JOB DESCRIPTION OF THE TECHNICAL DIRECTOR



The technical director must communicate directly with the designer from the beginning of the design. If something looks "impractical, time consuming, or expensive", the technical director must say so as soon as possible. The technical director must receive working drawings of the set (gound plans, side elevations, finish drawing/rendering, rear elevations when necessary) three weeks prior to the date the set is schedules to start to be constructed.

A complete timetable will be made with the designers input before work starts on the set. This should include a daily schedule of what is built and/or painted so the director and Advisory Board can be advised of deadlines and progress. If help is needed beyond what is provided, the Advisory Board needs to be notified as soon as possible in order to insure all deadlines are met. The schedules should be drawn up when the plans are presented to the technical director from the designer, three weeks prior to the start of construction.

The first production of the season has a minimum of five weeks for construction and painting. The technical director can begin one to two weeks prior to this time, but the City of Gladstone must be notified of the work schedule. The second production has only a four week construction and painting period. Some construction can take place for the second show during the run of the first production if it can be produced and stored in the storage shed onsite. (In general, the set should take two weeks to build and two weeks to paint. Of course this is just a general "rule of thumb".) The stage can not be used for scenery until all venues have finished using the theatre in June. This is usually the Blues Fest. There is usually three weeks to set up the scenery before the first production. There are no activities schedules in between productions.

The set must be built and "working" for the first rehearsal in the park. The first rehearsal is usually on the Sunday night before the opening on Friday night at the park. All set props, scenery, and anything used in the show must be present and "working for the first rehearsal in the park. We would prefer that all painting be completed by the Wednesday night dress rehearsal because that is when the photos of the cast and the set are taken.

Any changes of the original design must be presented ot the director and accepted. The technical director must be informed of all changes and revisions of the schedule as soon as possible.

The stage and dress room area must be clean and ready for rehearsal for the rehearsal in the park which is usually the Sunday before the Friday the production opens. The stage and dressing room must be especially clean for the dress rehearsals: Two nights before opening night.

The technical director must be present for all rehearsals at the park and the run of the show. This can only be changed by the director of the show.

The technical director and scene designer must have a key to all buildings. They are responsible for locking up the site, along with the director. The over-riding responsiblilty of locking up and alarming the buildings rests with the technical director unless the director and/or designer agree to a specific change.These are the only people that will be allowed to use the code to the alarm system unless the city prefers this rests with only one person. The code to the alarm system can not be given to anyone else under any circumstance for security reasons.

The roll door can be very dangerous and only the designer/technical director should operate it. Once the "drop" has been installed on the roll door, it CAN NOT BE OPENED ALL THE WAY AND MUST BE STOPPED AT A DETERMINED HEIGHT. (USUALLY TWELVE FEET FOUR INCHES).

The wooden floor has a slot of flooring that must be removed in order to allow the roll door to go completely down to the concrete floor. This flooring must be installed for every performance and removed every time the roll door comes down for locking up the building.

The technical director is responsible for lighting design and sound setup.

All metal plates for the lighting and sound system must be replaced after each rehearsal and performance. When the speakers and lights are being used, the metal plates should still cover the holes, but allow the cord to come through a small slot. This keeps the audience from tripping of falling into the holes.

All lighting equipment, sound equipment, electricity in the dressing rooms, EVERYTHING, must be turned off during the lock-up of the facility. NOTHING OF ANY VALUE CAN BE LEFT OUTSIDE OR IT WILL BE STOLEN. This is an outside operation and everything must be placed inside after a rehearsal, production, or construction at the site.

All gates and doors must be locked and double checked before alarming and leaving the premise. You will be held responsible for anything left unlocked, or left outside, or left "on" such as curing irons in the dressing rooms.

You must be present and early for the strike which is held the day after the closing of the production. The set and lights are completely taken down after the final production of each show. After the final show of the season, the platforms that surround the orchestra are removed, the set, the lighting trees, the speaker trees, the lighting and spot tables, the sign on the corner of Troost and 76th street, and anything else except the stage floor itself is removed and stored in the shed. We do have help for all strikes.

The technical director and set designer must provide their own truck to transport supplies to the theatre. They must also supply their own tools.

You do have one helper for ten weeks to do technical work. This person is paid by the city and may or may not have much experience in building scenery. This person must be supervised at all times by the technical director.


SOME OF WHAT WE WILL BE LOOKING FOR IN A TECHNICAL DIRECTOR

They must present their qualifications and background in scene design: education, training, and experience.

They must present a portfolio of their past work when interviewed, and show their ability to read and build from working drawings: ground plans, side elevations, rear elevations, etc...

They must have past experience building large scale scenery, working with mobile scenery, counterweight systems, turn tables, wagons, drops, and special affects.

They must have a strong working knowledge in scenic construction (wagons, platforms, flats, Hollywood walls, stairs, and lighting) electricity, budgets, working with standard sizes or "stock sizes", and are they efficient. They must be able to build in a safe, quick, and economical manner.

Do they have access to a truck in order to transport supplies to the theatre? They need to know that they must supply their own tools.

Can they paint? Can they do any texturing? Can they solve technical problems on the spot?

This person above all, must have an even temperament and work well under stress.