Two technicians attending the course were the recipients of the Nicholas Van Wijk Bursary. These bursaries are the kind gift of Heather, widow of Nicholas van Wijk who spent most of his working life in the West End Theatres. He was Master Carpenter at the Aldwych Theatre in London from 1994 until his death in October 2003. Nicholas always laid great store in passing on his stage technical knowledge to the next generation. The recipients of the bursaries were Christopher Low from Benfleet, Essex and Duncan Laurence from Deptford South London.
Geoffrey Joyce, training coordinator for the ABTT, commented: "The Artsdepot is an ideal centre for technical training as it has state-of-the-art lighting equipment, a generously spaced flying system, a flexible 400-seat auditorium and wonderful staff. All the candidates who undertook the full award passed with a credit, which means a pass rate of over 70%! These courses enable the candidates to work with confidence, operating best practice within there own venue. The ABTT is very grateful to Mrs van Wijk for her generosity."
The courses ran one day a week throughout March and were completed on Wednesday 12 April. The courses are accredited by the Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama.
(Lee Baldock)
