Creative Design, Graphics, Patron Map
Losbeger DeBoer: VIP Structures
Media Pro: Lighting, Video, Cameras, Audio—Dance Beast & Down Beast
MTD: Water and Waste Water
OSA Corp: Screens Control Room
PRG: Stage Production (Lighting, Video, Cameras, Audio)—Big Beast
Productions on Point: Layout
Protone: Backline
Robert Bird Group: Civil & Structural Engineering
Rock-It Global: Freight Liaison and Management – Logistics & Shipping
Showforce: Local Crew— Big Beast
Silent House: Festival Creative Designer
Special Projects: Site Management
Stage Miracles: Production / Crew—Big Beast
StageCo: Set / Staging: Set / Staging / Towers – Big Beast
Safe Events: Health and Safety
Vision Factory: Creative Design
Visual Noise Creative: Content / Screens