Last night at the celebratory Entertainment Venues Association of New Zealand (EVANZ) Awards Dinner accolades were passed out to winners in nine award categories and two Supreme Awards were bestowed. Christchurch, New Plymouth, Hamilton and Auckland all had winning entrants, with Darren Burden from Vbase in Christchurch winning two awards - Venue Executive and Supreme Venue Person.
This year the Contribution to Industry Award, recognising dedication and success within the industry, went to Neil Cox of the Isaac Theatre Royal, Christchurch. Over the past 5 years, Neil has made a contribution well beyond resurrecting the Isaac Theatre Royal back to world class standards after the catastrophic earthquake. Soon after Neil has brought the Theatre back to its rightful place as one of the best performing arts centres in the country.
In the Excellence section, for the Tompkins Wake Lawyers Excellence in Customer Service, Vbase in Christchurch scooped the award, with the iTicket Excellence in Innovation award going to H3 Group, Hamilton. In the final category Eden Park, Auckland took out the Health Promotion Agency Excellence in Venue Host Responsibility.
Within the Venue section, New Plymouth took the award for the Ticketmaster Large Venue with Yarrow Stadium, its multisport/purpose venue. The Eventfinda Small Venue winner is Q Theatre Auckland, who consistently does a great job of connecting audiences to the arts. The Isaac Theatre Royal, Christchurch wins the Evanz Medium Venue, being commended on their perseverance, initiative and tenacity over the past year, and also receives the Ticket Direct Supreme Venue of the Year Award, leading the way to achieving success in both venue and community.
In the final section of awards, focussed on People Sven Ladewig of the H3 Group Hamilton has been named as the Simpson Grierson Operations Manager of the Year. Darren Burden of Vbase in Christchurch wins not only Ticketek Venue Executive of the Year, but also the Priava Supreme Venue Person of the Year for exceptional leadership under duress and challenging circumstances. Chyna Phelan from Eden Park, Auckland, is the 2016 Priava Rising Star of the Year having shown solid commitment to her own growth and development and taking every opportunity to move forward in her career.
All entries received show the great wealth of talent and dedication within the events, entertainment and venue industries.
The EVANZ Venue Award Winners for 2016 are:
EVANZ Contribution to Industry Award
Recipient: Neil Cox, Isaac Theatre Royal, Christchurch
Excellence Section
Tompkins Wake Lawyers Excellence in Customer Service
Winner: Vbase, Christchurch
iTicket Excellence in Innovation
Winner: H3 Group, Hamilton
Health Promotion Agency Excellence in Venue Host Responsibility
Winner: Eden Park, Auckland
Venue Section
Ticketmaster Large Venue (+5,000 Seats)
Winner: Yarrow Stadium, New Plymouth
Evanz Medium Venue (1001-4999 Seats)
Winner: Isaac Theatre Royal, Christchurch
Eventfinda Small Venue (1-1000 Seats)
Winner: Q Theatre, Auckland
Ticket Direct Supreme Venue
Ticket Direct Supreme Venue of the Year Award (highest scoring nomination across the 3 venue awards - large, medium and small)
Winner: Isaac Theatre Royal, Christchurch
People Section
Ticketek Venue Executive of the Year
Winner: Darren Burden, Vbase, Christchurch
Simpson Grierson Operations Manager of the Year
Winner: Sven Ladewig, H3 Group, Hamilton
Priava Rising Star of the Year
Winner: Chyna Phelan, Eden Park, Auckland
Priava Supreme Venue Person of the Year
Priava Supreme Venue Person of the Year (highest scoring nomination across the 3 people awards)
Winner: Darren Burden, Vbase, Christchurch
EVANZ is a professional organisation providing leadership and builds excellence for entertainment venues. EVANZ facilitates the collective sharing of information, enhancement of skills and development of best practice in the entertainment venues.
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