Legally Blonde Shines at New Zealand’s Addison Theatre

For the winter season of 2025, the beloved musical Legally Blonde took the stage at the Addison Theatre in New Zealand. The production featured zactrack SMART, allowing director Toni Henderson and lighting designer Matthew Henderson to precisely follow and beautifully illuminate the show’s iconic characters — Elle Woods, Emmett Forrest, and Paulette Buonufonte.

Legally Blonde is a fun, feel-good musical about Elle Woods, who follows her ex to Harvard Law and proves she’s far more than just a pretty face.. Photo © Addison Theatre

Produced by Stage Right Trust, Legally Blonde ran from July 26 to August 2, 2025, with a total of eight performances. The production took place at Baycourt’s Addison Theatre in New Zealand, under the direction of Toni Henderson, with lighting design by Matthew Henderson. The production featured a talented cast of 34 and a dedicated crew of around 16 people, with the set and costumes also built locally.

zactrack SMART moves into Addison Theatre

Addison Theatre is a community venue with over 500 seats, a bespoke orchestra pit, and a world-class fly tower. Through a strong partnership with Show Technology, it benefits from high-quality lighting equipment that meets the diverse needs of its clientele. This collaboration has made it the first theatre in New Zealand to feature a zactrack system.

Dale Henderson from Baycourt explains that investing in a system that allows their existing fixtures to move and follow the actors seemed a much better choice than simply replacing old followspots with new ones. “It allows us to backlight, sidelight, and effectively change the position of the followspot to any moving light in the rig, and the effects we’re getting are significantly better than with a traditional followspot.”

Located in downtown Tauranga, Baycourt Community & Arts Centre is the Bay of Plenty’s premier performing arts facility. This multi-purpose performing arts and events complex provides a variety of spaces for the local community and visiting national and international acts. In 2024 the venue was significantly modernised. Photo © ShowTech

Legally Blonde was produced by Stage Right Trust, with direction by Toni Henderson and lighting design by Matthew Henderson. The musical is know for its vibrant pink aesthetics and fun dance numbers. © Addison Theatre

Addison Theatre goes Blonde

For Director Toni Henderson and Lighting Designer Matthew Henderson, it was already their third time using zactrack system in a local production. Their zactrack SMART setup in Legally Blonde included 20 Trackers and 11 Anchors.

Legally Blonde features frequent transitions between locations such as Harvard, Elle’s sorority house, and the courtroom, requiring a design that can shift quickly and clearly. Thus, the stage design emphasized energy, clarity, and quick visual storytelling. Toni explains: “As a director my prime focus is on telling the story. Using zactrack allows my lighting designer to create atmospheric states that enhance the story line as they magically highlight the leads to tell the story. Being able to highlight a performer easily from all angles instead of only a front position follow spot is a game changer!”

The lighting design was vibrant and dynamic, closely aligned with the show’s upbeat rhythm and emotional shifts. Bright, saturated colours—especially pinks and purples—enhanced the high-energy scenes, while precise spotlighting and tightly timed transitions supported the choreography and kept the fast-moving story visually clear and engaging.

To ensure precise lighting, Lighting Designer Matthew Henderson chose zactrack SMART, featuring 11 Anchors and 20 Trackers. © Addison Theatre

zactrack SMART the best option

Therefore, zactrack was a perfect match, as Matthew explains: “I really enjoy using zactrack. It gives me the ability to pick a fixture that gives the right angles for the scene to create a ‘puddle’ of light that follows the performer around. This matched my artistic desire to make them ‘pop’ out of the scene. I recently had to light a performance using traditional followspots with a flatter angle, which then spilt all over the set. I don’t ever want to do that again – give me zactrack every time now.”

For further information on Addison Theatre: https://www.baycourt.co.nz