Winter 2024 Sightline Journal of Theatre Technology and Design The Stage Sight page The Theatre Green Book page The PiPA page NATEAC 2024 Bristol Costume Services Remembering: Jack Thompson and Michael Burgess-ShawISG member 2024 SILVER ISG member 2024 BRONZE ISG member 2024 GOLD PLATINUM ISG member 2024 Orbital Sound 020 7501 6868 | orbitalsound.com | information@orbitalsound.com Ornate Plaster (London) Ltd 01252 718 669 | ornateplasterlondon.com | info@ornateplasterlondon.com Preevue 020 7078 8892 | preevue.com | info@preevue.com Production Resource Group UK Ltd 0345 470 6400 | prg.com/uk | ukinfo@prg.com ROBE 01604 741000 | www.robe.cz | infouk@robeuk.com Society of London Theatre 020 7557 6700 | solt.co.uk | enquiries@soltukt.co.uk Steeldeck Industries Ltd 020 8692 9721 | steeldeckUK.com | sales@steeldeck.co.uk Theatreplan 020 7841 0440 | theatreplan.com | info@theatreplan.com Theatres Trust 020 7836 8591 | theatrestrust.org.uk | info@theatrestrust.org.uk Torpedo Factory Group 01706 849 469 | tfg.com | sales@tfg.com Triple E Ltd 01959 570 333 | triplee.ltd | info@triplee.ltd UK Theatre 020 7557 6700 | uktheatre.org | ukt@soltukt.co.uk Unusual Rigging Ltd 01604 830 083 | unusual.co.uk | info@unusual.co.uk West End Rigging Ltd 01223 901169 | howard.dandy@westendrigging.com White Light Ltd 020 8254 4800 | whitelight.ltd.uk | info@whitelight.ltd.uk Aluminium Access Products Ltd 01942 514 318 | tallescope.co.uk | info@tallescope.co.uk Ayrton Digital Lighting 01842 764 631 | ayrton.eu | aryton.eu/about-us/#contact Cameron Mackintosh Ltd 020 7637 8866 | cameronmackintosh.com | info@camack.co.uk Charcoalblue LLP 020 7298 0000 | charcoalblue.com | studio@charcoalblue.com Creative Spark 01342 457220 | creative-spark.co.uk | venuesupport@creative-spark.co.uk Delfont Mackintosh Theatres Ltd 0844 482 5138 | delfontmackintosh.co.uk Disney Cruise Line - TAEEL 0208 458 4212 | excellententertainment.biz | theagency@excellententertainment.biz Encore 01664 821 111 | encore-emea.com | info-uk@encoreglobal.com Ferco Seating Systems Ltd 01743 761244 | www.fercoseating.com | jane.shepherd@fercoseating.co.uk Flint Hire & Supply Ltd 020 7703 9786 | flints.co.uk | sales@flints.co.uk Harlequin Floors 01892 514 888 | harlequinfloors.com | enquiries@harlequinfloors.com J&C Joel Ltd 01422 833 835 | jcjoel.com | sales@jcjoel.com LW Theatres 020 7557 7300 | lwtheatres.co.uk | customer.relations@lwtheatres.co.uk National Theatre 020 7452 3333 | nationaltheatre.org.uk | Nimax Theatres Ltd 020 7395 0780 | nimaxtheatres.com | general@nimaxtheatres.com ORIGINAL PLATINUM ISG MEMBERS TAIT International 020 8208 6000 | taittowers.com | London@taittowers.com ATG Entertainment 0207 534 6100 | atgentertainment.com ETC Ltd 020 8896 1000 | etcconnect.com | uk@etcconnect.com GOLD ISG MEMBERS West End Rigging Ltd ORIGINAL Arup 020 7636 1531 | arup.com/venues | artsandculture@arup.com Bennetts Associates 020 7520 3300 | bennettsassociates.com | mail@bennettsassociates.com Centre Stage Engineering Ltd 0844 499 6250 | centre-stage.co.uk | info@centre-stage.co.uk Chauvet Europe Ltd 01773 511 115 | chauvetprofessional.eu | uksales@chauvetlighting.com City Theatrical Ltd 020 8949 5051 | citytheatrical.com | London@citytheatrical.com Clear-Com 001 510 337 6600 | clearcom.com | salessupportemea@clearcom.com Doughty Engineering Ltd 07811 392 270 | doughty-engineering.co.uk | sarah@sprandcomms.com Drapemakers 01332 371 710 | drapemakers.com | drapes@designservices.co.uk EM Acoustics 01483 266 520 | emacoustics.co.uk | info@emacoustics.co.uk igus (UK) Ltd 01604 677204 | www.igus.co.uk | hdurrant@igus.co.uk Kinesys 020 8481 9850 | kinesys.com | sales@kinesys.com Le Mark Group 01480 494 540 | lemark.co.uk | info@lemark.co.uk LSI Projects 01483 764 646 I lsiprojects.com | info@lsiprojects.com MGC Entertainment 01473 466300 | mgc-lighting.com | uksales@mgc-lighting.com NODA 01733 374 790 | noda.org.uk | info@noda.org.uk Push The Button Ltd 0117 370 2626 | PTB.co.uk | hello@PTB.co.uk Robolights Ltd 01392 823 040 | robolights.com | sales@robolights.com Serapid Ltd 01359 233 335 | serapid.com | info-uk@serapid.com SES (Entertainment Services) Ltd 01753 585 050 | site-electrics.co.uk | sales@site-electrics.co.uk Shure UK 01992 703058 | shure.com/en-GB/support | info@shure.com Skelly & Couch Ltd 020 7424 7770 | skellyandcouch.com | admin@skellyandcouch.com Smartrad Creative Limited 07711 469787 | www.smartrad.org | smartradcreativeprojects@gmail.com Solutions on Stage 0117 244 8625 | solutionsonstage.co.uk | enquiries@solutionsonstage.co.uk Stage Right Theatre Consultants Ltd 01386 313 169 | srtcltd.co.uk | julia.redfern@srtcltd.co.uk Stage Sound Services Ltd 029 2061 3577 | stagesoundservices.co.uk | hires@stagesoundservices.co.uk Theatre Projects Consultants Ltd 020 7482 4224 | theatreprojects.com | uk@theatreprojects.com The Fire Surgery Ltd 020 7921 0220 | thefiresurgery.com | andrew.nicholson@thefiresurgery.com The Powerdrive Drum Co. Ltd 01525 370 292 | mypowerdrive.com | info@mypowerdrive.com The Stage 020 7403 1818 | thestage.co.uk | reception@thestage.co.uk Total Solutions Group 0121 772 5234 | trussing.com | info@trussing.com Trafalgar Entertainment Group 020 7321 5400 | trafalgarentertainment.com | trafalgarmanagement@trafalgarentertainment.com Voluntary Arts 02920 395 395 | voluntaryarts.org | info@voluntaryarts.org Wonder Works Limited 020 8819 9040 | wonder.co.uk | info@wonder.co.uk SILVER ISG MEMBERS3LR Lighting Ltd 0117 325 9098 | 3lrlighting.com | sales@3lrlighting.com 10K Used Gear Limited 020 8308 9566 | 10Kused.com | info@10Kused.com AAC Technical Services Ltd 01842 764 631 | aactech.co.uk | aactheatresystems.co.uk/contact A.C. Entertainment Technologies 01494 446 000 | ac-et.com | sales@ac-et.com Ambersphere Solutions Ltd 0208 992 6369 | ambersphere.co.uk | sales@ambersphere.co.uk Anderson Bradshaw Ltd 07544 095620 | michael@abltd.org Artisan PlasterCraft 01959 571 135 | artisanplastercraft.com | info@artisanplastercraft.com Audio Light Systems Ltd 0800 043 4600 | audiolightsystems.com | enquiry@audiolightsystems.com BuroHappold Engineering 01225 320 600 | burohappold.com | jennifer.phillips@BuroHappold.com Camstage 01727 830 151| camstage.com | sales-team@camstage.com Central Theatre Supplies 0121 778 6400 | centraltheatresupplies.co.uk | enquiries@centraltheatresupplies.co.uk Clark Door Ltd 01228 522 321 | clarkdoor.com | sales@clarkdoor.com Conisbee 020 7700 6666 | conisbee.co.uk | design@conisbee.co.uk CWS Lifting and Safety Ltd 0117 941 5306 | cwslifting.co.uk | sales@cwslifting.co.uk d&b audiotechnik GB Ltd 01453 835 884 | dbaudio.com | info.gb@dbaudio.com Enlightened 01179 727 123 | enlx.co.uk | info@enlx.co.uk Equals 020 7580 3360 | equalsconsulting.com | mail@equalsconsulting.com Figueras Seating Europe SL +34 93 844 50 50 | www.figueras.com | erovira@figueras.com Flashlight Ltd 01706 625 866 | flash-light.co.uk | sales@flash-light.co.uk Foster Wilson Size 020 7354 1315 | fosterwilsonsize.com | mail@fosterwilsonsize.com Gillieron Scott Acoustic Design 020 8671 2223 | gsacoustics.org | info@gsacoustics.org Glantre Engineering Ltd 0118 964 0000 | glantre.com | info@glantre.com GL Events UK 01332 408 253 | www.glevents.co.uk | www.glevents.co.uk/contact-us Globestock Ltd 01691 654 966 | globestock.co.uk | info@globestock.co.uk GoboPlus 020 3603 1335 | goboplus.com | enquiries@goboplus.com Harper Tackley Consultants 07976 279 701 | harpertackley.com | simon@harpertackley.com Haworth Tompkins 020 7250 3225 | haworthtompkins.com | info@haworthtompkins.com Hayles and Howe Ltd 0117 972 7200 | haylesandhowe.co.uk | info@haylesandhowe.co.uk Henley Theatre Services 01491 412347 | henleytheatreservices.com | office@henleytheatre.com Hoist UK 0151 334 7682 | hoistuk.com | info@hoistuk.com Howard Eaton Lighting Ltd 01273 400 670 | helluk.com | info@helluk.com Illuminate Design 01206 709 694 | illuminatedesign.co.uk | info@illuminatedesign.co.uk Infinity Technical & Production Services Ltd 0330 128 1525 | infinity-technical.co.uk | info@infinity-technical.co.uk IPS 01908 657950 | www.ips.co.uk | enquiries@ips.co.uk John Young Creative Industries 01252 711816 | jyci.co.uk | johnyoung@jyci.co.uk Lamp & Pencil Ltd 01279 902819 | lampandpencil.com | lampandpencil.com/contact/ Locker and Riley Fibrous Plastering Ltd 01245 322 022 | lockerandriley.com | enquiries@lockerandriley.com Mayr Transmissions Ltd 01535 663 900 | mayr.com | sales@mayr.co.uk MDG FOG UK 01604 741 000 | mdgfoguk.com contact@mdgfoguk.com MI Workshops Ltd 01789330244 | miworkshops.co.uk | info@miworkshops.co.uk Mushroom Lighting 01604 790 900 | mushroomlighting.com | info@mushroomlighting.com Niche Productions nicheproductions.co.uk | nicheproductions.co.uk/contact Northern Light 0131 622 9100 | northernlight.co.uk | info@northernlight.co.uk Plann Ltd 020 3846 9230 | plann.co | Julia@plann.co Production Safety Ltd 973 159 402 | productionsafety.co.uk | mail@productionsafety.co.uk Prop Hire Scotland 0141 266 0301 | prophirescotland.co.uk | info@prophirescotland.co.uk Punchdrunk Global Ltd +44 208 191 01900 | punchdrunk.com | info@punchdrunk.com RB Health and Safety Solutions Ltd 0845 257 1489 | rbhealthandsafety.co.uk | admin@rbhealthandsafety.co.uk Rigging Services Direct Ltd 0845 555 6575 | riggingservices.co.uk | info@riggingservices.co.uk Rigging Team Ltd 020 3126 4040 | riggingteam.com | office@riggingteam.com Ritchie Studio Ltd 020 7338 1100 | www.ritchie.studio | mail@ritchie.studio RNSS Ltd 020 7593 0011 | rnss.net | office@rnss.net Rope Assemblies Ltd 01777 700714 | ropeassemblies.co.uk | sales@ropeassemblies.co.uk Spirolux Limited 01225873804 | spirolux.co.uk/about-us | info@spirolux.co.uk Stage Electrics 03330 142 102 | stage-electrics.co.uk | sales@stage-electrics.co.uk TAG Live +44 (01582) 738 400 | tag.live | hello@tag.live Theatretech 01935 882 828 | theatretech.net | info@theatretech.net Yesplan UK Ltd +44 (0) 7800 854404 | yesplan.be/en | info@yesplan.co.uk BRONZE ISG MEMBERSAssociation of British Theatre Technicians 22 Charing Cross Road, London WC2H 0QL Tel: 020 7242 9200 Email: office@abtt.org.uk Website: www.abtt.org.uk Registered Charity 282069 COUNCIL Mig Burgess Walsh Co-Chair Oliver Brown Vice Chair Joshua Burnside Co-opted Alexander Cann Mark Dakin Jack Davies Co-opted David Evans Co-Chair Gareth Evans Co-opted Paul Moore Co-opted Jessica Nicholls Co-opted Anette Ollerearnshaw Nikki Scott Co-opted Suzy Somerville Matthew Smethurst-Evans Ben Stephen Emma Wilson Anton Woodward EX OFFICIO MEMBERS OF COUNCIL Michael AndersonChair, Safety Committee Sebastian Barnes Chair, Training & Education Committee Jack Davies Chair, ABTT Apprenticeship Network Roger Fox Chair, Historical Research Committee Simon Harper Chair, Theatre Design Committee Robert Millington Chair, Stephen Joseph Committee Matthew Jones Honorary Secretary Rhian Jones Chair, ABTT Cymru Committee Danny Lennon Chair, Sustainability Committee Peter Maccoy Chair, OISTAT Committee Robert Millington Chair, Stephen Joseph Committee Paul MooreChair, Northnet Committee Anette Ollerearnshaw Chair, Wigs, Hair and Make-up Committee Nick Page Chair, Automation Committee Dan Shelley Chair, Reset Better Committee Ben Stephen Chair, Communications and Publications Committee Loretta Tomasi Honorary Treasurer Caroline TownsendChair, CITEA Committee CONSULTANT Louise Birchall ABTT Training Co-ordinator Sightline CONTENTS vol. 47 no. 4 The Theatre Green Book Page8 The Stage Sight Page10 The PiPA Page11 The Renovation of the Corn Exchange and Studio Theatre at the Brighton Dome12 The Theatres Trust Conference 16 ABTT Virtual Ideas Platform (VIP) – Championing Allyship and Representation20 Bristol Costume Services 24 NATEAC 202427 The Birth of Presetting: repeatable lighting is possible!29 Book Review – Theatre Lighting Design 33 Theatre Green Book, Version 2 Launch Event for Building Professionals34 Remembering Jack Thompson 35 Remembering Michael “Biglad” Burgess-Shaw36 Young Associates 37 Technical Standards 39 Safety Matters and Wellbeing 43 Editor David Evans PublisherET Press Ltd The Studio, High Green, Great Shelford Cambridge, Cambs CB22 5EG Tel: 01223 550805 Fax: 01223 550806 Advertising enquiries should be sent to editor@etnow.com Sightline is published in March, June, September and December. Copies are sent to ABTT members as a benefit of membership. Current and past copies are also available via the ABTT website www.abtt.org.uk/shop at a cost of £5.00 (ABTT members) or £10.00 (non-Members). Opinions expressed in Sightline are not necessarily those of the Publisher or the Association of British Theatre Technicians. All rights are reserved and reproduction of any part in whatever form is prohibited without the prior permission of the ABTT and/ or the Publisher. Information is published in good faith but no responsibility can be attached to the Publisher or to the Association or to any of their members or employees for the accuracy or for any liability arising therefrom. ISSN: 0265-9808 Cover: Bristol Costume Service Photo: David Evans /GLP.German.Light.Products /GermanLightProducts glp.de Fantastic colours thanks to RGBL and iQ.Gamut technologySightline Winter 2024 7 Editorial Welcome to the Winter 2024 edition of Sightline. In this edition we are highlighting some of the organisations who play crucial roles in helping our industry reflect the society that we live in. The Theatre Green Book, Stage Sight and PiPA now have regular columns updating our readership on their activities, celebrating their successes, the people and companies they work with and will certainly draw our attention to problems and challenges that need addressing. The Theatre Green Book’s new Director Lilli Geissendorfer introduces version 2 of the book and shares Chichester Festival Theatres’ learning from a year trialling the Theatre Green Book, so successful was the trial that they went on win the UK Theatre Award for Excellence in Sustainability. Later in the magazine Simon Erridge discusses a launch event for version 2 attended by building professionals, a reminder that the book is in three parts and addresses production, operations and buildings. Stage Sight kicks off with an interview profile of Ken Fleary of Scott Fleary, the first of many individuals who deserve celebrating. PiPA introduces itself and the essential work that they have been doing for the last nine years. The themes of sustainability, diversity and the need to make our workplaces more inclusive, accessible and viable are crucial to making our industry attractive and representative of the society that we are part of and represent on our stages. Richard York’s visit to the newly renovated Corn Exchange and new Studio Theatre at the iconic Brighton Dome raises a number of important points that are also reflected in the report on the Theatre Trust Conference held at The Lowry in Salford. The first is simply how no new build or renovation can be undertaken without careful consideration of energy consumption and insulation, sustainability seems to sit at the heart of the ideas behind these projects as does the identified needs of the community that they sit in. Another point strongly stressed by Richard York and running throughout the Theatre’s Trust Conference is how essential the relationship with the local council is. Salford and Manchester have invested significantly in the arts and Brighton and Hove Council are the main funder for the Dome development, they see the benefits, yet many other councils are withdrawing financial support for the arts, maybe they should take note. Mig Walsh writes about her visit to NATEAC, the North American version of ITEAC, speaking about how we would benefit from closer relations, particularly poignant given the election results. At the ABTT Theatre Show this year we had our first costume stand on the show floor and first costume award so it seemed about time that we visited one of the main costume houses. Bristol Costume Services is one of the big three and proved fascinating. One element of the costume hire industry that shone through is how circular it is. Jim Laws picks up where David Bertenshaw left off in the Autumn edition, emphasising how deciding to make an electronic board made Strand face the reality of what modern lighting needed and how revolutionary this board was, leading in time to the establishment of lighting as a creative influence in British Theatre. We have all the usual columns including some excellent advice about apprenticeships in our Young Associate column. We have also slightly modified the title of Safety Matters to Safety Matters and Wellbeing which more accurately reflects the subjects addressed. Tragically we recently lost two well-known and much-loved people: Michael Burgess- Shaw and Jack Thompson. Michael’s wife Helen and his colleague Alexander Banks write their tribute to Michael and long-time collaborator and friend Rob Halliday writes about Jack. This is Rebecca Morland’s last Sightline after six years of brilliant work, thank you on behalf of the ABTT and on my behalf for her time and patience in helping me to take on this role. If there is anything that you think Sightline should be covering please send an email to sightline@abtt.org.uk David Evans Editor 8 Sightline Winter 2024 Theatre Green Book, Introducing Vol 2 In June 2024 the Theatre Green Book launched Edition 2, bringing together Productions, Operations and Buildings in a single volume, alongside a new website featuring more case studies, additional toolkits and guidance videos, and a forum for all those using Theatre Green Book to ask questions and connect. Theatre Green Book is built by theatre makers for theatre makers, and we know how important being able to connect and share learning is. For Edition 2, we’ve introduced a sign up system, offering the opportunity for organisations to self-certify their progress as they start using Theatre Green Book. When you sign up, you begin your journey at Preliminary – a new level designed to support those who are at the very beginning of going green. Any organisation can sign up and use the Preliminary checklist to get started: it is about setting intentions, getting a Green Team together, and working out what you can measure, who will be responsible, and how you are going to communicate to staff and audiences. Once these plans are in place, organisations can progress to working on achieving Basic, then eventually Intermediate, and Advanced. To self-certify and download a Theatre Green Book logo, an organisation has to achieve each standard across all applicable areas of their work: Productions, Operations and Buildings. We have introduced self-certification to empower organisations and productions using Theatre Green Book to assess their efforts and provide a tangible sense of achievement. It also offers a recognised standard that you can use to share progress with your staff, audiences, co-producers, local partners, funders and trustees. Organisations can be nervous about sharing their sustainability wins when there is always a sense they ‘should’ be doing more, so Theatre Green Book logos provide a meaningful, standardised way of celebrating real change, and with that, inspiring others. The first organisations to trial our self- certification are part of a Theatre Green Book Focus Group set up at the start of 2025, including Chichester Festival Theatre, Headlong, The Lowry, National Theatre, National Theatre of Scotland, Northern Stage, Opera North, Royal Ballet and Opera House, Royal Shakespeare Company, SAIL, Wales Millenium Centre, and Young Vic. All of them have committed to achieving Basic across their work by the end of this year. Chichester Festival Theatre recently shared their learning from using Theatre Green Book on their summer season in the Minerva at a Focus Group meeting. They appointed a Theatre Green Book Coordinator, Angela Buckley, to support this work on one day a week, and had buy-in from Technical Director Sam Garner-Gibbons and the theatre leadership. They reflected how useful this extra capacity was in helping share learning between shows and new creative teams across the summer on the one hand, and crucially, adapt and tweak the Theatre Green Book template trackers to Chichester Festival Theatre’s unique language and ways of working on the other. The journey of using Theatre Green Book on productions is rarely linear, and so it was for them, with three productions achieving Basic and one Advanced standard across the six shows tracked. Two of the most influential factors in determining what was possible to achieve included the time period the play was set in (the older, the easier to use existing props, costumes and materials), and the prior understanding and commitment to improving environmental impact of the lead creative team. The other big factor was time – for the creatives to be imaginative in embracing some of the opportunities and limitations of working this way, as well as for stage management and costume researching reused reusable/ recycled items. The legacy is a new set of relationships with local suppliers and potential sources for used/recycled materials to build on next year. The long days of tech – when final decisions are made that need to be recorded – was revealed as a tricky moment to sustain commitment: when everyone’s knackered, no one wants to fill in a tracker! On the flipside, bringing the wider staff team along and influencing the scenic artists and set builders to embrace the process was deeply inspiring, leading to wallpapers being reused and set elements being made to be removable, enabling them to be recycled for future projects. Making sure to celebrate Theatre Green Book achievements in each team was also discovered to be key to maintaining momentum – even where the shows didn’t meet Basic, there was lots of strong practice in different areas, and discoveries of new, more sustainable ways to do things. Chichester Festival Theatre is just one theatre doing the work of putting Theatre Green Book into practice and making real progress on reducing waste, reducing energy use and reducing their overall carbon footprint, and finding self-certification motivating along the way. If you’d like to join them, go to www. theatregreenbook.com and sign up. Lilli Geissendorfer, Director, Theatre Green BookSightline Winter 2024 9 - JUNE 202 All the latesttheatre innovations, tech and networking opportunitiesunder one roof! Only35minutesdoorto doorfromtheWestEnd! abtttheatreshow.co.uk SAVE THE DATE ALEXANDRA PALACE, LONDONNext >