A Room-Wide Visual. A Climate-First Brief. — Observatory with Enter Shikari at Alexandra Palace
- Observatory
- Mar 17, 2022
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 27
Observatory has worked with Enter Shikari since 2014 — one of the longest-running creative relationships in the studio's history. And of all the shows we've made together, their triumphant return to Alexandra Palace in December 2021 was among the most meaningful.
"This was the only show that was held in Alexandra Palace in December and to be involved at all was really quite an honour," Ben Sheppee told TPi Magazine. The full production feature is available here: TPi Magazine — Enter Shikari's Triumphant Return with an Environmentally Conscious Production (March 2022).
More Than a Stage Show: A Room-Wide Visual Experience
Enter Shikari have always believed that the entire venue is part of the show — not just the stage. Their Alexandra Palace production was designed with that principle at its core. The entire room was incorporated into the design, thanks to a large laser rig provided by AC Lasers and video projection on the walls of the venue, done in collaboration between 80six and Observatory.
The result was a genuinely immersive environment — one where you felt the show surrounding you, not just in front of you. Content was projected onto the venue walls, wrapping the audience in visual material that responded to the music with the precision that only a timecoded show can achieve. "It was timecoded to death," the production team noted. "Every element coming out of the music."
A Climate-First Creative Brief
Enter Shikari are a band with genuine environmental convictions, and they asked Observatory to reflect those convictions in the visual content. Content was projected on the walls including one that demonstrated climate change with the melting of ice caps, and one showing deforestation.
This wasn't window dressing. The band's manager Ian Johnsen had set sustainability as a production priority — from catering (all vegetarian, no red meat) to packaging (no single-use plastic backstage). "I'm fully supportive of the band's wish to be as sustainable as possible," Johnsen said. Observatory was proud to bring that same intentionality to the content itself.
Ben Sheppee noted that this wasn't his first time working on climate-focused material: "I've already done a number of climate-focused pieces over the years and therefore had some assets I could start working from." The DRAWDOWN installation for Collusion (2021) was part of that same thread.
A Decade of Creative Trust
"They are a great band to work for as they are independent and make a lot of their own decisions. When we talk about art direction, it's quite a quick conversation as to where we want to take the show," said Sheppee. A decade of working together will do that — it creates a shared creative language that makes the process faster, more confident, and more genuinely collaborative.
Source: TPi Magazine — Enter Shikari's Triumphant Return, March 2022. Production partners: 80six, AC Lasers, Mandylights, Adlib, Crosslands.
