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UK - The National Skills Academy for Creative & Cultural Skills (NSA) has secured £5 million of funding for a state-of-the-art new building in Thurrock, which will enable thousands of young people and Apprentices to access world class training in technical theatre and live music production.

This building will enhance the nationwide activity of a National Skills Academy which is currently delivering through 19 founder Further Education Colleges across the country working in partnership with over 170 employers.

Welcoming the announcement, Tom Bewick, Group Chief Executive, Creative & Cultural Skills, said:"The National Skills Academy is fundamentally important to a live performance sector that generates over £6 billion per year for the UK economy. Initially it will provide world class training in the technical theatre and live music production industries, enabli

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Emerging Talent News - The Paul McCartney auditorium at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) rocked to the sounds and songs of the UK's finest young songwriters on Saturday 31 October at the annual Yamaha / LIPA Make It Break It Awards (MIBI) ceremony. A capacity audience including record industry executives and music press was treated to a show of inspiring and professional live performances from award winners Alex Cheatle, Kirsty Keatch, OCD, Polly Mackey & The Pleasure Principle, Sahreal and Joni Fuller.

Produced by Yamaha and LIPA, the 2009 Make It Break It awards, whose judging panel is headed by Coldplay's Chris Martin, are considered the most prestigious national awards to acknowledge the UK's most outstanding young songwriters. This year's awards added new promotional partners EMI publishing, HMV retail and XFM Radio.

In addition to the priz

Doughty - Banner - from 6 June 2025

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UK - London based drapes specialist Cover It Up supplied soft goods and dressing services for production company IMG at the Paulaner Lager Beerfest, a three-day corporate event staged at Old Billingsgate Market, London.

Cover It Up has worked in the venue on numerous occasions. They decked out the perimeter walls of the famous historic site in black wool serge, in a design that included careful back-filling of the arches in an operation that diligently and subtly maintained the integrity and shape of the architecture.

The brief also included the creation of a complete infrastructure of cloakrooms, a reception area, catering and washing up facility rooms, waiting staff holding areas, a green room and production office - all utilising drapes hung on catenaries.

The central columns of the main hall were clad by the Cover It Up team of eight in a vibrant sky blue material

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UK - Today, 21 major organisations representing the breadth and depth of the British Entertainment Industry have launched a campaign calling on the UK Government to act to secure the future of live music, news gathering, musical theatre, film making, television production, sports events, concerts, conferences (including party conferences) and church, school and community events in the UK.

All of these activities, that benefit everyone either directly or indirectly, are under threat. This is because Ofcom, supported by Government, has decided to clear out and sell the radio frequencies that the industry relies on, and move those evicted elsewhere. The precise location of this new much smaller 'home' remains for the most part undetermined. Meanwhile, all proceeds from the sale of the old 'home' will go to the Government.

As a consequence of the enforced 'migration', the vast maj

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USA - The Entertainment Services and Technology Association (ESTA) has announces the election results for its 2010 Board of Directors. Elected to their first terms were Manufacturer Director, Charlie Davidson and Professional Services Director, Jules Lauve. Davidson is the Chief Operating Officer for ARRI Inc. and Lauve is an associate at Theatre Projects Consultants.

Re-elected to second terms were Secretary Fred Mikeska, Vice President of US sales & marketing for A.C. Lighting Inc.; Dealer Vice President Dinna Myers, director of sales and marketing for Musson Theatrical; and Dealer Director Steven Way, president and co-owner of ALPS / Advanced Lighting & Production Services.

ESTA would like to extend its sincere thanks to Duncan MacKenzie and George Studnicky III as they complete their terms of office for their dedicated service to the Association.

The new Board members ta

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UK - The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has released a consultation document outlining how it plans to implement a European Union (EU) Directive to protect workers from hazardous sources of artificial light.

Intense sources of artificial light in the workplace, particularly from UV radiation and powerful lasers can harm the eyes and skin of workers and need to be properly managed.

The Directive aims to ensure that standards are set and harmonised across the EU so all workers are protected from harm arising from exposure to hazardous sources of artificial light.

Workers in Great Britain are generally well protected from hazardous sources of light and the majority of businesses know how to manage these risks effectively. The draft regulations are designed to ensure that businesses do not face unnecessary additional burdens where there is no risk of harm to workers.

Common

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UK - Spaceworks Furniture Hire and Well Dressed Tables has expanded its team with the appointment of marketing and sales assistant manager Tanya Harding.

Harding has several years of experience within the international events industry in similar roles. She says, "My role will involve ensuring that Spaceworks' extensive product ranges and ever changing offers are communicated to existing and potential clients through creative marketing campaigns and regular website updates.

"Both Spaceworks and Well Dressed Tables have a lot of exciting projects coming up for 2010 and I will be making sure that venues and organisers are kept up to date about new products and seasonal offers.

(Jim Evans)

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UK - DB Systems has introduced Microsoft Surface to the UK event and exhibition market.

Microsoft Surface is a multi-touch system that allows several users to simultaneously touch up to 52 points on the screen. Users can also operate a variety of programmes and features to perform numerous functions at any one time, such as maximising and minimising windows, viewing product data, as well as animation and video content.

The advanced technology utilised by Microsoft Surface can also view and interact with objects placed on the screen. This allows users to move information between the system and devices like mobile phones or cameras.

Oliver Richardson, sales director of DB Systems, says, "Microsoft Surface is a truly remarkable piece of interactive technology, which will be hugely beneficial to exhibitors.

"As a display system, it has a whole multitude of applicatio

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USA - Intelix recently announced plans to relocate its manufacturing and administration operations.They will occupy a portion of the former Full Compass building, a 75,000sq.ft campus in Middleton, WI.

"The timing on this project was perfect," says Steve Cohan, Intelix CEO. "Intelix and Full Compass both saw the need for larger facilities. They just completed construction on their new facility, leaving a state-of-the-art complex looking for another hi-tech tenant."

The relocation allows Intelix to grow its workforce, including the addition of new sales and engineering positions.

"Our current location stymies growth," says Maggie Ellison, Intelix human relations coordinator. "We continue to add staff and we anticipate growing our employee base by at least 10% in the next six months. Our current location is completely maxed out. The new facil

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UK - Sadly, we report the untimely death of Cadac's Mark Ray. The following statement was issued by Cadac yesterday:

"With great sadness, Cadac Holdings Ltd today announced the sudden and tragic death, at the age of 49, of Mark Ray. Mark died of a heart attack in the early hours of Monday 9 November 2009, whilst visiting New York."

Ray fronted Cadac's sales and marketing activity around the world for nine years, joining Cadac in November 2000.

Cadac's Bob Thomas said, "We are all devastated, losing a good friend as well as a colleague. Mark gave every element of his life 100% - as a passionate advocate for Cadac, as a gifted musician and as an active contributor to the pro-audio industry. Our heartfelt condolences go out to Mark's family and friends. All of us at Cadac will miss him enormously."

After serving in the Army, Ray's career had included spell

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Hippy Days Are Here Again - The Broadway production of flower power musical Hair is transferring to London next year, producers have announced. It will become the first New York production to move its entire cast to the West End when it opens at the Gielgud Theatre on 14 April. The show, which was first staged in London more than 40 years ago, ran for almost 2,000 performances. It was only brought to a halt by the collapse of the Shaftesbury Theatre's ceiling in 1973.

The musical famously opened one day after the abolition of theatre censorship in the UK in September 1968. Previously, its scenes of nudity and drug-taking, along with blasphemous and sexually explicit language, would have fallen foul of the Lord Chamberlain's office - which licensed all stage productions.

The current Broadway revival started its run last summer, and has been extended three times. Artistic

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UAE - ShowTex Middle East has moved to a new site in Sharjah. Managing director Sven Peeters announces, "We've gone from 600sq.m to more than 2000 m2! And the extra space means more possibilities for our customers, faster service, and more refined finishing.

"One of the major reasons for the move was to accommodate the 24mlong high frequency welding machine table. The welding machine is actually built into the floor of the 1000sq.m dedicated mezzanine workshop adding even more area. ShowTex already created some of the Middle East's biggest projection screens.

Now, with the self designed exclusive ShowTex system on site, we're able to produce screens measuring upwards of 500sq.m with super strong seams that are nearly invisible at less than 1mm. For the screens alone we've hired two new specialists and the expanded workshop means there's room for more sewing machines

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USA - The second annual Rock Our World Awards were presented at ESTA's Annual Dinner on Thursday evening, 19 November, the evening before the LDI show. These awards, which recognize groundbreaking achievement by ESTA members in new products, product applications, or projects were created to acknowledge the genius of both the creator of technology and the designer or integrator who applies the technology in a real world environment.

Almost 30 nominations were received from across the industry and these were narrowed down to a shortlist of 10 finalists for the panel of judges to ponder upon. The judges for this year's awards were Roy Bickel, Tony Giovannetti, Anne Militello, Jason Rudolph, and Wendall Harrington.

The judges panel was chaired by Mike Wood, who said prior to announcing the winners, "The winner might be a product that could change the industry, it could

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USA - ESTA (the Entertainment Services and Technology Association) presented the 2009 Eva Swan Award to Rick Rudolph for his exceptional service over many years to the Association and to The ESTA Foundation.

The award was presented at ESTA's Annual Dinner on 19 November by executive director Lori Rubinstein who spoke about the breadth of Rick's volunteer activities. His past efforts include serving two terms as a dealer director, chairing the Technical Education Committee, and chairing the committee that created The ESTA Foundation. Rick currently serves as Chair of ESTA's Member Recognition and Awards Committee, as Vice Chair of The ESTA Foundation, and as Chair of the Behind the Scenes Committee.

Lori Rubinstein spoke about the respect Rick has garnered from his colleagues and from the Association's staff for his thoughtfulness, his practicality, the passion that motivates h

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USA - Launched at PLASA09 and currently showing at LDI in Orlando, the DVI Parrot by Carallon is billed as the first truly user-configurable EDID emulator. EDID (Extended Display Identification Data) is a message, normally stored in computer monitors and other display devices, that computer graphics cards must see in order to function properly. An EDID emulator is necessary wherever devices with graphics cards are connected to projectors, plasma screens, LED displays, matrix switchers and format convertors.

The Parrot offers complete configurable control, allowing quick and easy modification of all EDID parameters, greatly simplifying system set-up and trouble-shooting, especially of the large complex video systems that are becoming so popular, says the company.

The Parrot is easily configured via USB on either Windows or Macintosh computers using a programme called the Par

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South Africa - As part of the J&C Joel strategy to always put their customers first and knowing the importance of being on the ground in a certain area, they are happy to announce the opening of J&C Joel South Africa cc.

James Wheelwright CEO comments: "At J&C Joel we've had a long history in Africa and we now feel it is the right time to have a presence in the region in the form of J&C Joel South Africa. Africa is an exciting future market for the Theatre and Entertainment Industry."

James was happy to formalise the opening of J&C Joel South Africa with Declan Randall (one of South Africa's leading lighting designers and theatre consultants), their South African partner at J&C Joel HQ in Halifax England. (see image). For the last ten years, Barry Snow has been J&C Joel's representative in South Africa and he is now becoming their full time general manager.

Barry s

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Festival Update - U2 are to headline next year's Glastonbury Festival, helping the event celebrate its 40th anniversary with their first appearance there. The band will lead the line-up at the Somerset show on Friday 25 June. It will be their first festival gig for more than 25 years and will see them make a flying visit to the UK in the middle of a North American tour. A statement from festival organiser Michael Eavis said: "The 26-year-old rumour has finally come true. At last, the biggest band in the world are going to play the best festival in the world. Nothing could be better for our 40th anniversary party. And there are even more surprises in the pipeline . . ."

Posthumous Awards (1) - The Music Producers Guild (UK) has announced that Les Paul will be the recipient of its 2010 Joe Meek Award for Innovation in Production. The Award will be p

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Italy - The SIB 2010 international exhibition of entertainment, installation and broadcast technology, will be held at the Rimini Fiera from 18-20 April 2010. The expo's project manager Angela Bellavista explains: "The Light & Stage Technology area will host the latest products in terms of entertainment lighting, architectural lighting, technology and equipment for theatre, cinema and television scenography; in the Audio area, the new sound frontiers for the entertainment world and in the new SIB Integra section all the products for professional AV and system integration."

In 2010, the Festival of Light, the event that every year features a combination of art and illumination, will arrive on the Rimini riviera, thanks to SIB. A lighting design event dedicated to the exhibition's professional visitors (architects, lighting designers, installers, theatre, cinema and tele

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UK - Eat To The Beat (ETTB) part of the Global Infusion Group, supported the recent BBC Children in Need concert at The Royal Albert Hall. Following their work on the recent Take That Tour, ETTB provided all of the crew, artist and VIP catering backstage. "There was a fantastic buzz backstage and everyone was so pleased that it was such a resounding success," the company says.

ETTB director Mary Shelley-Smith said: "Any event of this scale and prestige takes a huge amount of logistical planning, hard work and effort from everyone involved. It is great to know that all that it's all paid off. It was a real pleasure to be a part of such an amazing night."

(Lee Baldock)

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UK - Le Mark Group, the leading provider ofspecialist self adhesive products and accessories, have won the UKTI Passport to Export 'Most Effective International Communications' Award at the Global Opportunities Conference, held on 19 November.

Stuart Gibbons, Le Mark's managing director, received the award from Lord Digby Jones - UK Business Ambassador for UKTI. Gibbons commented: "Winning an award of this magnitude and receiving it from Lord Jones was a personal thrill. It is testament to the hard work and innovative methods that Le Mark has committed to building an envious reputation for great products and service around the world. To support this development the management team looked to recruit native speakers where possible. Le Mark is very proud to include employees from Eastern Europe that regularly use their language skills to talk to our customers in Poland, Russia

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USA - ESTA has announces the winners of its 2009 Members' Choice Awards, which were presented on Saturday, 21 November at the LDI and ESTA Awards Ceremony in Orlando, Florida. The awards recognise newly released, outstanding entertainment technology products in three categories: Expendable, Widget and Equipment. Voting on these awards was open to all employees of ESTA member companies who attended the LDI show.

The 2009 winners are:

Expendable Category
Robo Glue from Rose Brand: A fast-setting, non-toxic water based adhesive that dries clear. Great for bonding porous substrates to difficult to bond synthetic materials. Robo Glue remains flexible and is available in large sizes.

Widget Category
SRI ProPlus Crossover full body fall arrest harness from Sapsis Rigging, Inc: A full body fall arrest harness that meets the requirements of the ANSI z359.1-2007 st

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USA - Behind the Scenes, the charitable initiative of The ESTA Foundation has confirmed the winners of the 2009 LDI Raffle. The Grand Prize ticket for a $7,500 dream vacation was drawn by Rick Rudolph, the recipient earlier in the week of ESTA's highest honour, the Eva Swan Award. The Grand Prize was won by Mark McKinney of Lex Products who will share the prize with his wife Tracey Cosgrove who works for Rosco. The two were happily considering their possible travel destinations as the show wound down.

The winning ticket for the Second Prize of a $1,500 Amazon Gift Card was drawn by last year's Grand Prize winner, Ken Vannice. David Milly, the owner of Theatrical Lighting Systems in Huntsville, Alabama, was the lucky winner.

John Gebbie of Barbizon Electric was the winner of the Third Prize, a $1,000 Amazon Gift Card which was drawn by Matthew Griffiths, the Managing Director o

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USA - The Entertainment Services and Technology Association has announced the election results for the 2010 PERA Council. The PERA Council within ESTA serves the needs of the equipment rental market for motion picture, television and commercial production.

The Council continues the work of PERA for camera, accessories, grip and lighting rental companies and manufacturers. Members of the Council are elected by the PERA Council Affiliates and are responsible for the development and implementation of programs and services for members in these market segments.

Elected to the Council were: Carly Barber, Illumination Dynamics - San Fernando, CA; Daniel Gurzi, Abel Cine Tech - New York, NY; Greg Meyers, Cinequipt, Inc. - Minneapolis, MN; JR Reid, JR Lighting - Las Vegas, NV; John Rule, Rule | Boston Camera - Boston, MA; Mark Tye, Citation Support, Inc. - Nashville, TN; Mark Wofford,

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UK - Jan Booth, managing director of event branding specialist Sunbaba has been elected as the new vice president of the National Outdoor Event Association (NOEA) in this November's annual general meeting.

NOEA is the trade body for organisers and suppliers in the UK outdoor event industry bringing together local authorities, organisers, promoters, venues and suppliers to share problems, enhance professionalism and create business opportunities.

Booth has had an active role in the NOEA convention for the last five years, is a director on the board of the Tennis Industry Association.

"I am delighted to have been selected for the panel and would like to thank everyone who voted for me. The amount of support that I have received has been tremendous. I am a longstanding supporter of the council and its work and believe that I can bring ideas to the table that will help stan

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  2. Behind the Scenes fundraising update
  3. Mobile Promotions at Harrow awards show
  4. The Week in Lighting & Sound
  5. LMP Lichttechnik to distribute Visual Productions
  6. RSC Lightlock impresses at LDI 2009
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