Wednesday 13 June 2012

Nigel Priestley has sent congratulations to a former Ridley and Hall work experience student who has hit the headlines.

Huddersfield born John Tiffany is celebrating after picking up a Tony award for best direction of a musical for his bittersweet production Once. The Tony’s are the theatre equivalent of the Oscars.
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It was a big night for stars from the UK with Once – based on the low-budget Irish film hit – winning nine out of 12 nominations.
Once is the Broadway debut for the man behind the critically acclaimed stage show Blackwatch, which won him the Laurence Olivier Award and Critics’ Circle Award for Best Director.

Now, the associate director of the National Theatre of Scotland has added another gong to his ever-growing list of awards.
The stage show is based on the Oscar-winning film which tells the story of an Irish busker and a Czech immigrant brought together by their shared love of music.

Nigel commented “John came to us from school to do work experience. I often tell my clients that courts are like theatres but clearly John found that real theatre was far better for him!

John’s performance is a staggering achievement. I know his mother and sister well and they are as proud as any family can be of this award”