Whitney Hoversten Lights Bruno Mars' Romantic Tour with CHAUVET Professional

	Pyro effects accent the performance at some points, then disappear. Bold color combinations change to reflect the mood of each song. Movement is ever present. Photo: Daniel Ramos

Bruno Mars' voice is ringing out loud and clear on The Romantic Tour, which began its 71-date North American and EU run April 10 at Las Vegas's Allegiant Stadium. It concludes its 2026 run December 8 in Mexico City, with every intention of continuing in 2027.

From the moment the show begins with a dramatic video of Mars praying in church before singing the heartfelt ballad "Risk It All," the 15-time Grammy winner takes fans on a constantly unfolding journey of music and choreography that never quits. Enhancing the impact of Mars' kinetic performance in the 30-song set is a high energy Whitney Hoversten lighting design, which, like the star it supports, is marked by a dynamic sense of motion.

"There is a real feeling of movement in this production, and it stems from Bruno himself," says Hoversten. "The incredible music drives much of this energy, but there is also the movement of Bruno and the band -- it is truly choreographic. Our mission is to support this with lighting, video, and effects that reflect Bruno's vision."

Hoversten collaborated closely with production manager Joel Forman, the team from TAIT, as well as Bruno himself on the stage design. Together they ensured that every element of the production flows with the music and choreography across the 190' wide stage, 76' of which are dedicated to the main performance areas.

"I poured a lot of energy into the selection and placement of every light in this very extensive rig," says Hoversten, who notes that 1,543 fixtures were used in the mammoth production, which had 34 universal production trucks and 54 additional trucks for the steel structured roof system. His dedicated effort paid of beautifully, as the show engages fans with its orchestrated dance of light and video.

Chase sequences animate the show, moving horizontally one moment and vertically the next, or traveling in both directions simultaneously. Blackouts transform the stage, as do intense blinding effects. Pyro effects accent the performance at some points, then disappear. Bold color combinations change to reflect the mood of each song. Movement is ever present.

Making a key contribution to the show is a collection of 292 CHAUVET Professional STRIKE V motorized strobe-wash, supplied by Fuse Technical Group. "They are the foundation of our back wall," Hoversten said of the 180-degree tilting fixture, which has three rows of individually controllable LEDs. "The variety of movement we can get with them makes them ideally suited for a show like this, which is defined to an extent by movement. We count on them for giving us a variety of looks."

In addition to creating a dynamic back wall, the STRIKE V fixtures run across the top of the rig, creating clean imagery over the width of the stage. These units are often strobed to sync with the music and they also provide audience lighting.

Hoversten often has to throttle back the intense output of his STRIKE V fixtures to ensure clean images of Bruno for the audience and on the IMAG screen. To further ensure precise key lighting, he positioned his spots on extra high (80') towers.

"The positioning of the spots was one of the details we spend a lot of time on, to make sure Bruno was lit properly," says Hoversten.