“The other reason we stayed (in St. Charles) was because of the school district, 303. It’s great for us,” said Maxwell, the married father of a 12- and 8-year-old.
His 12-year-old, Jonah, recently became a local media sensation after his YouTube video about bullying went viral, getting nearly 600,000 views.
Maxwell does much of his work at home, at a stand-up desk with five large Apple computers. The walls are decorated with framed vintage Clapton posters, and a collection of antique Apple computers fills a bookshelf. There’s also a large wall-mounted TV tuned to CNN (on mute), to keep Maxwell in touch with one of his other passions — geopolitical issues. He’s made several political documentaries and hopes to do more one day.
In 1996, Maxwell was living in Ireland and working as a lighting designer for Oasis and Rod Stewart when he heard Clapton was looking for a new designer. The two met and instantly hit it off. He’s been working with Clapton ever since.
Maxwell travels with Clapton and will be gone next year for Clapton’s latest tour, which does not include a Chicago stop.
The complex process of show designing takes anywhere from six to eight months. It begins with Maxwell creating a CAD (computer-aided drafting) drawing of each venue’s stage. Then he maps where the band members stand, where the lighting will go, what the backdrop will look like and what’s on the video screens. He’ll create in-concert videos for each song — even if it’s just a screen with squiggly lines that move to the music. Sometimes, he uses photos or clips.
Even though a concert’s set list might have only 20 songs, Maxwell needs to prepare the stage and screens for up to 35 songs, just in case the artist wants to go off script.
Clapton does not use a lot of flashy special effects in his shows, but for other artists, Maxwell might add features such as moving screens and pyrotechnics.
“I love the music and seeing ideas evolve from the ground up,” he said. “The creative process is my favorite part of it.”
Maxwell has designed some enormous shows in his career, including the 1998 World Cup closing ceremonies in Paris, with an audience of 1.5 million people, and the 2002 all-star tribute concert for George Harrison in London.
Clapton’s shows are usually laid back and casual, much like the man himself. Maxwell declined to talk much about Clapton, saying he’s a very private person but that he’s a nice, “regular guy.”
Twelve cameras film Clapton’s shows, capturing different angles. Maxwell uses the footage for concert films, which he helps produce. He’s expecting to make another one based on this tour.
“Not all of it is for the public,” Maxwell says. “Some is for his future.”
— Jamie Sotonoff
• Dann Gire and Jamie Sotonoff are always looking for people from the suburbs who are working in showbiz. If you know of someone who’d make an interesting feature, email dgire@dailyherald.com and jsotonoff@dailyherald.com.
