The Thorn continues to captivate audiences across the United States on its 2026 spring tour with a sweeping combination of theatrical storytelling and modern production technology.
The large-scale production, which will tour the South and Southeast of the country through early May, combines theatre, dance, music, martial arts and aerial acrobatics, all brought to life through Cory Fournier’s striking lighting design.
This year’s production features a complete lighting system refresh that includes Elation PARAGON M LED profile moving heads supplied by 4Wall Entertainment. The fixtures play a key role in shaping the show’s visual language, from its most subtle emotions to high-impact, concert-style moments.
Visual storytelling
This modern-day passion play offers an immersive retelling of the life and death of Jesus. Fournier worked alongside creator and founder John Bolin and director Andrew Harmon to define the look of a show that relies heavily on visual storytelling.
Lighting plays an enormous role in guiding the audience’s experience; it tells them where to look and, in many ways, becomes part of the dialogue. It says ‘this moment is important’, ‘wow’ or ‘this is a sad moment’, explained Harmon, who has been directing the show for 15 years.
Precision
Nominated for an Emmy Award for his work on Fox’s The Masked Singer, Fournier brings extensive experience in television, film and live events. His relationship with The Thorn dates back to 2010, when he first joined as a lighting technician under Robby Kurtz of 4Wall, one of the project’s early collaborators. Fournier left the production in 2012 to pursue his own career and returned this year to collaborate with Harmon and Bolin.
Every year, The Thorn adopts a guiding principle on which to focus its work. For 2026, the chosen concept was precision. "Even before the tour began, we focused on precision with the team", explained Fournier. "When we introduced the PARAGON fixtures, they fitted perfectly with that concept".
Fournier, who serves as production manager, lighting designer and lighting director on the tour, embraced this philosophy while refining a design inherited from previous The Thorn collaborators. Given creative freedom, he introduced new programming elements, sharpened the visual look and added his own techniques and tricks.
"It has been a lot of fun", he commented. "We retained the essence of what makes The Thorn special, but upgraded the system to deliver sharper, more precise lighting throughout the show".
A versatile system for a dynamic show
Recommended by Robby Kurtz, Vice President of Business Development at 4Wall, PARAGON has proved to be a versatile and reliable solution throughout the tour. "I have been very impressed", said Fournier. "The framing shutters are precise, the colours are rich and the increased light output across the stage is clearly noticeable. The accuracy of these fixtures has been outstanding".
Fournier added that they have not had to use a single spare unit or reset a single fixture. The lighting system includes 36 PARAGON M units distributed across the rig. Ten are installed on the front-of-house truss to provide key lighting, while the remainder are positioned on side-stage towers and overhead trusses. Most of them—32 units—are integrated with a real-time performer tracking system. To accommodate the variations in the story, Fournier makes use of the fixtures’ full range of features.
We use virtually everything the fixture offers, from high-energy, concert-style looks to very quiet and emotional moments. One of the comments we hear most often when someone sees the show for the first time is that they did not expect it to be so varied and impactful, and that is precisely what makes the experience so powerful. One moment it is deeply theatrical, dramatic and driven by the set, and the next it feels like a full-on rock ‘n’ roll show. It is a complete experience, he explained.
Creating emotional impact
The ability to reinforce the storytelling through light is central to the production. PARAGON’s effects, ranging from colour washes and break-up textures to beams visible in mid-air, play an essential role in maintaining visual interest throughout the show. Among the many visually striking scenes, one stands out in particular for the designer and, undoubtedly, for many audience members as well.
"It is the starry-night scene during the birth of Jesus", explained Fournier. "The dot gobos from the PARAGON fixtures cut through the haze and make you feel as though you are truly inside that moment. Using gobos and the animation wheel in combination with tracking creates beautiful, evolving shadows and textures as the focus moves through the different areas. The beam spread across the venue and the fixture’s clarity convey the emotion and underline the importance of that moment".
Although The Thorn assumes that many audience members are already familiar with the story, the production aims to create a deeper connection with them. "We assume that most people know the story of Jesus, but they may not have experienced or felt it", said Harmon. "We hope the audience leaves the show with a different understanding of the story of Jesus and a stronger emotional connection to it".
Powered by partnership
4Wall supplied the audiovisual package for the tour, including the new lighting equipment. Fournier highlighted the company’s contribution to developing the system and its excellent support throughout the tour.
Working with 4Wall has been incredible. The equipment looks as though it has just come out of the box, and Robby Kurtz and Gabe Thruston are fantastic to work with. They are a great team, and having this level of partnership makes an enormous difference on a tour like this, he said.
