Nominations are now being accepted for the 1998 Wally Award, named after beloved industry figure Wally Russell, who died in 1992.
The award, established by the Wally Russell Fund (a not-for-profit company sponsored by many leading industry players) in association with Theatre Crafts International/Lighting Dimensions, is presented annually at LDI. The award is given to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the fields of technical theatre, in lighting or sound; or stage engineering, in the areas of design, engineering, or manufacture.
Previous award winners have included Wally Russell himself, Charlie Altman, George van Buren, Tharon Musser, and Frederick Bentham.
During his career Wally Russell was technical director of the Canadian Opera Company and the Los Angeles Music Center Opera. He was also general manager of the National Ballet of Canada, and president of Strand Century in Canada and the US, as well as an LD and theatre consultant with Theatre Projects Consultants Inc. Russell was also a director of Vari-Lite Inc.
The founding members of the Wally Russell Award include Fred Foster, David Cunningham, Don Hamilton, John Howe, Larry Kellermann, Richard Pilbrow, Brian and Glenn Russell, Robert Schiller, Tom Folsom, Phil O'Donnell, Rusty Brutsche, Anne Valentino, Phil Bernard, and Jacqueline Tien, publisher of TCI/LD.
In a related development, the Wally Russell Foundation will fund a scholarship to assist an internship in lighting at the Los Angeles Music Center Opera. To be known as the Wally Award for a Promising Newcomer in Lighting, this award will be administered by the Music Center Opera.
Nominations for the 1998 Wally Russell Lifetime Achievement Award should be sent to Jacqueline Tien, Lighting Dimensions International, 32 West 18th Street, New York, NY, 10011. You can fax nominations to 212/229-9179, or send e-mail to [email protected]. The deadline is May 1. The award will be presented at LDI98, in Phoenix, AZ, November 13-15.