Mata Hari at the Munich State Theatre Gärtnerplatz

The State Theatre Gärtnerplatz used Notch to paint the backdrop of their recent production of the already vibrant Mata Hari.

For their annual musical production, the Gärtnerplatztheater in Munich decided to put on Mata Hari, a 21st-century update of the classic femme fatale story based on the real-life account of a Dutch exotic dancer (popstar–in this case) who was convicted of being a spy for Germany during the First World War. The theatre approached Video Director Raphael Kurig and Notch Designer Christian Gasteiger to contribute visuals for a diverse set of screens in the backdrop.

While in pre-production, the creative team imported the 3D stage into Notch. From there, Gasteiger iterated various projection surfaces to determine the masking process. At this point, Director Isabella Gregor could see what the effects would look like. The team used Notch to create both rendered content and real-time video effects. The Virtual Background feature was used to balance the visuals throughout the performance.

Kurig wanted to incorporate the latest technology, so he made sure to equip their Pandoras Box media server with the best graphics cards possible to run their Notch Block without delay. To optimise the chain, the team set all cameras to 720p and sent one of their two cameras wirelessly via Teradek Bolt as a 720p stream.

“It was a pleasure to see Notch Blocks working in such a unique show environment. Using Notch added a bit of extra magic to the show and greatly contributed to the many looks of amazement coming from the crowd.”

Christian Gasteiger, Notch Designer

Additional press coverage:
Ganz-Muenchen, Süddeutsche Zeitung.

Credits
Client: Munich State Theatre Gärtnerplatz
Production Company: Mata Hari Productions by Marc Schubring & Kevin Schroeder
Production Design: Judith Leikauf & Karl Fehringer

Notch Designer: Christian Gasteiger
Video Director: Raphael Kurig
Video Producers: Meike Ebert
Photographer: Marie-Laure Briane