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Mindipulator Regular user Mexico 109 Posts |
Greetings
Not sure if this is the right place but the closest I could find. I would be interested in hearing about your experiences working with theatre techs. This is how I paid my way through uni back in the early 80's. I ran over 100 shows in a 600 seat theatre. Sound and Lighting, I was it. Regardless of show I would give the client the best show possible. With magicians, I did five shows, I went above board. But I could only work with what I knew. Two shows were pros. Advanced their tech rider. I would set up the rigs the night before or early morning of the show. Upon load-in, union workers handled that, I would meet with the magician. I explained to him that I was an amateur magician with a long passion for the art. I then would tell him that I already signed a non disclosure agreement which he should have on file. My next question would be "do you have any angle concerns?" This usually took them by surprise. I would walk the audience to check for issues. I could help by adjusting lighting or moving things a tad. I would sometimes change out lights or gels. Love “surprise pink.” Named so because the gel is blue. The less experienced would sometimes forego rehearsal. I would explain to them that there would not be any extra charge for my time. They thought unnecessary. Shows went well but not as pretty as I would have liked. Make sure your tech has your rider. Believe me, the more detailed the better. Cue sheets and scripts are a wonderful addition to a tech’s night. These folks are professionals providing a service to you and your audience. Their job is to make you look and sound perfect. In all of my shows I never once missed a cue. Lights or sound. But if your cue is, “I’ll just point at you.” Work on this. I had a guy with no cue sheet, no script. Just an, “I’ll point at you.” Are you new at this? So what prompted me to ask is so many of you are discussing cue apps, sound systems and so on. Is it to have full flexibility in smaller venues or is it a smidgen of distrust towards the techs to perform? Dale |
Mindipulator Regular user Mexico 109 Posts |
Oh and I could not actually move anything other than mic stands, cords and lights. Even if a chair had to be moved onstage a union dude had to come in and do it.
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Greg Arce Inner circle 6732 Posts |
In the late 80s I worked on a traveling demo show. We went from mall to mall all over the U.S. I was used to unloading, loading and setting up all the displays. I ran electrical cord, set up lights, computers, etc.
One week I had to do the large convention center in Chicago. It was completely ran by union guys. Everywhere I went I had to sign someone's clipboard... and they were usually sitting at a table with the clipboard and appeared to be only doing that job: having people sign. I drove my truck in. I found out very quickly that now that I was in their place I could not touch anything. There was a guy for everything: one guy unrolled the rug, one guy taped stuff down, one guy set up displays, etc. It took them four times the time to set up that it took me. I was watching and was fascinated on how much time everything took to do when they did it their way. It was an experience. Greg
One of my favorite quotes: "A critic is a legless man who teaches running."
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thomasR Inner circle 1189 Posts |
Quote:
On May 9, 2016, Ajijicmagi wrote: Most people discussing apps and sound systems have never toured with a full show. They mostly perform places that require a sound system and an app. If you are hired to work a city event hall, the sound system will be barely usable, and the only "tech" will be the janitor or maintenance man. If you work a library, you won't even have that. It is nice to hear your experiences working for some magicians. As a side-note, any magician who performs at a theatre should be willing to inform the tech.'s of any angle issues. Worrying about "exposing" a trick to a theatre tech. is silly... the theatre tech. wants your show to look good, and if they understand why certain angles or lighting needs to happen, that will help them do the best job possible. |
Mindipulator Regular user Mexico 109 Posts |
I know it Greg. I dealt with it daily. I, as a student, was non union, but paid union wages. They had to reserve three positions for students. The GUYS didn't really like that.
Thomas, sad when a performer has to take care of their own sound but I guess I've been lucky to have worked in higher end venues. (not as a magician) And I say "sad" not as an insult, I wish it were unnecessary. I truly enjoyed taking on their concerns over lights and sound so they could concentrate on the magic. Thank you for telling people to trust their techs when it comes to exposing your act to them. When I was working in the field nothing would disappoint me more than a less than perfect performance on my part. With magic knowing angle issues is absolutely necessary. Yes techs may have to watch you rehearse from many angles to ensure that nothing they do contributes to an exposure. They are not looking for your secrets. They are looking out for you. When I was running around the stage I was looking for telltale shadows, backlight issues. I rarely had time to look at the "thing." During parts of the act that used spectators onstage I would take their position to make sure all looked well. By this time I had programmed the cues into the lighting desk and could auto-trigger and be onstage for parts of the rehearsal where needed. The thing is I had a better idea than most what to look for. Tell your tech. It was a very rewarding experience for me when I had these opportunities to work with magicians. The highlight of my work in that industry. When I knew that I personally was responsible for his angles as it was me that walked the audience, when I had taped off those spots, (told the GUYS to take a break and grab a beer,) I knew my responsibility. I hope that the kids doing this today feel the same. I envy their technology. Even if they have no interest in magic, we are all nerds. Dale |
Ray Pierce Inner circle Los Angeles, CA 2607 Posts |
I made my living for many years touring and performing in union (and some non union) venues. I did about 20 to 30 cities in Canada for quite a few years and still most of my shows are in those 1000 - 2500 seat houses. The most important thing I can communicate is that when I enter a new venue, I make sure the local tech crew know that they are my people. They are valuable artists whom I respect and we will all work together to bring this show to life. I started as a tech and will still do it at any time. I've been a deck hand, Lighting Designer, Sound Mixer, Flyman, and now I'm a master rigger and get called in to rig speciality performer flying for special shows. I have Stage Managed shows for many decades and each member of that local crew deserves my respect. Yes, there have been a few lazy ones that didn't pull their weight but for the most part they are well trained and knowledgeable and are willing to do anything they can to help bring the magic to life. When you first enter a theater as an "act", there is a short time of "positioning" where the local crew is feeling you out as to how they day is going to go. That is the time I have to joke with them and speak their language talking about noticed idiosyncrasies of their venue and things we might have in common. After this, we usually have a shared respect for each other and a willingness to try our best to make each others job run well for the time we have together.
The best advice I can give you as magicians is to learn all of their respective roles... their needs, their problems. Ask them questions, See how you can best help them do their their job of helping you. Work on that for about 10 years and you'll have a good start on being a valuable part of their team!
Ray Pierce
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thomasR Inner circle 1189 Posts |
Echoing what Ray said...
If you are friendly and professional and treat the tech.'s the way you would like to be treated (with respect), you will get very far. Unless you are a true headliner, you aren't anybody. You're a no-name magician appearing in their theatre. If you walk into the space expecting to be treated like a star.... forget it. Most theatre tech.'s have worked with household names at one time or another. Treat the theatre, and staff, with respect. Want to open a curtain? Ask for it to be opened. Want to move a light? Ask for it to be re-focused. And yes, like Ray said... talk to the tech.'s in a friendly way. Ask them about the last show that was in the theatre (they always have a story to tell). Treat them as a valuable part of the show.. because they are! |
Mindipulator Regular user Mexico 109 Posts |
Thanks for your comments on this topic Ray. I know that although I made good money doing what I did I really did this job out of passion. I would put in many unbilled hours to ensure a great show, of any type. Since magic was part of me the magicians got a little extra love.
Treat your tech's like the pros they are and you will get along fantastically. I only had one magician with an attitude issue. Can you guess which? The most well known or the unknown? I will always remember with love and pride my days behind that bit of glass at the back of the theatre. A nice introduction, a handshake and a "I'm really looking forward to working with you tonight" will go a long way. Again, to the above question. Guess which did not even shake my hand, although I extended mine? Seems the "help" was beneath him. Dale |
StephenRoy New user 62 Posts |
I've been on the production side of show business for 30 years now. I left magic & performing when I began working for real after moving to Las Vegas in the 1990's. I've recently come back to performing and am now running my own show. One of the hardest things for me to let go of is the production side of things. I still want to get my hands on lighting fixtures to do my own focus and run my own cues, as that's what I know how to do best. However, it's clear that I have had to relinquish that desire and responsibility to focus on performance. I do travel with my own audio/video production rack and software light board all controlled by Qlab on a Macbook Pro. I do it for production value, more so than cutting a technician out of a job. I can't go into a theater and work without the local crew's help. Nor do I want to.
I've been fortunate to perform in some really professional theaters. Last one, I forwarded my very detailed rider to, walked in to find everything perfect. We set the show props and performed the show with zero issues the whole evening. I've worked with good and bad, union and non-union. It is a real pleasure to work with real professionals in their trade. They make me better than I actually am and I can't do it without them. Steve |
Oliver Ross Inner circle Europe 1724 Posts |
Hi everybody,
Even though I think that a lot, if not everything has been said, I chime in to give my experience. I'm a magician and had the opportunity to work twice with theater technicians. Loving all the technical aspects of a show myself, I prepared a light and sound cue sheet for the technicans. By treating them respectfully and telling them that I'm not a real expert of the technical side I was always ready to accept suggestions from them. Both times I got the same feedback from the technician : "Great, that you've prepared cue sheets for everything. You're the only one who came professionally prepared. Thank you very much." They were always kind to give me a hand, explaining why some things would not be possible and what they would suggest in place for it. Once the show finished, I saw them again to thank them for their great work and they told me that it was a real pleasure for them too, since it made things easier for them. Just to let you know, the first show was for a talent show at Disneyland and the second one a magic festival with a FISM winner. So respect the people you're going to work with and they'll respect you as an artist. Oliver |
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