Central hosts the New Technology Showcase and David Ripley, Head of Technical and Production, receives the ABTT Virtual Ideas Platform 2023 Award
On Thursday, 1 February, The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama was pleased to once again host the Association for Lighting Production and Design (ALPD) and White Light New Technology Showcase in the Embassy Theatre.
The annual industry event featured the latest in lighting technology and was supported by Central staff and students from the School’s Lighting Design and Production Lighting courses.
The New Technology Showcase provides a unique opportunity for attendees to see and experience the latest lighting technologies in a live environment.
Central has been pleased to host the New Technology Showcase for the past several years, particularly as it provides Lighting Design and Production Lighting students with the opportunity to design, plan, rig, and programme the event alongside their course tutors and professional event staff from White Light.
This unique learning experience allows Central’s students to work on a high profile, public-facing event alongside some of the industry’s leading professionals, to work with the newest, cutting-edge technologies and to deepen both their practice and their professional networks.
Central’s lighting students were a key part of the event, providing support throughout the day and demonstrating their skills. The Showcase was put together by students from across all three years of Central’s Lighting Design and Production Lighting courses with support from White Light Limited and their project manager Tom Tomkins, The Association for Lighting Production and Design, Central Staff including Ros Sobotnicki and Nick Moran.
The Showcase was hosted by White Light’s Technical Director David Isherwood and White Light and ALPD Director Stuart Porter.
Of the Showcase Nick Moran, a Senior Lecturer at Central as well as the Course Leader for the Lighting Design and Production Lighting courses, said:
“The New Technology Showcase gives the lighting students the opportunity to learn how and why Events are different from Theatre. They get practical hands-on experience through the planning, preparation, and realisation with the “safety net” of professionals and tutors as support. The event helps students to further develop their team building, collaboration, and leadership skills as well as getting to know how a large technological complex rig goes together. (There are two independent lighting control systems, controlling 166 fixtures across some 32 universes of DMX). We are very grateful to White Light and all the manufacturers and distributors who take part.”
The ALPD also presented their annual awards at the showcase alongside the Association of British Theatre Technicians (ABTT) who presented the ABTT Virtual Ideas Platform 2023 Award to David Ripley, Central’s Head of Technical and Production.
The Virtual Ideas Platform, set up in collaboration with Guildhall School of Music & Drama, serves as an informal introduction service between independent creative innovators and commercial developers behind the sectors’ leading brands, products and services.
David’s idea, The Counterweight Caddy, is a method of storing weights and addressing the Manual handling issues associated with work on the loading gallery. It is now being developed by David and Triple E.
Speaking of his award win, Central’s Head of Technical and Production David Ripley said:
“It’s very exciting to see something go from a random thought, into reality via the ABTT Virtual Idea Platform and now being developed by Triple E. We hope The Counterweight Caddy will make a positive improvement to Health and Safety on the loading galleries of our theatres when it is fully launched, but we need the industry feedback to make it the best product it can be.”
The ABTT Virtual Ideas platform is open to anyone and everyone with an idea and aims to recognise and help realise new ways of making theatre work. By its very nature, theatre is a dynamic working environment in which to invent and develop new and better ways of doing things whether this is in special effects, costume and wardrobe, wigs, make-up and hair, scenery, stage, sound, lighting, automation, audio-visual and any other discipline which makes live performance happen.
The ABTT’s CEO Robin Townley said:
“We know when backstage people are faced with a technical challenge, they get inventive and creative, cook up ideas and find solutions. The Platform is here to recognise, salute and honour those innovators in our midst. We are looking forward to new ideas being submitted for 2024.”
The entire Central community extends David its congratulations on winning the prestigious ABTT Virtual Ideas Platform 2023 Award, as well as to all of the students and staff who worked so hard to make the New Technology Showcase a success.