Theater folk at BYOAC ... Identify yourselves!

[RyoriNoTetsujin]

All right, I've noticed that there are more than a few BYOAC members that have at least some interest - if not current, actual employment - in professional theater.  I thought it would be fun and interesting to ask what everyone's specialty was.

I myself am an Equity actor (and I'm guessing I'm in the minority here! )  Any AEA Stage Managers?  IATSE?  Other unions I'm not familiar with?  (There MUST be some carpenters, deck crew, electricians around on the forum!)  Heck, any AGMA folks?  Non-union folks? 

I'm not going to "out" anyone ... even though it's obvious, or has already been stated, in some cases.   I just thought it would be interesting to hear from folks about that side of things, and how it relates to your perspective on our happy hobby.  Anybody care to divulge?

[polaris]

i do lighting in the uk ,i do littlle bits of theatre here and there , i have provided the knowledge of lighting gel to this forum for a few problems people have had, along with bf .

[Ken Layton]

I have been a theater tech a little longer than I've been repairing coin operated equipment. I install, repair, and operate all types of motion picture theater equipment, although sometimes I've been pressed into service for stage work and carbon arc followspot work. No I'm not a union member. There's no IATSE here in Olympia anymore. What's left of IATSE is still in the city of Seattle.

[bfauska]

Assistant Technical Director at the Seattle Repertory Theatre here.  I find lots of similarities between the work and this hobby.  Many useful materials and tools definitely cross over.  I used to be in a union position when I was the Scene Shop Foreman at Seattle Children's Theatre, that was with IATSE local 15 in Seattle, like Ken said the union around here is based in Seattle, although the jurisdiction covers just about the whole state and parts of Idaho I believe.

At one point I was a member of Local 488 which is the Pacific Northwest's film and television local for IATSE, that was when I worked on the movies Steven King's Rose Red and Paramount's The Hunted. 

I've been behind the scenes since my sophomore year in high school about 13 years ago, I've acted a few times and enjoyed it, but I think my carpentry/design skills are a little more refined.

Right now the "Rep" is in our off season so I am working in a shop that builds museum displays and exhibit parts, we are working on some cases for the Museum of Flight, and Sci-fi museum here in Seattle, and in a week I will be headed out to do some work at the computer museum in Albuquerque, NM.  The cabinets we build at this job are definitely good ways to learn some great techinques for arcade construction.

[RyoriNoTetsujin]

polaris wins the award for being the furthest away (from me, at least!) 

Aha!  bfauska works for the Rep! I thought you were west coast, but that's fantastic!  I miss Seattle so much (I'm originally from WA, did my undergrad at UW.)  We probably have 2 or fewer "degrees of separation" ... but then again, that's theater for you.

And Ken is in Olympia!  Man, all the cool kids are back home!

Okay, so where are my Californian theater/tv/movie folks?

[shardian]

No professional status, but me and the wife have been involved in amateur theater since high school. She does dancing/acting, I am more involved with set design/construction and stage management.
A local city does one or two outdoor theater productions every summer and we have done a few, but haven't in the last two years due to not having time.

[bfauska]

I WAS a California local a while ago.  I lived in Sacramento for 4 years and worked at a High school/district performing arts center, but after 4 years working at a high school I figured it was time to move back home, nobody wants to do high school for more than 4 years do they?

[DrumAnBass]

Art Directors Guild here, IATSE Local 800

[bfauska]

Art Directors Guild here, IATSE Local 800

Art director eh? Work on anything we may have hear of?  I have always enjoyed the various aspects of design, I just have a hard time originating any ideas, once an idea is on the plate I can fine tune it and come up with additions for days, I just don't do the original concepts very good.

[DrumAnBass]

Well I actually work doing "motion design" for TV promos and network branding.  If you watch TV here in the states you have seen some of my work ;-)

[Zero_Hour]

bfauska - Were you involved in any of August Wilson's productions when he was still alive? I ask only because a good friend and former roomie, was an assistant to Wilson, even directed him in his One Man show up there.

My theater experience was pretty much exclusively college/community, with one dreadful professional audition, but friends and acquaintances from those days have wound up in: NY(lighting), LA(acting & casting), as well as carrying on back home in Pittsburgh (Lighting/IATSE Union Rep), which is a lot of success in professional theater for a school that didn't even have theater program at the time.

So while I'm not directly involved in it, I sure do talk to people about it a fair amount. 

[bfauska]

Nope I never had the pleasure of meeting Wilson (well that's assuming it was a pleasure, I've never heard anything about his personality, so maybe honor is a better word.)  I started at the Rep last fall.  I did get to work a little with Phylicia Rashad this season during her directorial debut on our production of Gem of the Ocean by none other than August Wilson, it was the last play of his that we hadn't produced yet, now we've done them all.  Wilson's wife made several appearances and she seemed lovely.  Phylicia is a very nice woman, and did an excellent job for her first time directing, if not from an artistic standpoint (mixed reviews) then at least from a professional standpoint.

[Zero_Hour]

Very cool stuff. I haven't had the chance to see Gem, or Radio Golf yet, but Wilson's stuff is sort of mandatory viewing for Pittsburgh theater folk.  I never had more than a handshake with Wilson myself, so I'm certainly in no position to shed light on him as a personality, but I am certainly a fan of his work.

[clanggedin]

I used to build sets for a semi-professional theater here in Utah. I was hired to renovate/restore the building and then moved over to set comstruction.  I have also done some acting for the Utah Shakespearian Festival and Provo Theatre Company. We have been family friends with the Osmonds for years and so once in a while I'll help Donny, Marie, Merrill or Alan with local stuff like the Stadium of Fire and other little gigs they do here in Utah. Since most of the Osmonds have headed to Branson I don't do much with them anymore.

[polaris]

i cant let that namedrop just pass.
you know the osmonds!
theyre welsh apparently.
cant get better than that