The promoter rep plays a vital, yet often unsung role in making sure the show goes on. Nook Schoenfeld recently spoke with Chris Weathers, Director of Productions for the Central U.S. region for Live Nation, who’s based in Chicago. “I have the job of having to look after a show from several angles,” Weathers says. “I need to often explain to traveling road crews that they do not own the building, they just rented it for the day, and there are rules. Like no smoking inside. At the same time, I may find myself in the middle of a heated argument elsewhere. A stage manager is screaming at a house guy to remove a hockey dasher. The house guy is yelling back that this dasher has been in place for 35 years, and it isn’t coming out for this show. Now I know, all I have to do is separate these two people for a little while. The hockey dasher will eventually come out, but you may have to wait 30 minutes while we locate the venue person who can accommodate this. There’s always a solution, and I’m often the person tasked with putting out fires.”
-From “PLSN Interview,” PLSN, April 2018, page 46
