27 December 2021
Technical Theatre students at Fife College have been praised for their work in providing support at several local events.
Lecturers at the College encouraged students to volunteer to provide technical support in order to gain valuable work experience during their studies.
This led to a team of students helping to put on a show as part of Leith Comedy Festival last month, as they set-up the stage and operated the lighting and sound for each of the performances.
They then worked on the Rising Stars Dinner organised by Fife Chamber of Commerce at the Fairmont Hotel in St Andrews, setting-up the Audio Visual equipment as well as operating the sound and lighting at the black-tie event.
Both of these were in addition to helping out at several College events, including the student awards ceremony in October and the staff innovation awards.
The work of the students has led to praise from organisers, who credited them with the success of their event.
Rosalind Romer, the Director of Leith Comedy Festival, said:
“We’re really excited about Leith Comedy Festival’s partnership with Fife College.
"The students worked really hard to make the comedy show come to life, and deservedly got a cheer and a round of applause from the audience!”
Cheryl King, the Managing Director of Purple Dragon Marketing who ran the Rising Stars Dinner said:
“I want to say a huge thank you to all of the students who were involved in the staging of the Rising Stars Dinner.
“The evening was a huge success, and a significant part of that was thanks to the involvement and commitment from those at Fife College.
“The delivery of the presentation, lighting and sound were truly outstanding, and I’m so grateful to each of the students for going above and beyond on the day.
“I sincerely hope we can continue to work with the Technical Theatre students of Fife College again next year because I know we couldn’t have done the event without them!”
Shannon Cassidy, an HND Technical Theatre student involved with setting up each of the events said:
"Getting the chance to help out at these events was great fun, and it taught us about some technical aspects of the role that we hadn't had a chance to experience up until now.
"We've learned a lot through our course at the College, but to get the chance to put that into practice in the real world was fantastic.
"There were a few nerves beforehand, but by being part of such a supportive team you knew that you had someone to back you up if needed, and all the events we've done have gone really well.
"You step back at the end of them and just think, wow, I really did that!"
Matt McGowan, another HND Technical Theatre student involved in the events said the experience would be invaluable when applying for jobs in future:
"I absolutely loved working at these events.
"As much as you learn a lot in class, it's completely different when you're doing it in person so to have that opportunity was great.
"Working in different venues and understanding the challenges each of them brings in running events like these was especially useful, and something that will undoubtedly help me going forward.
"This work has also helped us to gain contacts within the industry while also allowing us to build up our CVs for after we graduate."
Matt Easson, a Lighting and Sound Lecturer at Fife College said:
“We were delighted to get our students involved and to help out at these events.
“It not only helps out some great local organisations, but it provides amazing experience for each of the students who were involved.
“The College is always keen to ensure that our students are ready for the world of work when they finish with us here, and initiatives like this are a key part in achieving this.
“Thanks to the knowledge they’ve gained from these events they’ll be far better prepared for whatever challenges come at them after they graduate.”
Photograph: Shannon Cassidy is pictured on the ladder in the main image with Matt McGowan below, during set up at the Leith Comedy Festival which took place at The Biscuit Factory in Leith.
