Dear <<Contact Name>> We hope you’ve spotted through industry channels and in our own regular newsletters that the ABTT launched the ABTT Virtual Ideas Platform initiative. Revealed in June, it is generating increasing interest and the number of innovative ideas being submitted is rapidly growing. Targeted at a potential gap between the creativity and inventiveness of live performance technicians and the suppliers, designers and manufacturers that serve the Theatre sector, it is the 'ABTT Virtual Ideas Platform'.
We know when backstage people are faced with a technical challenge, they get inventive and creative, cook up ideas and find solutions. The Platform aims to connect your great ideas with practioners, developers, designers and manufacturers who are keen to work with you to realise the potential of your idea and collaborate with you to take it on a journey to a wider audience!
Our first Pilot Year has attracted a selection of good ideas and my hope is that one or two may find a receptive mind in the ABTT ISG fold or further afield. The UK theatre industry attracts 'ideas' people - in all areas of the business. Sit in any crew room or Green Room for long enough & you'll get 5 ways to do a job better, or faster, or cheaper than it's currently done. To those people – We salute you!”
- Charles Haines, Concept Developer and Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Head of Performance Venues
By its very nature, our Industry provides a dynamic working environment in which to invent and develop new and better ways of doing things – in special effects; costume and wardrobe, wigs, make-up and hair, scenery, stage, sound, lighting, automation, audio-visual and any other discipline adopted to make live performance.
Reviewed for originality and utility, an accepted idea is added to the Platform’s online Gallery. Accessible for viewing – described as a cross between ‘Dragons Den’ and ‘Blind Date’ – by pre-authenticated visitors it is hoped that innovators may connect with ‘suitors’ who will be able to support the further development of their ideas.
"How amazing to have an outlet to voice innovative and exciting ideas! Time to dust of some of those brain waves I know that most of us techs have day to day. Looking forward to reading all about the brilliant ideas people have come up with."
- Mig Burgess, ABTT Co-Chair and Lighting Tutor at the Guildford
School of Acting
“We should be thanking you for getting this together. The next great innovation might just come through this or we may get 100 ideas that make everyone's life a little better. Either way, thank you”
- Peter Woods, Director of Operations at Serapid
The ABTT Virtual Ideas Platform is here to recognise, salute and honour those innovators in our midst. All successful entries so far have been shared with industry leaders and key association figures for appraisal. We now want to open access to the ABTT Virtual Ideas Gallery so you can see for yourself the amazing entries we have received so far!
"The Virtual Ideas Platform is a wonderful initiative, here people can share that brilliant idea conceived when they realised that there is nothing out there to do that particular thing, be that solving a costume conundrum, creating a lighting widget or writing a program that can manage all the stuff in the tech store. The submissions to date are clear evidence that the industry is full of problem solving original thinkers - I am looking forward to seeing what else turns up."
- David Evans, ABTT Co-Chair & Head of Production at National
Theatre Wales
The ABTT Virtual Ideas Platform will seek to support the most promising idea submitted in a rolling 3-month programme with a small development grant. The launch of the initiative would not be possible without the impartial support of industry figures from the ABTT Industry Supporters’ Group.
All submitted innovations that pass our assessment process will be uploaded to a secure and restricted access area of the Platform that the APPLICANT will manage and control.
The best idea for the year will be awarded initial stage ‘seed funding’ for development and prototyping. This fund is generously donated by supportive ABTT friends and affiliates.
The Platform is always OPEN FOR IDEAS – so spread the word and get any application in to us as soon as possible.
Here the applicant provides information about the idea using our application form, give it a name/title and a brief description.
Membership prices remain the same for 2022 and to help make this more manageable we have continued our Monthly Payment Plan which allows members to split their payments over 10 months. Details on how you can do this can be found below. Do contact us if renewing your membership for 2022 presents you with any problems.
As always, thank you for your ongoing participation and support of the ABTT!
