Presented by multi award winning theatre and opera designer Paule Constable and large-scale arena spectacular lighting designer Durham Marenghi, both sessions were quickly over-subscribed from the moment they were announced and two further sessions were quickly scheduled to absorb the overflow.
Constable, who is also associate director of the National Theatre, London, talked passionately about her preferred collaborative approach to the design process and illustrated this with images of her recent designs for shows including the award winning Warhorse and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
In contrast, Marenghi focused on the challenges and joys in delivering theatrical style lighting designs for huge stadium events. He drew on his experiences at the Olympic Opening and Closing ceremonies, along with other large scale sporting events in Turin, Beijing and Sochi, to exemplify the techniques he employs.
Blessing Mudehwe, lighting designer for Celebration Ministries International said, "I have been searching for mentors like Durham and Paule to provide such invaluable advice so thank you."
Jade Manicom, who recently completed an honours course specialising in lighting design, also enthused about the sessions: "It was fascinating for me to hear about lighting design on two very different scales. It was interesting to see how these established and well-respected industry professionals approach the job and I will definitely be using some of their techniques in my own work."
Both Constable and Marenghi enjoyed the opportunity to meet local designers Tim Dunn of Gearhouse South Africa, a leading technical supplier, and lighting designer and theatre consultant Denis Hutchinson. Both designers joined the first session to share some industry insights.
Constable comments; "I loved meeting and listening to Tim and Denis. There was a prevailing sense of a new and fresh movement happening which was very energising."
Marenghi agrees: "Tim gave us a fascinating understanding into the lighting of many of South Africa's recent historical moments and also stressed how important Gearhouse considers training to be for young LDs, programmers and technicians alike."
Both Constable and Marenghi expressed their pleasure to have been sponsored by Clay Paky
Pio Nahum, CEO of Clay Paky said, "We are delighted to be able to sponsor such a popular and well attended event during southern Africa's important industry event - Mediatech. The show is a one-stop hub for media and entertainment technology and we are tremendously grateful to both Paule Constable and Durham Marenghi for making time in their busy schedules to attend the show and share their wealth of skills and knowledge with our valued friends in southern Africa."
Simon Robinson owner and event director for Mediatech concurred, "The programme offered attendees a fascinating insight into two very different lighting disciplines but also very clearly demonstrated the commonality in the issues faced by lighting designers working across all disciplines the world over. This made it extremely relevant for the Mediatech audience and we are extremely grateful to both Paule and Durham for adding in the extra sessions at short notice."
(Jim Evans)
