Third Venue at Omaha Performing Arts Complex Selects Ayrton Lighting Fixtures for New Build Nebraska-based Omaha Performing Arts (O-pa) continues to invest in Ayrton lighting fixtures for its venues with the new Tenaska Center for Arts Engagement due to install Argo 6 FX fixtures and Diablo profiles before its grand opening in March 2026. ACT Entertainment is the exclusive distributor of Ayrton lighting in North America. Previously, Steelhouse Omaha and The Holland Performing Arts Center purchased Eurus, Karif LT and Zonda 9 FX fixtures for their spaces. All of the facilities are part of the Dick & Mary Holland Campus, which is centrally located in downtown Omaha. The campus offers a wide spectrum of performing arts experiences and shows and hosts a broad range of education and engagement programs for the community. "By staying consistent with Ayrton fixtures across the buildings we've gained cross-use, backup and a lot of flexibility," says Ryan Murray, associate vice president of operations at O-pa. "We're very impressed with the fixtures' speed, stock gobos and brightness and get a lot of great feedback about them. The lighting designers we work with regularly don't have to reinvent themselves in every space here because they're familiar with the fixtures. It's been nice to stay within the product line and find similar models in different sizes for our three venues." O-pa's relationship with Ayrton began two-and-a-half years ago with the new Steelhouse Omaha, a dynamic live music and comedy space with a capacity of 3,000 people. "We were talking to lighting designers and heard the name Ayrton quite a bit," Murray recalls. "So Ayrton became part of our demos, and we selected Eurus as our main moving profile fixture. Its mid-size was perfect for the venue, it was really bright and had a lot of features. We also decided to add Karif LT spots to provide some cool effects lighting. Since then, we've heard a lot of positive comments from the touring bands and artists who have appeared: They are super impressed with the lights' performance and very low maintenance." In the summer of 2025, The Holland Performing Arts Center's 2,000-seat Kiewit Concert Hall, known for its bold modern design and finely engineered acoustics, upgraded and redesigned its lighting rig. Once again, Ayrton shone in equipment demos. The symphony space selected Zonda 9 FX as its primary wash fixtures and to provide eye candy as needed. "They're a beautiful bright and punchy wash through the whole stage," notes Murray. "The Omaha Symphony, our primary resident company, has been very pleased with the lights." The Tenaska Center for Arts Engagement will complete construction at the end of October 2025 and hold its grand opening next March. It will add additional rehearsal, workshop and classroom space to accommodate O-pa's expanding education and community engagement programs. "Since Tenaska is different from the other venues, we were looking for general accent or room lighting here," Murray explains. "Two spaces will host events and classes: a 500-seat ballroom and a rehearsal room that can also be used for small performances. We needed compact, lightweight fixtures that would also be bright and modern with a lot of options for effects. Argo 6 FX fixtures and Diablo profiles fit well in the rooms -- they give us a lot of flexibility for general accent and décor as well as for small performances that might be staged." He points out that as an educational center Tenaska will also incorporate some training programs for basic lighting design and the use of moving heads. "The new Ayrton fixtures will be a great and easy way for young people to learn more about a brand they'll see in the professional world," Murray says. Heartland Scenic Studio in Omaha was the lighting vendor for Steelhouse and Tenaska. TMS Omaha was the lighting vendor for The Holland Performing Arts Center. 
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