Party Lighting | Guide to lighting marquees and tents

Party Lighting
Mood and Party Lighting for Marquees and Tents

Aluminium frame marquees lend themselves neatly to nightclub and disco / party lighting installations due to their construction and strength. The aluminium box frame of a typical 12M wide (or larger) frame tent can support a considerable weight, if evenly distributed along the centre ridge (main central purlin).

marquee lighting

The photo above shows a lightweight aluminium lighting truss (tri-lite) suspended the entire length of the framed marquee ridge. The lighting truss supports a variety of party and stage lighting including large pinspots (white lights) used for illuminating the tables, PAR 56 stage cans (yellow lights) used to colour wash the roof lining and a selection of automated scans (disco / nightclub effect lights).

Colour changing lighting can also be used for colour washing. This tent has a blackout lining (thick black roof and wall linings capable of keeping out sunlight during the daytime). All of the cables can be neatly hidden between the roof linings and the underside of the roof sheets.

Stage smoke completes the party scene (simple smoke machine). Stage smoke is completely harmless and absolutely essential for creating the desired party effect. Without smoke the beams of light are not visible (see photo below). The light beams themselves are as important (if not more so) than the actual light cast on a surface. Stage smoke can also be scented with dozens of perfumes. Choose your scent from anything from vanilla to coffee!

Marquee party lighting

The above photo (courtesy of Regency Events) shows a Moulin Rouge theme party during testing before the guests arrive. Again the tables are lit by pinspots on a lighting truss (top left background) and there is a variety of nightclub and party lighting including moving head projectors (black units), PAR 56 stage spots (top left) and a good old fashioned mirror ball. This marquee also uses up-lighting placed on the floor around walls (not visible in the image). This is a subtle method of colour washing the walls and roof from below. Without the stage smoke working, the effect is completely different from the top photograph.

The tent (above) has a "star cloth lining" (blackout material with thousands of tiny white pea lights sewn into the material). Another name commonly used is "star light lining". Essentially used to describe any dark coloured linings with integrated lighting. Variations include using a midnight blue colour for the lining instead of black material; or using LED or fibre optic lighting instead of pea lights.

Most (but not all) star cloth linings are multi channel, linked to a simple computer controller and can 'twinkle' or change colour. The lining in the above photo is a '4 channel' star light using white pea lights that can twinkle or fade from channel to channel giving the impression of a night sky.

Wedding marquee lighting

The photo above shows how party lighting can be used effectively for a wedding marquee, which also has to be aesthetically pleasing during the daytime for the reception. In this wedding tent we have a fairly standard pleated ivory roof lining, coloured swags and window walls all around. During the daytime reception the tent is fresh and light. After dark, the party lighting kicks in which was subtly integrated into the roof. Again we have the trademark well tested white pinspot lights to illuminate the tables. A small party lighting rig is again suspended using tri-lite above the dance floor of the wedding tent and rope lights hidden behind the swags become visible at night through the thin ivory material.