The initiative reaches out to students of RADA, Central School of Speech and Drama, Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, Mountview Academy, Rose Bruford College and the Guildford School of Acting.
This project was originally created by Delta Sound's projects director Lee Dennison, and Head of Events at White Light, Stuart Crane. With over 40 years of live events experience between them, Lee and Stuart are passionate about their work, and ensuring its continued success is at the heart of this endeavour.
Joining the project in January 2014 are senior technical manager of the Royal Albert Hall, Oliver Jeffery; associate director of Metro Broadcast, Ashley Arundell; and White Light project manager, Jason Larcombe.
Ollie brings with him a wealth of knowledge from orchestrating the technical elements in one of the world's most iconic venues. A graduate from the Guildford School of Acting, Ollie illustrates the exciting paths available to the students after their studies. Ashley strengthens the initiative further, bringing his vast knowledge of the audio visual and broadcasting world to the project. Lighting designer and project manager at White Light, Jason Larcombe is a Rose Bruford graduate, with extensive experience of working in London's West End theatres and the corporate event world also.
The discussion covers the entire spectrum of creating and managing a live events project. The main objective however is to provide thorough and detailed advice on how to find employment in this competitive industry, with a detailed discussion of interview techniques, how to write and tailor the perfect CV and also how to work within a specialist team. In this fully interactive seminar, students are encouraged to take away as much information as possible by partaking in discussions and also raising any questions that they may have.
Ashley Arundell comments: "When you're starting out in the industry, you can't rely on your creative portfolio alone to find work. It's vital that you can demonstrate planning, project management, communication skills and your ability to work in a team."
Lee Dennison of Delta Sound adds: "What started out as a moan over a coffee about the state of recent job applications and mind-sets has grown over the last few years in to a well-received and informative teaching session with the next generations of engineers, designers and production managers. So much so that it has become a regular diary date for a lot of the drama schools and technical training establishments. With the introducing of Ash, Jason and Ollie into the mix, we have certainly raised the level of support and knowledge sharing to the students".
(Lee Baldock)
