International Fred Foster Student Mentorship Program 2021

CHRIS PYE
Chris Pye is currently the Director of Production at the Arts Centre at New York University’s campus in Abu Dhabi.
He is an experienced technical and production manager, and lighting designer with a varied experience of touring, production and corporate work. Chris first started working in events at sixteen when a new multi-use performing arts centre, The Mick Jagger Centre, opened in his home town. After an apprenticeship with the BBC, Chris graduated from The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in Theatre Practice, specialising in Lighting design. Soon after graduating, Chris went on to work at The National Theatre as a lighting technician and developed his knowledge of lighting control. Chris moved to The Royal Opera House working to replace the lighting control system, with over 320 shows in rep. 
In 2010, Chris moved to Muscat, Oman as part of the team to open the new Royal Opera House Muscat. Four years later, Chris moved to Abu Dhabi, UAE to be the Director of Production managing the technical operations of a brand new, public facing, arts centre at New York University in Abu Dhabi. Overseeing the technical team running productions from a mix of visiting companies, student work and external rentals and providing support for local schools and regional government theatres with advice on improvements to their venues and training of Emirati technicians. Whilst in the MENA region, Chris has also worked as a system programmer on Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, Yas WaterWorld, Abu Dhabi and Motiongate at Dubai Parks and Resorts.

DAVID AYTON
David is London based freelance Eos programmer primarily working in theatre and opera. He usually works on West End shows, UK touring productions and summer opera festivals, and has just completed his first job in the world of themed entertainment installations.

He is also an ETC console trainer and a visiting lecturer to some of the London drama schools, and sits as the professional representative on the executive of the ALPD - The Association for Lighting Production and Design.

DURHAM MARENGHI
Durham Marenghi has designed the lighting for a wide variety of Theatre, Opera, Dance, Trade, Concert and Television Productions and is the only British lighting designer to have lit the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games.

Theatre designs include the world tour of Diamonds for Holiday on Ice; the British tours of Dancing on Ice - The Tour and Saturday Night Fever; Romeo and Juliet at the Piccadilly Theatre; Peter Pan at the Royal Festival Hall; Dash and The Hot Shoe Show for Wayne Sleep; Back With A Vengeance for Barry Humphries at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane; Prisoner of Cell Block H with Lily Savage at the Queen's Theatre; Lennon, The Musical at the Astoria Theatre; Ice Adventures for Torvill and Dean; Icecapades tour of Canada and Le Ice Show at the Luxor Hotel, Las Vegas.

Television broadcasts include the critically acclaimed Diamond Jubilee Concert on June 4th 2012 and the Queen's Golden Jubilee at Buckingham Palace on the 3rd of June 2002; the event lighting of The Wall for Roger Waters in Berlin 1990, arguably the biggest rock show of the last decade; A Celebration of Christmas from Vienna with José Carreras, Placido Domingo and Natalie Cole; The Hong Kong Handover Ceremony on June 30th, 1997 and the New Year's Eve Light and Fireworks Show from the London Eye since 2004 including last year’s surprise London New Year Event.

Durham is a member of The Society of British Theatre Designers, The Society of Television Lighting and Design, The Association of Lighting Designers and the Institution of Engineering and Technology.

HANSJöRG SCHMIDT
Hansjörg is a lighting designer, working regularly with a group of UK based artists and theatre companies. He is also Programme Director of the MA Light in Performance at Rose Bruford College in London, and his research interests lie in the area of lighting for inter-disciplinary environments in live performance across both arts and science, and lighting as dramaturgy.

Selected lighting designs: This Is My Room and On The High Road (clod ensemble), Dido and Aeneas (Stormen, Norway), Dr Faustus and Workshop Negative (tangle), Men and Girls Dance (fevered sleep), The Glass Menagerie (Nuffield), The Red Chair (clod ensemble), Dusk (fevered sleep/Young Vic), Stink Foot (The Yard Theatre), Krapp’s Last Tape (Sheffield Crucible), Zero (clod ensemble / Sadlers Wells), Above Me The Wide Blue Sky (fevered sleep / Young Vic). Silver Swan (clod ensemble/Tate Modern). An Anatomy in Four Quarters (clod ensemble/Sadlers Wells). On Ageing (fevered sleep/Young Vic), Kursk (Sound & Fury/Young Vic), The Forest (fevered sleep), Under Glass and Red Ladies (clod ensemble). Also, with David Harradine: Stilled, and Camera Obscura.

Other projects: Kew Kitchens, an architectural installation at Kew Palace. The Beautiful Octopus Club, for Heart ‘n Soul and the South Bank Centre. And shows for Jessica Ogden and Mika Fukkai at London Fashion Week.

JAMES TAN
James Tan is an established Singaporean Lighting Designer. He holds a Master of Fine Arts in Lighting Design from UC San Diego. Over the years, he has partnered with ETC for multiple projects. Most recently, he conducted a Theatre Lighting Design Process Workshop (Esplanade Academy) at Esplanade Theatres on the Bay and an extensive range of lighting equipment was showcased, including the Source 4WRD Color and ColorSource Spot jr. As an Associate Artist with Pangdemonium!, he helps early-career professionals through a twelve month Lighting Design Apprenticeship. James recognizes the significance of mentorship for young lighting professionals and is excited to come on board the Fred Foster Student Mentorship Program. Selected Theatre Credits: Next to Normal (Pangdemonium!), Merdeka (W!ld Rice), Disgraced (Singapore Repertory Theatre), Lord of the Flies (Blank Space Theatre with Sightline Productions) and Ah Boys To. Men. – The Musical (Running into the Sun). Selected Events/Architectural Lighting Design: From Singapore to Singaporean: The Bicentennial Experience (Singapore Bicentennial Office), OCBC Garden Rhapsody: Rainforest Orchestra – Asia & Australia Edition (Gardens By The Bay) & The Art of the Brick® Exhibition by Nathan Sawaya (MBS ArtScience Museum). International & Regional Tour: Relatively Speaking (The British Theatre Playhouse) & God of Carnage (Singapore Repertory Theatre).

JON CLARK
Jon is an Olivier award-winning and Tony nominated designer. He has designed extensively for the National Theatre, Royal Opera House, RSC, Young Vic, Almeida, Donmar, in the West End, on Broadway and with many other companies in the UK and internationally. Recent designs for Theatre: The Lehman Trilogy (NT, West End and Broadway); Betrayal (West End & Broadway); The Inheritance (Young Vic, West End & Broadway); Cyrano De Bergerac (West End), Evita (Regent’s Park); The Jungle (Young Vic, West End & St Ann’s Warehouse New York); A German Life (Bridge Theatre); King Charles III (Broadway & West End). Recent designs for Opera: Hamlet (Glyndebourne & Metropolitan Opera); The Exterminating Angel (Metropolitan Opera); Lucia Di Lammermoor, Krol Roger, Written on Skin (Royal Opera House).

LEE CURRAN
Lee is a lighting designer of theatre, dance, and opera. His credits include the following:
Theatre: Summer and Smoke (Almeida Theatre/West End); Jesus Christ Superstar (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre/US Tour/Barbican Theatre); Constellations (Royal Court/West End/Broadway/UK tour); The Song Project, Gundog, Road, Nuclear War, a profoundly affectionate passionate devotion to someone (-noun), X, Linda (Royal Court); The Welkin, Mr. Gum and the Dancing Bear – The Musical!, Protest Song (National Theatre); Nora (Young Vic/Citizens Theatre); Berberian Sound Studio, The Lady From The Sea, Splendour (Donmar Warehouse); The Two Character Play (Hampstead); Dance Nation (Almeida Theatre); The Son (Kiln Theatre/West End); West Side Story, Jubilee (Manchester Royal Exchange); Burgerz (Hackney Showroom); Imogen (Shakespeare’s Globe); Doctor Faustus, Love’s Sacrifice (RSC); The Weir, A Streetcar Named Desire (English Touring Theatre); Black Men Walking (Eclipse/Manchester Royal Exchange/UK Tour); A Number (Nuffield/Young Vic); Mametz (National Theatre Wales); Depart (LIFT);  Woyzeck, Peter Pan (Birmingham Rep); Plenty (Chichester Festival Theatre).

Dance: Opus 131 (Russell Maliphant); Enowate (Dickson Mbi); Blak Whyte Gray (Boy Blue Entertainment); Clowns, Sun, Political Mother, In Your Rooms, Uprising (Hofesh Shechter); Untouchable (Royal Ballet); Grey Matter, Tomorrow, Frames (Rambert).

Opera: Orphee Et Eurydice (ROH/Teatro Alla Scala); Fidelio, Nothing (Royal Danish Opera); Tosca (Opera North); Nabucco (Opera National de Lorraine); Phaedra (Linbury Studio, ROH).

MICHAEL GRUNDNER
Michael was trained as a lighting designer in Vienna, London New York. Since then he has been working in theatre, TV, commercials and industry, countless musicals and galas all over the world.

He worked with Robert Dornhelm on AIDA, TOSCA, and LA BOHEME. Michael created the Lighting and Video Design for the final world tour of  JOSÉ CARRERAS – A LIFE IN MUSIC.

Latest credits include LE NOZZE DI FIGARO, HAIRSPRAY, THE MERRY WIDOW, THE GYPSY BARON , GYPSY, GRAND HOTEL, AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS, HAIR and many more.

He was working many times with renowned directors such as Matthias Davids, Werner Sobotka, Kim Duddy, Martin Duncan and Andreas Gergen, Gil Mehmert and many others. To name only a few of the Galas and Concerts: LEADING MEN/LEADING LADIES, ABSOLUT UWE, THOMAS BORCHERT, SAVE THE WORLD AWARDS, ENERGY GLOBE AWARDS,  VIENNA PHILHARMONICS ORCHESTRA SUMMER NIGHTS CONCERT and JOSE CARRERAS – IN CONCERT. 2014 his lighting design for "FLASHDANCE" as well as 2018 “GHOST” and 2019 “ELISABETH” have been awarded BEST LIGHTING DESIGN in Germany / Austria on Broadwayworld.com.

Upcoming Productions include: “ICH WAR NOCH NIEMALS IN NEW YORK” for Stage Entertainment, OPENING GALA “WE ARE MUSICAL” for the newly renovated RAIMUND THEATER (also aired on TV) and the world premiere of “ROBIN HOOD THE MUSICAL”.

He is also a professional member of the Association of Lighting Designers, London, UK. www.lightdesign.at

MIG WALSH
Mig is the lighting tutor at the Guildford School of Acting which is part of the University of Surrey and a trustee councillor of the ABTT. Alongside her teaching Mig is an active freelance lighting technician and loves nothing more than getting out on site and getting her hands dirty with some lights! She is also the founder and director of Fuse Arts which is a not for profit design consortium that works on innovative projects linked to research. Her current research interests are projects that all link and work with the topic of mental health and wellbeing.

NIGEL LEVINGS
Nigel Levings is the only Australian lighting designer to have won roadway’s prestigious Tony Award. In a distinguished career he has lit over 580 productions including more than 230 operas and 33 musicals.

He has lit opera productions in St Petersburg, Paris, Washington, London, Cardiff, Berlin, Baden Baden, Innsbruck, Tel Aviv, Bregenz, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Dallas, Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne and Toronto.

His recent work includes the world premiere of the new Australian opera CLOUDSTREET for State Opera of SA, the world premiere of 170 DAYS IN NANJING an opera for Jiangsu Performing Arts Centre, China, MEMORIAL for Brink at the Adelaide Festival of Arts, Brisbane Festival and Barbican Centre London, SIMON BOCCANEGRA for Opera Australia, RAGTIME for The Production Company, TARTUFFE for State Theatre Company, THE ASPIRATIONS OF DAISE MORROW for Galway International Arts Festival, HYDRA for Queensland Theatre, ROMEO ET JULIETTE for Korean National Opera and LES MISERABLES for Queensland Conservatorium.

He is a Fellow of the Illuminating Engineering Society. He was awarded the Centenary Federation Medal by the the Australian Government for his services to opera lighting. He is the recipient of an SA Great Arts Award from the South Australian Government. His awards for lighting design include a Helpmann Award (Australia), a Green Room Award (Australia), an Ovation (Los Angeles), a Dora Mava Moore (Canada), 2 Outer Circle Critics Awards, a Drama Desk Award and a Tony (Broadway).

PAUL KEOGAN
Paul Keogan is a lighting designer based in Ireland. He works with Theatre, Opera and Dance companies both in Ireland and abroad. Over the past two years Paul has been working on a number of streamed performance projects and film work.  Images of his work can be seen at his website www.paulkeogan.com

PAULE CONSTABLE
Paule has worked with many of the world’s major opera companies including the Royal Opera House, Glyndebourne and the Metropolitan Opera, New York. Paule was one of the first women to be awarded the Tony Award for her achievements. She was awarded the Rayne Award in 2018 to acknowledge her contribution to the work of the National Theatre and in 2020 received a special award from the Critics Circle to acknowledge her contribution to theatre. She is an RDI (Royal Designer for Industry). Paule is a founder member of Freelancers Make Theatre Work and is a dedicated campaigner for sustainable theatre. For New Adventures: Paule Constable is an associate artist of New Adventures and has designed the lighting for Romeo + Juliet, Swan Lake, The Red Shoes, Sleeping Beauty, Dorian Gray, Highland Fling and Play Without Words.


For the National, credits include: The Normal Heart, The Visit, Ocean at the End of the Lane, Follies, Angels in America, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night (2013 Olivier Award for Best Lighting, 2015 Tony Award for Best Lighting) and War Horse (2011 Tony Award for Best Lighting).


Other theatre credits include: …And Breathe (Almeida), Tenebrae:  Lessons Learned in Darkness (Brighton Festival).  For the RSC: Wolf Hall (also West End and Broadway); Ear for Eye and The Weir (also West End and Broadway) at the Royal Court;  The Chalk Garden (2009 Olivier Award for Best Lighting) at the Donmar; Happy Days at the Young Vic; Herons and Blasted at the Lyric Hammersmith; Don Carlos at Sheffield Crucible and in the West End (2006 Olivier Award for Best Lighting) and productions for Theatre de Complicite including The Street of Crocodiles.

RICK FISHER
Born in Philadelphia, Rick is the winner of a Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Billy Elliot on Broadway and a Helpmann Award for Billy Elliot in Sydney, he also has won two Olivier Awards for Best Lighting Design and a Tony and Drama Desk Award for An Inspector Calls (Broadway). Theatre work includes: Billy Elliot the Musical (worldwide); Merchant of Venice (RSC); Sweeney Todd (Paris); The Sound of Music (Buenos Aires); No Naughty Bits, Tiger Country (Hampstead); Tribes, A Number (Royal Court); Family Reunion, Betrayal, The Philanthropist, Old Times (Donmar); Rope (Almeida); Landscape With Weapon, Honour (National Theatre); Resurrection Blues (Old Vic); Jerry Springer the Opera (NT and West End); Far Away, (Royal Court); Blue/Orange (NT and West End); Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Berlin); Via Dolorosa (Royal Court, Broadway). Recent opera productions include: Tsarina’s Slippers, Wozzek (Royal Opera House); Turandot (English National Opera); Betrothal in a Monastery (Glyndebourne & Valencia); seventeen operas for Santa Fe Opera; A Midsummer Night’s Dream (La Fenice); The Fiery Angel, Turandot (Bolshoi); Gloriana and La Bohème (Opera North) and The Little Prince (Houston, New York, San Francisco). Dance: Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake (London, Los Angeles, Broadway and World Tour).

ROB HALLIDAY
Rob has been involved with show lighting for more than thirty years all over the world. His own designs include the acclaimed dance show Tree of Codes, the spectacular Giudizio Universale in Rome, the opening season at Storyhouse in Chester, Amour in London, and two decades of musicals for the Royal Academy of Music. As lighting programmer, associate LD or both he has been involved with Les Misérables, Billy Elliot, Miss Saigon, Mary Poppins, Man of La Mancha, Equus, Red and many others, plus films, installations and more. Rob also writes about show production and technology for publications including Light+Sound International and The Stage, created the FocusTrack show documentation software, has helped specify the lighting systems for new theatres including Curve in Leicester and Storyhouse in Chester, is a regular speaker at drama schools and trade shows, and co-led the Save Stage Lighting campaign. www.robhalliday.com.

TIM DEILING
Tim was the Associate Lighting designer for the National Theatre. He’s also worked as an Associate Lighting Designer on projects like The Lorax (Old Vic/International), Scottsboro Boys, White Christmas, (West End), Chicago (West End, International), 9 to 5 The Musical (UK Tour), Exterminating Angel (Copenhagen Opera House), Pipin (Chocolate Factory), and High School Musical 2 (UK Tour). Film Credits: Film Stars Don’t Die In Liverpool (EON Films), Animal Charm, The Prank Show (BBC), SiX (West End, International), Knights Of The Rose (West End), American Idiot (West End/UK Tour), Club Tropicana (UK Tour), Amelie (Stage Entertainment), Our House (UK Tour), Summer Holiday (UK Tour), Dedication (Nuffield Theatre), Miss Atomic Bomb (St James), Dick Whittington, Cinderella, Aladdin, Jack & The Beanstalk (Lyric Hammersmith) and more. www.TimDeiling.com

YARON ABULAFIA
Yaron holds a PhD from the department of Arts, Culture and Media at The State University of Groningen in The Netherlands, a Master’s degree (MFA Scenography) from The Frank Mohr Instituut in the Netherlands, and a B.A. in Theatre Studies from Tel Aviv University in Israel.

Yaron has collaborated with many large scale opera and theatre houses like: the Deutsche Oper and the Komische Oper in Berlin, Sadler’s Wells and Royal Opera House – Covent Garden (London), Melbourne Arts Centre, National Operas of Poland, Czech Republic and Israel Monaco Dance Forum, Grand Theatre Luxembourg, Poly Theatre Beijing and Shanghai International Dance Centre, for: Staatsballett Berlin, Nederlands Dans Theater, Stuttgart Ballet, English National Ballet, Shanghai Dance Theatre, Rambert Dance Company, Ballet BC in Vancouver, Ballet Theater Basel and Compañía Nacional de Danza in Spain, to mention but a few.

Yaron is the author of the book The Art of Light on Stage: Lighting in Contemporary Theatre (2016), published by Routledge with a foreword by Romeo Castellucci. The book release was followed by 23 book launch events in opera houses and national theatres and festivals around the world. It is the first book published on state-of-the art tendencies of lighting design for contemporary 'post dramatic' performance, approaching lighting design from semiotic and phenomenological perspectives, with reference to cognitive studies and the arts.

MATT DRURY
Matt Drury, having trained at the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain and the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, has been working in the Lighting profession for over 30 years, in a variety of roles as a Lighting technician, in both a regional and freelance capacity, a Lighting Designer for over 70 professional theatre productions & corporate events and a Lighting Tutor at both RADA and LAMDA, as well as previously being LAMDA’s Technical Director.
Matt is a member of the ABTT and ALPD and is delighted to be part of the ALPD Wellbeing group. He was the former Head of Lighting at the Royal Court Theatre and is currently the Head of Lighting at the National Theatre.