There are two main ingredients that I need for every gig; the local crew I work with and my “go-to” guy. I believe there is an art form to working with people and getting the most use out of each person based on their individual persona. The word “stagehand” covers a broad spectrum of people all over the world.
In the concert and theatre worlds, the lighting techs are often fortunate to work with IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees), or union, stagehands. These crews have been around the block and are pretty familiar with most gear that crosses their paths. They build different shows constantly, so they get to work with just about every gadget, light fixture or P.A. that’s out there. On the contrary, touring crews constantly set up the same light rig and P.A. every day. They don’t always see all the advantages of how other people may do the same job they do. You can learn a lot by watching some IATSE guys work.
Of course, not every venue on a concert tour is a union hall. In the place of IATSE crew, you can expect some great crews in a select number of venues; guys that have been in this biz for a while and know their way around a stage. But more often than not, you are going to get some unskilled labor wrapped around a few key people who may have actually worked a few shows. These people are not as experienced as a good crew, but it’s up to you to see how useful you can make this manpower.
Last week, I was having lunch at some arena. I was listening to two young aspiring LDs talk about how useless the stage hands are in the clubs they have been touring in this year. These guys flat-out agreed that they would prefer to set up 20 movers and wire them all personally rather than go through the trouble of showing the local labor how to do it. I chalk it up to being young and inexperienced, but basically, these guys are so wrong. New stagehands are only as good as the person instructing them.
First of all, they provide muscle. First thing I have them do is carry the trusses and lay them out in their proper place, only once. Then I look around for the smallest crew members to bolt the truss together. Anyone can do that, but not everyone can stack dimmer racks and lug heavy cables. Use the larger crew members for that. Early into the load-in, you can usually pick out one person with a good, strong mind. Show them how to lay the cable looms on the truss and attach the multi connections. Show another person how to attach the spansets to the truss and have them connect every pickup point. Take 20 seconds to show one guy how to run up a chain motor with a pickle and have them repeat the process until they’re all done. Don’t be afraid to teach and then trust someone to do it right.
If you can keep everyone working on their own particular job, it keeps them busy and moving around the work area. That prevents the hands from constantly stopping to chat with each other, which creates a work stoppage. To a lot of new hands, our business is fascinating. They may never wish to pursue a career in entertainment, but while they are there, they are anxious to work. I try to turn a whole load-in into a fun time for everyone. I make fun of everything from pulling on 300- foot cables to having four girls unstack all the moving lights cases from on top of each other. Motivate your hands while making fun of assorted crew members at the same time.
I make sure I never leave stagehands idle with nothing to do. As soon as that happens, one of three things will happen, all of them bad: One, the hand will walk off to the bathroom or get stolen by another department because he was standing there doing nothing; two, the hand will start conversations with other people walking by, thus stopping that hand from working as well; or three— my personal favorite—you have given them a moment to use their cell phone. And they are not going to hang up right away just because you suddenly need their help.
Good stagehands are only as good as the leadership in front of them. My favorite arena is Madison Square Garden in NYC. The hands there are the best. These guys routinely dump 10 trucks of gear, drive it up five floors of ramp and deposit all of it on the arena floor before opening up anything other than a rigging box. Then they come at you en masse and start building your stuff at the speed of sound. What normally takes three hours to construct is built in an hour. That is because they are departmentalized. Each department has a take-charge boss. Mongo grabs the rigging plot and does all your work for you. Show Chief the box of motor cables and walk away; he’ll deal with it. Cha takes the light plot and hangs the fixtures precisely. Explain to the IBEW how much power you need and which dimmers get which feeder, and it’s done correctly the first time. These guys are all over you to tell them what needs to be done. If you are not on your game, they will ride you for taking too long.
Believe it or not, I use the same strategy of dealing with local labor in foreign countries. It’s all about communication. It’s not about the language being different. You can always find an interpreter. Hand signals and slow talking work wonders for me. Foreign stagehands are generally good workers and want to please you. With the possible exception of Philadelphia and the country of Italy, I think most stagehands want to work hard for you. (Attention readers without a sense of humor: This is called sarcasm.—Ed.)
Many lighting designers have a tech they trust to prep their systems, no matter who the lighting vendor is. I think every good designer needs a guy who can come up with technical answers. I used to know all this stuff, but I’m afraid I no longer have all the answers. Instead, I’ve got an answer man. Whenever I’m asked how much a truss weighs or how much power I need for a show, I get a dumb look on my face. Then I pick up the phone and call the Goose. That’s the name I gave Mike Hosp years ago. He’s one of the few people I know who, if he doesn’t have the answer off the top of his head, will have one in five minutes.
I design things, but sometimes I do not know the logistics of doing what I envision. I may have a whacky idea to put 50 Versa Tubes in a row, but have no idea how to address them, let alone construct a frame to hold them. But Goose does. On top of that, it’s a thing of beauty watching that guy direct 20 stagehands at once. The number one greatest job any crew chief does is to keep his local crew busy constantly. If you have all the answers and can work a crew properly, you will find yourself in more demand than most lighting designers.
E-mail Nook at nschoenfeld@plsn.com.
