The final panel

Mhora Samuel:

Director of Theatres Trust, an organisation promoting the better protection to theatres across England, Scotland and Wales. She established the Theatre Buildings at Risk Register. Mhora is member of the Royal Society of Arts, the Association of British Theatre Technician and the Institute of Fundraising.

Tolis Papazoglou:

Greek scenographer, created sets and costumes for theatre, screen, ballet, opera and museum installations, in England ,Europe, USA, Oceania and Asia. He is Laureate of the coveted UNESCO prize for “Creativity & Innovation” at the Prague Quadrennial 1999.

James McKernan:

Professor stage technology at the Department of Theatre at the York University in Canada, exploring both leading-edge and traditional methodologies, with a focus on seeking implementing new, more ecologically responsible theatrical scenographic technologies.

Jean-Guy Lecat:

In a period of 25 years, Jean-Guy Lecat designed worldwide approximately 200 performance spaces for Peter Brook, as well as many others in cooperation with international theatre makers and architects. Space designer, developer of architecture, stage designer, theatre maker, Lecat devotes himself fully to the transformation of space for performance. He is untiring in his exploration of the interaction of theatre and architecture, design and performance, space and storytelling.

John Faulkner:

Modern and Mediaeval Languages at Oxford in the 1960s and a taste for stage carpentry led to work with international touring companies as technician and manager. Head of Artistic Planning at the National Theatre, responsible to Peter Hall for the main repertoire and the creation of the National Theatre Studio. Fervent advocate of experimental theatre.

Chris Abbott:

Editor of "Special Educational Needs and the Internet: Issues for the Inclusive Classroom” and “ICT: Changing Education”

Randy Earle:

Professor emeritus at Department of Television, Radio, Film and Theatre at the San José State University in USA. Theatre consultant for Pantechnicon LLC.

Peter Ruthven Hall:

Peter originally trained as an architect. He now works as a stage designer and theatre consultant. He has worked extensively in opera both in the UK and elsewhere in Europe (Royal Danish Opera, Malmö Musikteater, Stadttheater Aachen, Opera Ireland - Eire, Opera Northern Ireland, Vienna Kammeroper) designing sets and costumes. He is secretary of the Society of British Theatre Designers.

Reinhold Daberto:

Architect working his whole professional life on theatres and the relationship of architecture and technics. He runs his consulting firm theapro, based in Munich, Germany.

Reind Brackman:

Partner and Director Developer at Trekwerk, a leading Dutch company in solutions to mechanise fly systems. They developed a line of high quality synchronous motors and a new operating system. The focus of Trekwerk soon changed to make complete theatre installations, both in The Netherlands and abroad.

Stefan Gräbener:

Dr. Engineer-Architect, Chairman and Secretary of Initiative TheaterMuseum Berlin. Editor of Die Vierte Wand.

Faiz Zahir:

Artistic director and designer for Aranyak Nattyadal in Bangladesh.

Tim Foster:

Foster Wilson Architects is a leading architectural practice with an international reputation for the design of cultural buildings and creative spaces. Tim Foster is also chair of OISTAT’s Architecture Commission.

Carsten Jung:

Secretary General of PERSPECTIV, a German association on historic theatres in Europe. Project manager of the European Route of Historic Theatres. Proposed the Bourla theatre machinery for the Europa Nostra project “The seven most endangered heritage sites in Europe 2014”. This proposal became “a winner” of this project, which finally stopped the plans to break out the heritage theatre machinery in the Bourla theatre.

Kate Burnett:

Founding member of the Society of British Theatre Designers (SBTD). She has designed extensively for regional, national and touring companies; also large scale schools and community performance projects for orchestras, opera companies and art galleries. Long-time member of OISTAT and chair for its History & Theory Commission.

Anders Larsson:

Has worked in Sweden as theatre technician and lighting designer in the performing arts sector sinds mid-1980s. In early 1990 he started to teach and be responsible for the stage management course at the Theatre Technician Training at Dramatiska Institutet.

Psyche Chui:

Senior lecturer Theatre Lighting Design at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA). She has worked with professional theatre and dance companies in Hong Kong and for many other performing companies internationally in Singapore, Korea, The Netherlands, Canada, Macau, USA, Russia and China.

Were representing the parties involved in the plans for renovation/restoration of the Bourla theatre:

In order of intervention:

Were representing the parties involved in the plans for renovation/restoration of the Bourla theatre:

In order of intervention:

• • Jan Rombouts, Chief of Cabinet of the Councilman for Culture, Economy and Heritage. Formerly Scientific Consultant Monument Care for the City of Antwerp.
  • Guy Cassiers, Artistic Director of the residing company Het Toneelhuis.
  • Marc Lambert, partner at TTAS, one of the consulting companies that had prepared the feasibility study.
  • Frank Peeters, theatre historian and professor at the University of Antwerp.

The management of the Bourla theatre kindly offered guided tours of the theatre at the beginning of the “Wood and Canvas …” conference, including the stage machinery. Subsequently, no representative from the theatre came to hear the lectures, where so much could be learned about functions and possibilities of the historic stage machinery. Only on the last day of the conference a delegation from the Municipality of Antwerp and of the company Het Toneelhuis joined the event at this closing Final Panel for an open discussion of their plans for the Bourla theatre. At this Final Panel session, besides the formerly mentioned speakers, were also present from Het Toneelhuis: Freek Boey (technical director), Luk Van den bosch (managing director), Koen Deveux (stage manager & safety advisor) and Fabienne Arras (external relations).

Have also contributed to the discussion, in order of intervention:

Iain Mackintosh:

British practitioner of theatre, combining four interwoven careers as theatre producer, theatre space designer, curator of theatre painting and architecture exhibition, and author and lecturer on both modern and eighteenth century theatre. He has campaigned for the retention and restoration of historic theatres as working homes for live performance.

Jerome Maeckelbergh:

Scenographer. Designed many productions in the seventies in the Bourla theatre for the Royal Youth Theatre (KJT), on several occasions using the available heritage theatre technology to solve scene change problems.

Chris Van Goethem:

Started in 1983 as a technician in a rental company. Became stage manager and travelled around Europe with a lot of Belgian companies. Teaches at the stage management and technical theatre department of RITCS (EHB), Sabbattini Antwerp and Marotech Oujda (Marokko).

Reind Brackman:

Partner and Director Developer at Trekwerk, a leading Dutch company in solutions to mechanise fly systems. They developed a line of high quality synchronous motors and a new operating system. The focus of Trekwerk soon changed to make complete theatre installations, both in The Netherlands and abroad.

Jean-Guy Lecat:

In a period of 25 years, Jean-Guy Lecat designed worldwide approximately 200 performance spaces for Peter Brook, as well as many others in cooperation with international theatre makers and architects. Space designer, developer of architecture, stage designer, theatre maker, Lecat devotes himself fully to the transformation of space for performance. He is untiring in his exploration of the interaction of theatre and architecture, design and performance, space and storytelling.

Mhora Samuel:

Director of Theatres Trust, an organisation promoting the better protection to theatres across England, Scotland and Wales. She established the Theatre Buildings at Risk Register. Mhora is member of the Royal Society of Arts, the Association of British Theatre Technician and the Institute of Fundraising.

David Wilmore:

Formed the company Theatresearch in 1985. He is involved in historic theatre projects around the country. Theatresearch historic theatre consultants have established a reputation in the restoration of major historic theatres throughout the British Isles.

Dominique Lauvernier:

Since 2003 “Professeur agrégé” attached to Theatre Studies at Caen University (France). He works on a methodology of scientific restitution for the scenic spaces, by the means of interactive 3D virtual reality. He regularly communicates and publishes on 18th century opera and related scenic arts.

Laura van Haperen:

Worked several years as Technical Assistant Construction at the Opera House in Frankfurt am Main, Germany and later as Production Manager at the Schauspiel Frankfurt. Lives now again in Greater Amsterdam where she worked as Business Process Analyst at STE Trekwerk, a firm that develops, engineers and manufactures all components of stage technology worldwide. Works now as International Business Development at ShowTex - Amazing Stage Fabrics in Motion.