The ALPD announces the winners of their 2024 Awards

The Association for Lighting Production and Design announced the winners of their 2024 Awards at the New Technology Showcase at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama on Thursday 30^th January.  This event, jointly hosted by White Light, the ALPD and RCSSD, was an opportunity for lighting professionals to explore and compare the latest lighting technology available on the market.

The winner of The Michael Northen Award for emerging lighting designers sponsored by Go Live Theatre Projects, ETC and Vectorworks is Skylar Turnbull Hurd, a lighting designer, assistant lighting designer and production video engineer working mostly in theatre. Skylar studied at RADA and also won a Profile Award for Outstanding New Designer earlier this year.

The judging panel commented that Skylar submitted some extraordinary images with great use of colour, texture and beam to define the spaces, and that all the concepts were thoroughly researched, documented, and bespoke to each specific production. They also commended her collaboration, honesty and openness.

Skylar said:  “It means so much to me to win the Michael Northern Award. It is an honour to have my hard work and that of my teams recognised. Compiling all of the pieces of the shows to create my portfolio reminded me of how valuable those experiences were, and I am immensely grateful to all of the different groups of people who have supported me throughout those different projects, and to the judges for choosing me. I now feel even more motivated to keep pursuing what used to be a hobby, and now is my career!”

For the second year both the Anne Valentino Award for Excellence in Programming and The Fred Foster for Excellence in Production Electrics sponsored by ETC were nominated awards for working professionals. This gives the ALPD an opportunity to recognise and celebrate excellence in these fields. The programming award was renamed this year to honour the contribution to programming and console design of Anne Valentino.

The Anne Valentino Award for Excellence in Programming sponsored by ETC goes to Andrew Leighton.  Andrew has programmed over 30 shows at Chichester Festival Theatre since finishing his apprenticeship in 2018. Highlights at Chichester include Flowers for Mrs Harris with Mark Henderson, Local Hero with Paule Constable and Quiz with Ryan Day. Andrew’s nominations commend his speed, his positive energy and his ability to read each designer he works with and provide programming and support tailored to their way of working whilst maintaining excellent working relationships with all of the lighting team.

The Fred Foster Award for Excellence in Production Electrics sponsored by ETC goes to Alex Bosworth.  Alex started as a casual at Birmingham Rep in 2013 and became Head of Lighting in 2021 He received multiple nominations for his impeccable skills, vast knowledge, tireless work ethic, positivity, and sense of fun!