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Central Hall Westminster: Marvellous for music

December 2024

The team at Central Hall Westminster orchestrated the perfect setting for The Marvels of Saudi Arabia, a musical concert held in the venue’s Great Hall. Over 150 musicians performed to an audience of 1,600 people for an unforgettable experience.

Image credit: Saudi Arabia Ministry of Culture

The concert took place over one evening, the magnitude of the event and the sheer volume of performers and equipment meant organisers required four days to prepare the space.

The venue was booked out exclusively for the event’s organisers, with other clients using spaces two days prior to this, the Central Hall Westminster team had to work efficiently to manage access to production teams, designers, florists, dressers and crew, as well as storage without disruption to other booked events.

Image credit: Saudi Arabia Ministry of Culture

On the night itself, the concert, which included performances by The Saudi National Orchestra and Choir and the UK’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, took place in Central Hall Westminster’s Great Hall. The room’s iconic self-supporting dome, and awe-inspiring grand organ, mastered by the venue’s former musical director William Lloyd Webber, set the scene well, providing an impressive backdrop for the musical extravaganza.

The venue’s flagship space, offering capacity for up to 2,000 people, with its adaptable stage area, and blind spot-free seats meant both performers (from both the Saudi Orchestra and the UK’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) and audience members could be comfortably accommodated.

In addition to using the Great Hall’s recently upgraded audio system to ensure the music -a mixture of traditional Saudi and British pieces – had pitch-perfect delivery, Central Hall Westminster’s in-house AV partner White Light supplied close mic’ing and in-ear monitors for all 150 musicians and singers.

White Light also supported video streaming, using Central Hall Westminster’s internal fibre patching to project in 4K, and enhanced lighting in the Great Hall for TV production.

Further lighting and audio solutions were provided inside and outside the venue to bring the wow factor.

Central Hall Westminster’s catering partner Green & Fortune, worked around the clock to keep event production crews well-fuelled with refreshments, including tea and coffee, soft drinks, fruit skewers and biscuits.

For the event itself, which was alcohol-free, Green & Fortune served traditional coffee and dates, supplied by the organisers, to every ticketholder on arrival. They also created bespoke mocktails and sourced non-alcoholic Saudi sparkling wine to be served alongside a selection of canapes (all Halal) to those attending a VIP reception attended by His Highness Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan Al Saud, Minister of Culture.

Image credit: Saudi Arabia Ministry of Culture

Other exciting elements included the presence of a falcon – a symbol of status in Saudi culture – in the building’s rotunda and traditional Saudi instruments and costume placed around the venue.

Central Hall Westminster’s events team faced certain challenges throughout the experience, but they faced them with professionalism and pragmatism. This was a new client with unique requirements specific to their culture and with multiple stakeholders involved. The team therefore took extra time to understand their needs and ensure the outcome was perfect.

Communication in the lead-up to and during the event was frequent and well-managed to ensure any requests hadn’t gone unnoticed and teams were supported throughout the set-up process and the event itself resulting in a smooth and seamless performance.

The final event was a triumph. The atmosphere on the night was electric with guests wowed as they entered the building and saw the grand staircase before taking their seats in the Great Hall for the performance.

Musicians and singers were revered for their performances which were seen and heard clearly, both in the auditorium and on-screen. Reviews following the event were favourable with multiple media channels reporting on a ‘mesmerising’ performance which united nations through the power of music.

After the event, James Sirling, creative consultant for Saudi Marvels, said ‘in a show full of moving parts’ the team had remained solid and ‘made everything happen, no matter the request or how late it came’.

He said: “The Central Hall Westminster team really is the best. I have never worked on a project quite like this and it would not have been successful without the team’s dedication and attention to detail.”

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