Client
NVA
Location
Tour de France, Wades Yard, Leeds
Client
NVA
Location
Tour de France, Wades Yard, Leeds
Project Details
A Dazzling Fusion of Dance, Cycling, and Light
Ghost Peloton was a breathtaking collaboration between NVA and Phoenix Dance Theatre, created in partnership with national cycling advocacy charity Sustrans. Commissioned as a centerpiece of the Yorkshire Festival 2014, it marked the lead-up to the Grand Départ of the Tour de France, which brought the world-famous cycling race to the UK that summer. This ambitious project blended movement, technology, and place, combining a peloton of stunningly illuminated cyclists, dynamic choreography, and cinematic landscapes drawn from the Tour de France route through Yorkshire. NOVAK was invited to contribute a vital visual dimension—creating an epic animated backdrop that would complement and enhance this pioneering public performance.
Project Details
A Dazzling Fusion of Dance, Cycling, and Light
Ghost Peloton was a breathtaking collaboration between NVA and Phoenix Dance Theatre, created in partnership with national cycling advocacy charity Sustrans. Commissioned as a centerpiece of the Yorkshire Festival 2014, it marked the lead-up to the Grand Départ of the Tour de France, which brought the world-famous cycling race to the UK that summer. This ambitious project blended movement, technology, and place, combining a peloton of stunningly illuminated cyclists, dynamic choreography, and cinematic landscapes drawn from the Tour de France route through Yorkshire. NOVAK was invited to contribute a vital visual dimension—creating an epic animated backdrop that would complement and enhance this pioneering public performance.
The Brief
Creating a Seamless Visual World for a Multi-Layered Performance
NOVAK was tasked with designing a large-scale visual backdrop that would integrate harmoniously with the diverse artistic elements of Ghost Peloton. The visuals needed to complement the choreography, music, and lighting while maintaining their own distinct aesthetic. Using a 16m x 4.5m LED screen, NOVAK’s challenge was to craft a compelling digital environment that could match the energy and fluidity of the live performance, reinforcing the themes of movement, endurance, and spectacle that defined the project. In addition to design and animation, NOVAK’s role also extended into the technical realm, requiring them to manage the live playback of video elements—ensuring flawless synchronization between projection, choreography, and lighting cues.
The Brief
Creating a Seamless Visual World for a Multi-Layered Performance
NOVAK was tasked with designing a large-scale visual backdrop that would integrate harmoniously with the diverse artistic elements of Ghost Peloton. The visuals needed to complement the choreography, music, and lighting while maintaining their own distinct aesthetic. Using a 16m x 4.5m LED screen, NOVAK’s challenge was to craft a compelling digital environment that could match the energy and fluidity of the live performance, reinforcing the themes of movement, endurance, and spectacle that defined the project. In addition to design and animation, NOVAK’s role also extended into the technical realm, requiring them to manage the live playback of video elements—ensuring flawless synchronization between projection, choreography, and lighting cues.









Our Response
A Mesmerizing Dance of Light, Motion, and Landscape
Inspired by the choreography, music, and lighting sequences, NOVAK created a series of visually striking animated backdrops that seamlessly merged animation, motion graphics, and film elements. Working closely with filmmaker Mark Huskisson, the team integrated cinematic footage of Yorkshire’s landscapes with stylized, abstract visuals that echoed the rhythm and motion of the illuminated cyclists. Initially, the production took place at NOVAK’s studio in Newcastle upon Tyne, where the team developed the visuals in collaboration with key creatives—including NVA’s creative director Angus Farquhar, lighting designer Phil Supple, and choreographers Sharon Watson and Charis Charles from Phoenix Dance Theatre. In the week leading up to the performance, NOVAK relocated to Leeds, working on-site with the full creative team to fine-tune the visual elements and ensure a flawless integration of choreography, lighting, and music. The final performances—staged over two sold-out nights in May 2014 at Wades Yard, Leeds—drew mesmerized crowds, receiving a rapturous response. With Ghost Peloton, NOVAK delivered not only a visually stunning backdrop but also a seamless fusion of creative production and technical delivery, reinforcing the project’s ambitious vision and cementing its place as an unforgettable moment in the intersection of sport, art, and technology.
Our Response
A Mesmerizing Dance of Light, Motion, and Landscape
Inspired by the choreography, music, and lighting sequences, NOVAK created a series of visually striking animated backdrops that seamlessly merged animation, motion graphics, and film elements. Working closely with filmmaker Mark Huskisson, the team integrated cinematic footage of Yorkshire’s landscapes with stylized, abstract visuals that echoed the rhythm and motion of the illuminated cyclists. Initially, the production took place at NOVAK’s studio in Newcastle upon Tyne, where the team developed the visuals in collaboration with key creatives—including NVA’s creative director Angus Farquhar, lighting designer Phil Supple, and choreographers Sharon Watson and Charis Charles from Phoenix Dance Theatre. In the week leading up to the performance, NOVAK relocated to Leeds, working on-site with the full creative team to fine-tune the visual elements and ensure a flawless integration of choreography, lighting, and music. The final performances—staged over two sold-out nights in May 2014 at Wades Yard, Leeds—drew mesmerized crowds, receiving a rapturous response. With Ghost Peloton, NOVAK delivered not only a visually stunning backdrop but also a seamless fusion of creative production and technical delivery, reinforcing the project’s ambitious vision and cementing its place as an unforgettable moment in the intersection of sport, art, and technology.



“We invited NOVAK to work on Ghost Peloton for the opening of the Tour de France to develop visual content to unify 35 live racing cylists in unique LED controllable body suits and screen content containing stunning dance footage combined with a unique film shot on the race route. They brought a beautiful and sensitive touch to the proceedings, fast becoming key members of the creative team and adding a new visual language to a complex and well established touring performance.”
Angus Farquhar
Creative Director, NVA












Credits
Ghost Peloton was featured on The Creators Project and revived coverage from the BBC, the Telegraph and the Guardian.
Film by Mark Huskisson/Reset Films.
Soundtrack by Frame Missing.
Photography by Alan McAteer, James Johnson and Tim Smith.
Credits
Ghost Peloton was featured on The Creators Project and revived coverage from the BBC, the Telegraph and the Guardian.
Film by Mark Huskisson/Reset Films.
Soundtrack by Frame Missing.
Photography by Alan McAteer, James Johnson and Tim Smith.
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