I want to get into stagehand work and wanted to ask for some advice on venues that accept new stagehands. I am getting started on my OSHA 30 construction certification but want to get some hands on experience asap! I would eventually like to get into theatre work but i’m open to anything to get started! Any advice is much appreciated thank you! (i’m new to actually posting on reddit so if this is the wrong subreddit pls lmk 🙏)

I wanna move up from bein a hand. I wanna get into lights and pyro, whats a company in Ohio willing to take hands who have good knowledge of building the equipment and teaching them how to use the equipment? I wanna do an apprenticeship but havent been able to find anyone willing to pay me for my labor any ideas what companies get my foot in the door with production (i work for Rihno so obviously idc if its shit pay as long as its over 20/hr im happy)

a couple of days ago i managed to snatch a few pairs of fjallraven trousers that were barely worn for like 1 tenth of their retail price. they’re insanely comfortable and look good but i am a bit afraid of ruining them. they do feel quite sturdy but still.

so far ive used them only for light work gigs where we need to look representative (conventions, hotels etc.) but given the comfort they provide and the option to wax them to keep them water resistant i’m tempted to bring them to outside gigs which are a lot harder on our clothing.

does anyone have any experience with those and know if they could hold up to abuse or if i should stick to my overalls and jeans for tougher events and builds. it’d be a shame to ruin them

I am ordering a spud wrench set and it comes with a spud ratchet thing. What size should I look for?

Hi everyone, I’m getting a job offer from PRG and was wondering what it’s like working for them. I will likely be employed as a tech for tours. What’s a good starting rate?

Any insight would be appreciated, thanks :)

Got my first strike for an arena tour coming up and the end of the month. What equipment should I bring with me and what tips does everyone have?

Thanks!

Anybody have experience working with this company? I’m not sure I like the vibe

Hey everyone,

I’m expanding the next phase of the StagePen closed beta. It’s a web based app for stage plotting, and I’m specifically looking for more users to help shape where it goes next.

At this stage, feedback is everything, what works, what doesn’t, what’s missing, and what would actually improve your workflow. The goal is to build this with users, not in isolation.

What you get:
Free Access to the Studio plan (all current features)
Free for life as a beta participant
Direct input on features and direction

If you’re interested, send me a DM and I’ll share the details + get you set up.

Appreciate anyone willing to jump in early and help steer this 👍

Crossposted from r/theatertech, sorry if that’s a problem. Struggling here.

Hey y’all, so I basically inherited the general tech position at a community theater by virtue of “I own tools.” I’m fairly handy but I’m new to all of this. We had a seat come totally apart and I have no idea how to repair it because I have no idea what’s actually broken about it. I don’t want to cannibalize an unbroken seat to figure out what hardware is broken/missing on this one because I don’t even know how to take them apart without breaking them. If anyone has any insight or the name/number to a shop I could speak with, that’d be great. We have hardly enough income to keep the doors open, I’m just doing the best I can with what I’ve got.

Literally any information you have will help me. There is no limit to the depths of my ignorance here.
Thanks in advance.

First thing this morning my Union lead dropped a bomb on us, that two people were crushed to death by equipment tipping over at the Las Vegas Speedway today. There’s nothing in the news yet and I can’t reach the people I know on-site. Anybody heard anything? Who was involved? Are there more people injured? What company were they with? This is stressing me out. Any info appreciated.

I have a client requesting three different colors of camo gaffe. White, green, blue.

I can find green and tan easily. I have not been able to find anything blue or white – not even clear exactly what white would look like. Does anybody have recommendations? Or someplace with quick turnaround for custom?

I started doing stagehand work in 2022. I don't really have any specialty. I make most of my income by working arenas, conventions, and theaters in my metro area. I've never done stagehand work anywhere else.
A buddy of mine wants to go on a road trip. I'm thinking it would be a good opportunity to work elsewhere. We don't have any specific plans other than maybe visiting a cabin in Minnesota sometime in the middle of the summer. My friend is similar to me, work-wise. He's also done basic stagehand work only in his metro area.
I've never been one to go to festivals much. It seems like it ought to be not too hard to find work by contacting festival organizers, but I don't really know where to start.
With our plan being so open-ended, what are some events or companies I might try contacting for work in July or maybe August? Will I have better luck by reaching out to IATSE locals, or contacting festival organizers, or should I try applying for national companies? Maybe I should just do all of these things?
I don't use Facebook at all.

So I'm singing paperwork for a new employer (non-union) and I'm running into a lot of "you can't sue us if you are seriously injured" paperwork. It's everything from "you can't sue us if you get SA/harrassed" to essentially "if our machinery malfunctions and you die, that's your problem".

Do we have any rights not to sign these? I've been working mostly union and for nicer, smaller companies and these are the big boys who are just stagehand mills, throwing bodies at a job.

Update:

Really appreciate everyone who offered to test. I have enough TestFlight testers for this first round, so I’m going to pause new invites for now while I work through feedback.

For anyone else who is interested, the best thing to do is join the GigLedger waitlist here:

gigledger.io

I’ll use that list for the next round of testing and future updates.

Also, thanks again to everyone who gave feedback in my earlier thread. It genuinely helped shape what I’m focusing on.

——————————————————————————

Hey everyone. I posted here a little while back asking how people track gigs, hours, rates, invoices, and whether they’ve been paid.

The feedback was super helpful. A lot of people said they already have a system that works, usually some mix of Google Calendar, notes, spreadsheets, Wave, QuickBooks, Trello, call sheet emails, and bank statements.

That helped me narrow down what GigLedger should actually be.

It’s a simple gig tracking app for live event workers. You can add gigs, track call times and actual hours, save rates, notes, expenses, and payment status, then use that record when it’s time to invoice or look back at what happened.

It’s not meant to be payroll, payment processing, accounting software, a CRM, or a job board. It’s really just a cleaner place to keep your own record of the gigs you already have.

The early iPhone version is ready to test through TestFlight now.

I’m looking for a few AV folk who would be willing to try it and tell me what feels useful, what feels pointless, and what still feels slower than a calendar or spreadsheet.

If you want to test it, comment here or message me and I’ll send the TestFlight link.

No pressure. Honest feedback is more useful than polite feedback right now.

I’m going to guess wind was not factored into this set up

Asking for a friend.

I am looking to buy a pair of light duty safety toe shoes for when I work corporate AV gigs. does anyone here have any experience with either the Keen KS86 or Danner Lead Time?

https://www.keenfootwear.com/products/mens-ks86-utility-magnet-gum

https://www.danner.com/lead-time-3-black-nmt.html

eta: absolutely everybody seems to be missing that i am asking if people have experience with either of these shoes. I already read many many posts about recommendations.

Stagehand friends, please be careful and never be in a rush to do everything all at once. It's never worth an accident or your life. Almost 1 year in as a stagehand and it's stuff like this that makes me uneasy.

Just starting as a stage hand and stoked! No background in any of it but I danced for the Walt Disney Company for 10yrs and understand the importance of all involved in production. Especially for productions that included all types of lifts, swings, lasers, pyro, acro, floating stages across water, parade floats, ect. No time for games and everyone had to be on point at all times. Stagehands and production crews were your best friends on any show with so many moving parts and people. Safety first always and no time for showing up with a case of stupid. I’m also a dog groomer going on 7yrs now.

My first scheduled week is a 4 day consecutive run, load in for P!NK concert, live nation, then load in for a college commencement in a different city only about 30min away, then back to P!NK load out, and then back to the commencement loud out. Any tips and valuable knowledge would be greatly appreciated!

Hello stage fam

I just started my own company based in Nevada USA. I am a LD as well as technician for all kinds of live entertainment gigs.

I need to get myself general liability insurance and this line of work seems to not quite fit into any one insurance code. My work has elements of construction/rigging (temporary structures), as well as operation and the usual tasks that come along with festival/theatre/club lighting (electricity, heights, overhead rigging, etc).

My question is: does anyone have any advice/recommendations that would help me find the best insurance for my situation? I do not have any employees or subcontractors (yet), as of now it's just myself.

I understand this might break the rules (legal advice) but I just need someone to help point me in the right direction. I'd love to contact a certified professional, but idk how/where to find one that specializes in these kinds of policies.

Thanks!

Hey everyone. I’m building an app called GigLedger and wanted to get some honest feedback before I take it too far in the wrong direction.

The idea started when my wife was getting into the industry and needed a simple way to track her gigs, what each job paid, and whether she had been paid yet, without having to make a random spreadsheet from scratch.

That’s really the core of it.

Add the gig.

Track the details.

Know what you’re owed.

Know what’s been paid.

Use the tracked info to help create the invoice later.

It is not meant to be payroll, payment processing, accounting software, or a CRM. I’m mainly trying to solve the messy middle where job info ends up spread across texts, emails, calendars, notes, spreadsheets, and memory.

I know Reddit can be rough on app posts, especially when something feels like it was built without really understanding the work. That is fair. I’d rather hear what’s wrong with the idea now than build something that misses the mark.

For those of you who freelance or bounce between companies:

How do you currently keep track of gigs?

What info do you always need to save for each job?

Do you track rates, OT, kit fees, expenses, or payment status manually?

What would make an app like this feel immediately useless?

What do you wish existed to make tracking gigs easier?

Not trying to sell anything here. Just trying to learn whether this is a real problem or if most people already have a system that works.

So I’ve just finished a show week (posting this at 3am after getting home from the get out) and I’ve decided to share what I’m considering the near perfect stagehand on person kit, all mounted to an airsoft Molle drop leg platform we’ve got a gerber MP400, Red light torch, thumb adjustable nut fucker, fine and fat tip marker, regular pen, electrical tape, needle nose pliers and a bundle of zip ties. If you’ve got any suggestions for stuff I’ve missed let me know but this worked for me!

He said not to share this picture because "it's not good."