Learning the skills of your trade at the Royal Opera House in London has got to be the dream for any aspiring theatre technician.
That’s about to become the reality for 18-year-old Ben, a Bede Sixth Form College student from Thornaby who is among those picking up his results this week.
The music technology enthusiast has been selected from more than 300 applicants to train as a creative venue technician apprentice at the famous theatre in Covent Garden.
“When they rang to say I had got it, it was a massive shock,” he said.
Applying for the elite apprenticeship, he explained: “I submitted my CV online but didn’t think I would get it.”
He added that it felt like quite an achievement to make it through to the second stage, a 10-minute online interview.
When he found himself heading for London for the third round, a full-day interview including practical tasks, the reality finally started to sink in.
Walking into the theatre for the first time, he said: “It was like seeing into the world I want to go into.”
Fortunately, with lots of practical experience behind him, he was more than prepared.
Still, with just three positions available, news of his success came as a shock.
For his college teachers at Bede in Billingham however, it wasn’t as much of a surprise.
“Ben has always been a person who goes out of his way to make the future work for him,” said music technology lecturer, Matt Fodor.
“Since day one at college, he was cold emailing people to see if he could get work experience in sound engineering and live sound.”
Many times, this direct approach worked, as he gained two years’ experience working as a theatre technician at the Forum Theatre Billingham, he volunteered for six months as a live event producer at Middlesbrough Town Hall and gained further experience as a freelance sound/venue technician, all alongside his college studies.
Dedicated to his field, he even gave up part of his hard-earned summer break to attend a Summer School for Theatre Sound Design and Engineering at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
Now preparing to relocate to the capital, he can only speculate on the shows he might get to work on looking at the listings ahead.
“I am really excited and can’t wait to get started,” he said.
Seeing him collect his results in music technology, history and criminology from Bede, his teacher Matt said: “Ben is without a doubt one of the most driven students I have ever encountered, and I am so pleased that his can-do attitude is now being recognised in such an amazing way.
“Ben now gets to study alongside some of the leading creatives in the country. Living in London and being part of the bustling live scene will catapult him into an exciting career that is one of the most competitive in the world.”
