Production Designer and President of San Francisco-based Stage II Productions, Chris McGregor died of a heart attack on Monday, July 31, 2023, at 61. McGregor is widely known for his creative work for Phish and The Residents as well as lighting and production design for numerous events. His passing was initially confirmed by The Residents, who he had worked with since 1989. McGregor earned a BFA degree from the California Institute of the Arts in 1984.
The Residents, an iconic music and art collective, paid tribute to McGregor and his contributions on social media: “It is with profound sadness that The Residents pay their respect to the passing of Chris McGregor, their longtime lighting and tech guru, as well as a generous, warm-hearted, and true friend… He will be greatly missed.”
He was also well-known for his production design work for Phish, who shared the following statement about McGregor: “RIP Chris McGregor (1962-2023), Production Designer, Creative Visionary and dear friend to the Phish band members.
A backstage run-in with Trey and Fish [drummer Jon Fishman] at the Laguna Seca festival in the spring of 1993 led to one of Phish’s most enduring creative relationships.
Known originally for his pioneering work with The Residents, the legendary music and art collective, Chris first worked with Phish on their 1993 New Year’s Eve Aquarium set at The Centrum in Worcester.
Over the next two decades, Chris was responsible for such iconic Phish moments such as the Baby New Year/Time Factory gag in 1995, the late-night Tower Set at the IT festival in 2003, the Chilling, Thrilling haunted house for the 2014 Halloween set in Las Vegas, and the From Suck to Blow gag at 2014’s New Year’s Eve show in Miami, among others. He also fabricated the chessboard for the band’s tour-long chess match against the audience in Fall 1995, as well as Fish’s Elvis cape at the Aladdin in Vegas in 1996.
But of course Chris was most notable for designing a 16’ flying hot dog that flew through Boston Garden with the band aboard on New Year’s Eve 1994. The hot dog would make its return at Big Cypress in 1999, and for the Meatstick New Year’s gag in 2010, and now hangs on permanent display in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Chris’ influence on Phish cannot be underestimated. We will all miss his wit, his humor, and his vision, and are so grateful for having had the chance to work closely with him for so many years.”
Dan English, Lighting Designer and Inventor of the Refracted Lightstand, reflected on McGregor in an email to PLSN: “A good friend and colleague recently passed away, Chris McGregor. He has been the ultimate hometown hero in the Bay Area for 30 years. He also was the creative mind behind the staging of many Phish New Year’s Eve extravaganzas for many years. He retired recently but has made many contributions to the Bay Area production scene over the years. Some of those included being the first production company to produce events on Alcatraz for T-Mobile, featuring the band Train, and was the first to produce large scale events on Treasure Island as well. He designed the lighting for many of the big radio station shows, as well as the longtime LD for The Residents and countless other projects around the Bay. He was a great friend, teammate, and creative mind. In the 90’s he ran the lighting shop at Bill Graham’s FM productions, then in the 2000’s started a scenic and labor company First Call which later morphed into Stage II Productions. He was well known and well-loved here in San Francisco. I will miss him.”
We at PLSN send our sincere condolences to McGregor’s family, friends, and colleagues. Requiescat in Pace, Chris McGregor.
