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| Beyoncé at the Super Bowl: the graft behind the glitz | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Hamish Hamilton, the British director of the Super Bowl's half-time extravaganza, wants to be very clear. The power cut was categorically not his fault. | |
| "It had nothing to do with us," he says of the blackout that stopped play within minutes of Beyoncé's spectacular show coming to an end. Although Hamilton will confess to moments of "blind panic" in staging the ferociously complex and elaborate show, there was no chance of failure, he maintains. | "It had nothing to do with us," he says of the blackout that stopped play within minutes of Beyoncé's spectacular show coming to an end. Although Hamilton will confess to moments of "blind panic" in staging the ferociously complex and elaborate show, there was no chance of failure, he maintains. |
| Nearly everything went to plan, but even when it didn't, Hamilton's events team are veterans of such spectaculars, and old hands at coping with crisis. | Nearly everything went to plan, but even when it didn't, Hamilton's events team are veterans of such spectaculars, and old hands at coping with crisis. |
| "We had technical issues. We had a camera on air that just decided to fall off its mount – I've never had that happen before – but it is the Super Bowl, and we covered it up beautifully." | "We had technical issues. We had a camera on air that just decided to fall off its mount – I've never had that happen before – but it is the Super Bowl, and we covered it up beautifully." |
| Having directed Madonna's Super Bowl performance last year and helped Danny Boyle stage last year's opening ceremony at the Olympics, Hamilton, 46, has some claim to being the world expert in complex live televised performances. | Having directed Madonna's Super Bowl performance last year and helped Danny Boyle stage last year's opening ceremony at the Olympics, Hamilton, 46, has some claim to being the world expert in complex live televised performances. |
| So when he says that had a power surge half an hour earlier would not have been enough to ruin Beyoncé's set, it seems credible. Hamilton's team had ensured that the state-of-the-art LED floor and backdrop display – which served as Beyoncé's very own kaleidoscope during her 13 minutes on stage – were powered by a generator quite separate from the supply that cut the lights early in the third quarter. | So when he says that had a power surge half an hour earlier would not have been enough to ruin Beyoncé's set, it seems credible. Hamilton's team had ensured that the state-of-the-art LED floor and backdrop display – which served as Beyoncé's very own kaleidoscope during her 13 minutes on stage – were powered by a generator quite separate from the supply that cut the lights early in the third quarter. |
| Sunday's show was a year in the making, and involved the detailed planning and participation of thousands of people, though as director, Hamilton's role was reduced largely to that of an onlooker. "There is an incredible sense of fear. Then determination, and then blind panic. | Sunday's show was a year in the making, and involved the detailed planning and participation of thousands of people, though as director, Hamilton's role was reduced largely to that of an onlooker. "There is an incredible sense of fear. Then determination, and then blind panic. |
| "It is a ludicrous proposition: there are teams of staging units stretching down the tunnel and into the parking lot and thousands of people praying they make it to the right place in time. | "It is a ludicrous proposition: there are teams of staging units stretching down the tunnel and into the parking lot and thousands of people praying they make it to the right place in time. |
| "I'm in a truck watching it happen, and hoping and praying that the stage gets out, [that] the connections are all made, and that everything is in location. Thousands of things can go wrong." | "I'm in a truck watching it happen, and hoping and praying that the stage gets out, [that] the connections are all made, and that everything is in location. Thousands of things can go wrong." |
| And America's biggest sporting event brings its own specific demands. | And America's biggest sporting event brings its own specific demands. |
| "The difficulty with the Super Bowl is how to get the stage on and off. You only have seven minutes to get it through the tunnel and through the goalposts. | "The difficulty with the Super Bowl is how to get the stage on and off. You only have seven minutes to get it through the tunnel and through the goalposts. |
| "Everything built has to be on wheels and has to be not too heavy. Anything that would usually be simple is incredibly difficult in a stadium, and you have to do it halfway through the world's biggest game of football. It is a unique set of challenges". | "Everything built has to be on wheels and has to be not too heavy. Anything that would usually be simple is incredibly difficult in a stadium, and you have to do it halfway through the world's biggest game of football. It is a unique set of challenges". |
| The show's groundbreaking LED effects morphed multitudes of electronic Beyoncés into the real thing in real time, a feat of enormous complexity. | The show's groundbreaking LED effects morphed multitudes of electronic Beyoncés into the real thing in real time, a feat of enormous complexity. |
| "I don't remember whose idea it was. It has been done before, but never at a Super Bowl, and never in eight minutes," Hamilton says of the challenges of the putting together the LED display. "It required very clever technical expertise; precise choreography and cameras being in the right place. It was a marriage of many different skills and creative thought." | "I don't remember whose idea it was. It has been done before, but never at a Super Bowl, and never in eight minutes," Hamilton says of the challenges of the putting together the LED display. "It required very clever technical expertise; precise choreography and cameras being in the right place. It was a marriage of many different skills and creative thought." |
| As well as the performers on stage, a team of volunteers worked unseen underneath. And the effects of having multiple Beyoncés on stage were enhanced through camera and lighting tricks. The end result Hamilton likens to an "explosion of brilliance". | As well as the performers on stage, a team of volunteers worked unseen underneath. And the effects of having multiple Beyoncés on stage were enhanced through camera and lighting tricks. The end result Hamilton likens to an "explosion of brilliance". |
| "Everybody said Madonna would be a tough one to top. But the reviews and response we have got suggests that we certainly matched that. I want to make each show a televisual spectacular, and I think we did that," he says. | "Everybody said Madonna would be a tough one to top. But the reviews and response we have got suggests that we certainly matched that. I want to make each show a televisual spectacular, and I think we did that," he says. |
| Of course, it's easier to produce spectacular brilliance when money is no object. Hamilton said he has "absolutely no idea" of the overall cost. Reports have suggested that the NFL gave Beyoncé a production budget of $600,000, but that the price tag for staging the show was in excess of $1m. Neither the NFL nor Pepsi – which sponsored the show – would comment. But Hamilton says that to his mind $600,000 "would not have come close" to the actual cost of putting on the show. | Of course, it's easier to produce spectacular brilliance when money is no object. Hamilton said he has "absolutely no idea" of the overall cost. Reports have suggested that the NFL gave Beyoncé a production budget of $600,000, but that the price tag for staging the show was in excess of $1m. Neither the NFL nor Pepsi – which sponsored the show – would comment. But Hamilton says that to his mind $600,000 "would not have come close" to the actual cost of putting on the show. |
| Any shortfall would have had to be made up by Beyoncé's team, it has been suggested. But any loss from the night itself would have been more than made up for in the massive exposure that the half-time slot brings. | Any shortfall would have had to be made up by Beyoncé's team, it has been suggested. But any loss from the night itself would have been more than made up for in the massive exposure that the half-time slot brings. |
| As to Beyoncé herself, Hamilton had nothing but praise: "She is a very smart, serene lady … utterly charming and focused." | As to Beyoncé herself, Hamilton had nothing but praise: "She is a very smart, serene lady … utterly charming and focused." |
| She was also very hands on-when it came to the production of the half-time show. "It would be naïve to say 'Let's book Beyoncé' and then say to her: 'This is what you have to do'. You do not book Beyoncé and then tell her what to do. At the end of the day, it is her show." | She was also very hands on-when it came to the production of the half-time show. "It would be naïve to say 'Let's book Beyoncé' and then say to her: 'This is what you have to do'. You do not book Beyoncé and then tell her what to do. At the end of the day, it is her show." |
| The result, says Hamilton, was a collaborative effort between the pair to come up with most of the ideas that formed the backbone to Sunday's show. | The result, says Hamilton, was a collaborative effort between the pair to come up with most of the ideas that formed the backbone to Sunday's show. |
| Having now successfully presided over two consecutive Super Bowl half-time shows, Hamilton is lined up for a third in 2014. But if negotiations have begun over possible stars for that event, he claims not to know who is in the picture. "Absolutely not. It's [still] very early. I have lots of ideas about who I would love it to be, but I'm not going to make that known now. There is lots of passionate debate." | Having now successfully presided over two consecutive Super Bowl half-time shows, Hamilton is lined up for a third in 2014. But if negotiations have begun over possible stars for that event, he claims not to know who is in the picture. "Absolutely not. It's [still] very early. I have lots of ideas about who I would love it to be, but I'm not going to make that known now. There is lots of passionate debate." |
| And having been involved in the pinnacle of the American game, Hamilton, a Brit, is coming around to its appeal. | And having been involved in the pinnacle of the American game, Hamilton, a Brit, is coming around to its appeal. |
| "I'm a boy from Blackpool and here I am at the Super Bowl," he says. "When I started four years ago I had a traditional English view of it being a lot of people running around with pads on. But when you see them on the turf, they are big athletes and the plays are exciting. | "I'm a boy from Blackpool and here I am at the Super Bowl," he says. "When I started four years ago I had a traditional English view of it being a lot of people running around with pads on. But when you see them on the turf, they are big athletes and the plays are exciting. |
| "I still don't understand all the rules, though." | "I still don't understand all the rules, though." |