Technician / Backstage / Production Crew

Hope McIntyre

29 Technician / Backstage / Production Crew

Technician / Backstage / Production Crew

There is a myriad of other opportunities for work behind the scenes in theatre. Every department (set, costumes, props, sound, lighting, projections…) can have an array of folks working to support a show. At large theatres there will be several folks either on staff or on contract. For smaller companies, crew may be brought in as needed for tech and performance. Although we are grouping many areas together in this track, this is in no way to suggest that they aren’t extremely important options. For the sake of the current book’s size and scope, we aren’t able to do a deep dive on each but wanted to at least share some of the interviewees’ thoughts on other backstage roles.

Pathways

I started working in theatre when I was 12. So, this is you know, this is lifelong. I got stuck with it, I’m stuck with it forever. And because my family’s been in running theatres for a while, my mother ran a theatre company, so I worked there. And then I graduated. Once I graduated from university when I was 20, 19 or 20, I went right to the Poor Alex Theatre. So, I’ve been doing this now for 36 years… because it’s different now. So in so, you know, 36 years ago what you could do is enter an industry and, and just learn by working. Right? So that’s what I did.

So you could step into the industry, really quite easily with a varying degrees of training and find work and learn by doing, learn by kind of executing the roles. And I think that was fairly common. And I’m not sure exactly why. Maybe it was because there weren’t as many programs as there are now. There weren’t as many graduates as there are now. The work we were doing was maybe a little bit more grassroots.

[What do you attribute to your success and ability to continue to work in the field?] …openness and an empathy and just a real love of working with artists and learning my own craft as an artist. There’s just a deep respect for it and an understanding of the need of it. There are many, many people who work in theatre, I think the ones we all want to work with are the ones who respect what the place of arts is in the world though, the human approaches to arts, but also that think of themselves as a creative part of it, whether you’re a stage manager or a technical director or whatever. And that and I think that’s what has always been exciting to me in that every time you go into a situation, you’re learning something and it’s unlike any industry. And so not everybody can really work in this industry because it is very particular, but if it’s the right industry for you, you can get a lot out of it. – Andrea Lundy, Program Director – Production Design and Technical Arts Program – National Theatre School of Canada, Montreal, QC

Many students interested in going into the production end of things will take a general backstage/production course as part of their training. This provides a good introduction and allows them to try out multiple roles. I’ve seen students discover a love for being a dresser backstage or hanging lights. Some post-secondary institutions also require their introductory theatre or performance courses to put in time supporting department productions. I’ve lost a few acting students who in this process discovered a love for technical work.

A good pathway is always to explore options to volunteer, assist, apprentice, and learn. Some of the best lighting and sound operators I’ve worked with started out as a student technician in university, working in the university’s theatre on rental bookings, and as a result getting a wide breadth of experience. In general, I would say that our production students who excel, never have a problem finding work after graduation.

What role is a good fit for your skills?

Finding a way to experience different roles is both a good way to truly understand the workings of backstage, but also identify what you enjoy and what you have an aptitude for doing.

Here’s a non-exhaustive list and some skill considerations:

Backstage Crew/Stagehands/Running Crew – organized, efficient, focused, quiet, calm and conscientious

Carpenter/Master Carpenter/Assistant Carpenter – awesome woodworking skills, responsive and flexible to often changing set needs

Head Electrician/Electrician/Spotlight Operator – lighting requires both knowledge of electrical logistics but also physics to understand the effect of light

Painters – beyond just being a good artist, scenic painters need to work on techniques like creating different textures while working collaboratively with the set/scenic designer

Head of Props/Props Buyers/Props Makers – managing an often long list of needs for a show, finding, constructing, buying, altering…which requires creativity, imagination, and a range of skills from sewing to construction

Sound Engineer/Sound Technician – often needs to be able to do quick work, have an understanding of both audio technology and the properties of sound, may need to both source and edit, also able to operate sound in a calm and precise manner

Theatre Technician – many venues have a general technician who possesses a range of skills; understanding lighting and sound, being able to operate both, organized, and able to work well with others

Wardrobe Supervisor/Wardrobe Assistants – ability to sew, responsive to needs, understanding of textiles; able to manage the construction, sourcing, maintenance and care of costumes

Wardrobe Crew/Dresser – working backstage means the ability to efficiently and quickly assist actors, requires focus and calm; able to identify the most efficient way to do things under stressful situations

You may also find that some shows have a specific need like for a fly crew, hair and make-up, special effects operation…

Well, I think the ability to work by yourself is really important. So, it’s great, I have had people who do have experience and that’s always so nice because I’m managing a team. But when it comes to show time, if I have to be in the theatre doing like practical work, like putting lights up or something, if I can have somebody that I can just put in there and say, just like, come get me if you have a question. That is game changing in a small company where all of our departments are one person. So, when I can have somebody come in and they can work on their own and they have a basic understanding of what the paperwork means and everything like that, it’s so simple. It’s like so beginner. You learn those things in your first year of working or doing production classes. That’s it. That, it can be as simple as that. It’s not groundbreaking stuff. – Nikki Vigneault, Former Production Manager at Theatre New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB

Getting Work

And you really just have to become that like pest that keeps showing up at the theatre and going I’m here, what do you need from me? And sending in an email isn’t enough. Sending an email with your resume, I get them all the time. I click on them, I open them and then they like, get dusty down at the bottom of the inbox. Nobody is reading those, unless it’s their job to read those. I want somebody who’s going to come in and say, hey, I’m really interested in this. I’m going to school for this. Where we are in terms of like geographical location, there are not a lot of people who are trained to do theatre technical work. So, when a student comes in and they say, I’m really interested in this, I grab them and I’m like, great, I will teach you how to do the stuff. I think it’s very important to have people that will hopefully stay in places like New Brunswick to continue doing that, but also, there’s… you just have to be nice to work with. And you have to have really good listening skills, because nobody wants to repeat themselves three times and you have to just ask questions. Everything else is learned. But if you come in with those three things, you can do almost any job in theatre. And like in the tech and production side, you can work your way up from those three skills. – Nikki Vigneault, Former Production Manager at Theatre New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB

Experience is key to getting hired in many production, backstage or technical roles. Look for those opportunities during training to gain hands-on experience. Then it comes down to contacting theatres, generally the Production Manager or Technical Director, to let them know you are available to work. A cover letter and resume with a clear outline of what you are looking for and when you are available to work is helpful. Or, in smaller centres, a more personal approach such as a call or stopping in to introduce yourself. Some theatres keep a roster of crew they can call on, so it is good to ask to be added to their casual crew list to start. From there more opportunities may present themselves, especially if you do a good job consistently. Another way to get in the door is to contact the heads of Departments at theatres and express interest in any casual labour they may require. The workload of a particular show may result in the Head of Props bringing in additional folks to help build or buy. If your area is on the technical end, then the Head Electrician is often bringing in crew for lighting hang and focus. Be ready to jump right in and keep up.

Again it is all about getting your information to those hiring, letting them know you are out there and ready to work, and then doing well enough that they keep asking you back. As positions open you will be on their radar. You can also request to assist or be mentored if you feel a need to build up your skills and experience. A former student with an interest in props asked me for contacts and I was able to e-introduce them to several props makers in the community. They were all willing to meet for a chat so that the student could really understand the role. This led to an assistantship and then the student started doing props for small independent shows and this led to work on larger shows.

For job postings in this area there will be regional sources, including social media and local arts association mailings, but nationally you can find applicable postings at: Job Postings | Canadian Institute for Theatre Technology and Artsboard | PACT

Just know that you don’t have to know everything. I think though, learning on your own is huge. Don’t wait for people to tell you things, be looking for answers and looking for solutions on your own, all the time. I left university with a focus in lighting design, but I didn’t have a lot of practical knowledge of lighting. It was mostly the design aspect. And so, when I left, I spent a lot of time reading about like why things work the way they do in lighting and the practical, like hanging, channels, dimmers, how to work different lighting boards. I did that on my own time so that when I got into a position and they said, do you know how to work this kind of ETC board, I could say, yes, I do. Or I know enough that I can enhance my skill, but I’m not starting from zero. – Nikki Vigneault, Former Production Manager at Theatre New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB

IATSE / Contracts

Another way to get work is through IATSE.

It is the largest union in the entertainment industry, representing behind-the-scenes workers across film, television, live performance, and tradeshow. IATSE represents over 36,000 workers in Canada. They negotiate for good wages, offer training, benefits and overall better working conditions. Some workplaces or facilities, in our context theatres or venues, are covered by IATSE. Their workers at some point in the past have voted to be represented by the Local IATSE branch. As a result, all those working behind the scenes work under the IATSE collective agreement. These venues then also need to prioritize bringing in IATSE members for crew calls, a system that generally works on the basis of seniority.

Contact your local IATSE and get on the casual call list. You will start at the bottom, but when there are many venues requiring casual labour you can be called in. It can lead to everything from loading in a large concert at the local arena to the set-up for a small performance at a concert hall. It is good pay for generally a few hours of work here and there, allows you to learn, build up your resume, and meet others working behind the scenes. Then you can apply for apprentice status (6 months to 3 years) and work towards your full card advancement. Like other associations or unions, there are union dues to be aware of for casual (10% admin fee), apprentice ($200) and full membership ($400/year).

Much of this work is gig-based, or casual labour, so there won’t be an employment contract. However, expectations should still be clearly laid out. If it is a venue represented by IATSE, then there is a collective agreement that outlines everything from when breaks should occur to overtime pay. If you are being hired for prolonged work in an area outside of IATSE representation, then having a contract in place can be useful for both sides. It can be easy to put in far more hours than you are being paid for, or to not have meal breaks, or to work multiple 12 hour days… if there are no policies or procedures in place.

Like when I started, you know, you just work like you just do the work and you kind of… if you love it, you work, you work, whatever you miss some holidays and all of that. And within the last ten years, that’s just less and less desirable and there’s constantly conversations around what’s the work life balance. And so it’s my generation trying to help people understand that you can have work life balance, but the amount of hard work you have to put into getting to the point where you can balance more, you have to have that in the conversation as well. – Nikki Vigneault, Former Production Manager at Theatre New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB

Shifts and challenges

I do find even for myself coming out of university, and even now, the universities don’t seem to have like the budget or they’re not like kind of coming up to speed fast enough on all of the emerging technology that’s coming out for theatre. When I was in theatre, we weren’t learning about green screen work on stage or like superimposing people on the stage that are in a different room. And those are things that are rapidly becoming present now that we’ve had the pandemic and we’ve had to do theatre in such a creative way. So, I think that just those things in larger theatres will be more helpful for emerging artists. – Nikki Vigneault, Former Production Manager at Theatre New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB

Technology in theatre is rapidly changing. The reality is that many post-secondary institutions do not have the budget to keep up and as a result they may be using older equipment. This is another reason that assistant and apprenticeships can help, allowing you to get experience on the technology in use at a particular venue. Or doing some additional training, professional development, workshops on using specific tech, getting manuals to review, anything to help you keep on top of this constant progress in tech.

So when a student is trying to work with a more challenging personality, you know, their question is, why do we have to deal with these people? Is this, there should be more generosity and you’re kind of trying to balance the, okay, but these people exist. So what are your tools to manage? How do you protect yourself? What do you take home? What do you don’t take home? Anyway, there’s just the conversations that come in multi levels. And most of it is right now. There’s a lot of hard skill conversation going on that’s also super important. But then there’s just so much about soft skills, management of your time, what do you take home? How can you manage your anxiety? What does that mean in a workplace? What are the tools that you that you need in order to do this work? If you really need to do it and coming back to is this industry right for you? Because I find that those who come in with real worry about how to survive in the industry, I’m thinking, well, you just survive because you love the work. You’re just in it. Often, the more they apply themselves and the more they just do the work and gain experience. They just have more confidence in it so there’s less conversation around – I can’t balance my life with this. Now you do things and it takes you 5 hours. In two years, when you do the same task, it’ll take you 2 hours. So there is balance. You’re just not there yet. And you have to have the patience to get there. – Andrea Lundy, Program Director – Production Design and Technical Arts Program – National Theatre School of Canada, Montreal, QC

Like so many other things, you will get better at the work with experience. I would say though that there are personality aptitudes to consider. It can be a high stress situation in the booth or backstage. A calming presence is required. It’s important to really think about how you handle stress and pressure. It is also important to be realistic about how much stress you can handle.

Resources and Tips

I would say the gap is really in confidence and in really deeply understanding that if they have passion for the work, they can make a career out of it, but that it’s really hard for them to land in that area of confidence, that they are constantly worried about all the things that they’re, I think, bombarded with, which is kind of everything has to be perfect at the outset. I, you know, I have this conversation with my students when they come in about having patience, continue to discover who you are in the work. And I think that that’s crucial. And I don’t think there’s very much patience. So I, and I think that’s partly because they’re bombarded with these things that are kind of the end result. The thing that “this is what I’m really good at, I’m going to show you. Look how great it is.” And they’re constantly bombarded with those images, those thoughts. And what they don’t get on a regular basis is a celebration of the hard work that goes into learning the skills that make you good at the thing, to produce this final… We don’t celebrate our skills. – Andrea Lundy, Program Director – Production Design and Technical Arts Program – National Theatre School of Canada, Montreal, QC

There are often organizations, either official or more casual networks, that provide support to those entering the backstage field. Seek out others doing the work. Having someone who can answer questions, share resources, bounce things off of, and just debrief with is crucial. Nationally, the Canadian Institute for Theatre Technology is a great resource. For additional resources as well as support economically and mentally AFC (formerly the Actors’ Fund of Canada but now known as just AFC in order to represent all) is a resource for everyone working in the entertainment industry both onstage and off.

29 Technician / Backstage / Production Crew

License

Share This Book