USA - James Suit has re-joined ACT Entertainment’s regional sales team for the New York City Metro area. Previously, he had served as northeast regional sales manager for the brands distributed by ACT.
“We’re very excited to have James back on-board and to take advantage of the expertise, values and skills that make him such a good fit for the ACT team,” says Doug Mekanik, ACT Entertainment director of sales.
Suit began his professional career in 2005 when he joined 4Wall in New Jersey as a moving light tech. He spent seven years in system integration and sales for

UK - Following recent contract wins at three of the UK’s leading event venues, AV and entertainment technology company Anna Valley has promoted Dan Orchard to the role of venue director. The newly created position sees Orchard assuming responsibility for both commercial and operational aspects at all the venues where Anna Valley is the preferred audio-visual partner, reporting directly to the board.
Over the last 18 months, Anna Valley has established itself as a significant service provider to the UK’s venue sector. The company signed a preferred partnership agreement with E

USA - Xytech has appointed Keith Buckley as the company’s president and CEO, succeeding Richard Gallagher, the company’s founder. Gallagher will now advise the company’s board as envisioned when Xytech was acquired by Banneker Partners in December 2021.
Most recently, Buckley served as the CEO of Federos, an AI-optimised analytics and automation software solutions provider for complex networks that was recently sold to Oracle. He previously served as president and CEO of The Switch Enterprises.
“I’m joining Xytech as the company is poised for significant growth, a

Denmark - DPA Microphones has welcomed an array of new team members. The additions are company-wide, with new hires in product management, research and development, sales, marketing, and production.
Among the recent hires is Helga Somava, who recently joined DPA as one of the brand’s directors of product management. A graduate of Copenhagen Engineering College with a focus on export engineering, Somava brings leadership experience from past directorial and managerial roles at Bang & Olufsen, GN Netcom and most recently at NUORI ApS, where she served as COO. In her new posit

UK - LSi is sad to report that John Simpson, co-founder of White Light and chairman of technical entertainment charity Backup, passed away on the morning of 11 June after a short battle with cancer. He was 79 years old and is survived by his partner, Sue, and three children.
In a tribute to its founder, White Light has published the following statement: “We are heartbroken to bring you the news that our founder and former chairman John Simpson passed away (…). Those of you who were lucky enough to know John, or work with him, will know what a brilliant person he was

USA - Bandit Lites has announced the promotions of several major leaders with Brent Barrett as vice president of business development, Roth Edwards as vice president of operations and Jake Tickle as vice president of business and innovation.
“Every great firm is defined by their great people,” says Bandit chair, Michael T. Strickland. “Bandit Lites is no exception. Brent Barrett, Roth Edwards, and Jake Tickle exemplify that dynamic. Each a long time Bandit, they have from day one contributed at a level far beyond what was asked of them.”
Barrett now takes the helm

USA - Calibre has appointed Mike Novak as sales director for North America. Novak hits the ground running with the Calibre New Product Preview Showcase event in Las Vegas revealing a One Canvas Solution incorporating the Calibre LEDFusion Pro with splicing features across multiple screens.
Novak is based in Buffalo, New York. He has taken up the position at Calibre from Daktronics, where he managed various verticals including airport and transit, out-of-home advertising, spectaculars and reseller/AV groups, and developed new markets and revenue streams.
“The Americas is th

South Africa - Stuart Andrews will take on the position of projects and operations manager at DWR Distribution.
“I’m so positive and happy to be back in South Africa and at DWR,” said Stuart, who has lived in Rwanda and Dubai for well over a year since the COVID-19 pandemic. “I think this move had been on the cards for some time, to be honest. I had wanted to change out of the rental and production side of the industry for some time now, and I’ve always been close to the people at DWR; a company respected within the industry and one with extremely high standards

UK - North Star Engineers has appointed Jonathan Barker as creative director. Barker joins the North Star Engineers leadership team and will focus on the creative direction of the company, client liaison, and promotional content strategy and new business development.
Barker brings with him more than 30 years’ experience working in the cruise ship entertainment industry, with notable projects on board the QM2 and with Carnival UK, P&O and Cunard. HIs varied career has also seen him write two musical theatrical productions and multiple music productions for television and film

USA - Bandit Lites has announced key promotions within the firm with Sharon Draper as the chief financial officer, Dizzy Gosnell as vice president of production and John Jenkinson as director of integration.
Draper oversees all aspects of the financial side of Bandit Lites and leads a large team on a daily basis.
"I am exceedingly thankful for Michael Strickland's leadership and strength, especially over these last few years,” said Draper. “As I come into this new position, I look forward to the continued success of Bandit."
“Bandit would simply not be where we

USA - Fulcrum Acoustic has announced that Angela Ciociolo has joined the company as director of marketing. Ciociolo will be responsible for guiding the strategic marketing direction for the company and overseeing the daily marketing tasks.
“As Fulcrum Acoustic continues to grow, we are adding talented professionals to the team so that we can better serve the markets and our customers," says Fulcrum Acoustic president Stephen Siegel. "Angela brings experience from within and outside our industry as well as a creativity and drive that will help us evolve."
“When Stephen co

World - Women In Lighting (WIL) has recently released two new Ayrton-sponsored interviews with female lighting designers: Nashville-based Sooner Routhier, an award-winning designer, producer and director, who has worked with an impressive list of headline artists including KISS, The Weeknd, Motley Crüe, Muse, Rhianna and, currently, Coldplay; and LA-based Emmanuelle ‘Gigi’ Pėdron, a French-born lighting designer who has worked with the likes of Queens of the Stone Age, My Chemical Romance, Garbage and Prince.
WIL is a global project co-founded by Sharon Stammers and

UK - Collaborative Creations has announced three new appointments in key positions.
Nic Farman has joined the CC team as its new lighting designer & business development specialist. Farman was previously a freelance lighting designer and will now be continuing his lighting design work in theatres internationally, but under the CC banner.
Farman has more than 10 years of experience lighting musicals, theatre and opera. He has worked extensively in the UK’s West End, as well as on shows in Lebanon, Dubai, and Kuwait.
The appointment comes following two further add

UK - Polar has announced the expansion of its team with the appointment of two new members of staff. Mark Bracken has joined Polar’s integrated solutions team as a business development manager, whilst Joe Glading has been recruited as a marketing assistant.
Bracken is an experienced AV industry professional who has enjoyed sales, marketing and business development roles with Cloud Electronics, Imagesound, Rolec Music and Hayden Laboratories, before broadening his scope as a freelance consultant in the video sector.
“As the world began to emerge from the worst effects of

UK - Le Mark’s head of export Karolina Wlodarczyk has been invited to be an ‘export champion’ for the UK’s Department of International Trade.
Karolina is a Polish citizen originally from the town of Raciborz, who studied (2004-2009) and graduated from Opole University with a master’s degree in English Language and Cultural Studies.
She is currently undertaking additional formal business training and education with an ambition to see a future graduation with ARU Peterborough.
Since joining Cambridgeshire based Le Mark Group, her career has grown from strength

Italy - Outline has extended its organisation with appointment of Daniele Tebaldi as CTO (chief technology officer). Daniele will liaise with the company's R&D team, sales and tech support crew and board of directors.
After embarking in the mid-80's on a successful career in Italy and Germany as a concert sound engineer with a keen ear for jazz, classical and contemporary music, 10 years later Daniele conceived and directed Live Sound Education, one of the earliest and longest-running audio courses in Italy, hosted by the City of Modena – while continuing to work as a freela

UK - Avolites has announced new appointments to strengthen its operations in North and South America.
Returning to Avolites, Francisco Yañez Valdivia has been appointed as territory manager for LATAM. Based in Santiago de Chile, Francisco’s role will focus on driving a new phase for Avolites in the region, following the recent launch of the Diamond 9, along with the company’s continuous development of its software platforms Ai, Titan and Synergy.
Francisco has over 10 years’ experience using Avolites products across different positions, including lighting technician

UK - 5 Star Cases has announced the appointment of Allen Smith as quality assurance manager, to set product and process quality standards across its range of products and provide quality related guidance to 5 Star’s staff and management.
5 Star Cases services multiple industries from entertainment, medical, telecoms and robotics, to motorsport. Longstanding clients include Terry Tew Sound & Light, Universal Studios, Allen & Heath, Power Maxed racing, DiGiCo and Arden Motorsport. The company’s ambitious growth strategy and ever-increasing product portfolio, including a

USA - Celestion has appointed Josh Martin as business development executive. Martin will work together with Celestion’s sales and distribution partners in the US and Canada to expand their offerings to new markets, as well as servicing their current clientele, further strengthening the Celestion brand in North America.
Josh Martin joins Celestion, having had an extensive career in the audio and MI industries. He has considerable experience in the loudspeaker industry, having previously worked in a number of technology, sales management and artist relations roles at a variety of

USA - Pixotope Technologies has announced the appointment of Brian Olson as the new vice president of sales, covering North America.
Olson joins Pixotope following an extensive background in media and broadcast production and is highly skilled in strategic business development, technical execution, and troubleshooting for an international client base.
In his new role, Olson will focus on driving brand awareness and nurturing existing customer relationships on a global scale, helping to bring the next generation of visual storytelling tools to media professionals.
Olso

UK - Area Four Industries UK continues to expand its operations with the appointment of Matthew Millward as head of automation to manage its EXE Technology brands.
Millward comments: “To be finally working with the world’s largest manufacturer of truss, staging and automation products has a great sense of achievement and pride. It is an extremely exciting phase for EXE Technology with the introduction of the All In One / One for All smart solutions.”
Sales & marketing director Glen Brown adds: “I am delighted with Matt joining the A4i UK team at this time. He is

USA- Chauvet Professional has appointed Brian Craft as content marketing manager. Craft recently served as director of marketing & outreach at Manatee Performing Arts Centre, director of marketing & communications at Realize Bradenton, and in public relations with IHPR in New York City. Craft serves as creative director on the Board of Florida Public Relations Association, and as a founding board member of Project Pride SRQ.
“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work alongside such a driven and dedicated team,” says Craft. “I have followed Chauvet for as long as

USA - Bandit Lites has promoted Scott Wesson to facility foreman where he will oversee integral day to day functions including de-prep of all incoming equipment as well as maintaining the organisation of hardware, cable, truss, and road cases. He will also coordinate with Bandit’s project managers to assist with preps, hardware and truss needs.
Wesson came aboard at Bandit in 2014 where he toured as a lighting tech with artists including Rascal Flatts and Jason Aldean. He also provided extensive support for multiple festivals ranging from Bonnaroo, Firefly, and Electric Forest t

France - Nexo has appointed Delphine Hannotin as manager of its engineering support team. Based at the company’s Plailly campus northeast of Paris, the Nexo engineering support team supports production services providers, integrators and consultants with system designs and commissioning for live events and fixed installations. Hannotin will focus on delivering similar technical support for the group's AFC immersive sound solutions, from project design through to system calibration.
Drawing on 20 years of experience as a trainer at France’s Institut national de l'audiovisuel (I

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