Directors!!!

[TechDirector]

So today I was walking up to my tech booth and I saw the director messing around with the sound board. "Hey what are you doing?" I said. "Oh I need to EQ the system" he said. "But I already EQ'ed it and it doesn't need to be touched" I said. And when I looked at the sound board, the entire thing was screwed up!!! It took me 2 hours to EQ the board and he messed it all up!!! So I had to do it ALL OVER AGAIN!!! The advice? WHEN YOU FIRST MEET YOUR DIRECTOR, LAY DOWN SOME GROUND RULES!!! ESPECIALLY IF HE KNOWS NOTHING ABOUT ANYTHING!!!

[tm1000]

Originally Posted by TechDirector

So today I was walking up to my tech booth and I saw the director messing around with the sound board. "Hey what are you doing?" I said. "Oh I need to EQ the system" he said. "But I already EQ'ed it and it doesn't need to be touched" I said. And when I looked at the sound board, the entire thing was screwed up!!! It took me 2 hours to EQ the board and he messed it all up!!! So I had to do it ALL OVER AGAIN!!! The advice? WHEN YOU FIRST MEET YOUR DIRECTOR, LAY DOWN SOME GROUND RULES!!! ESPECIALLY IF HE KNOWS NOTHING ABOUT ANYTHING!!!

LOL! I had this happen when I was in tenth grade, our Choir Teacher wanted to show a movie (in the theatre with the 700 dollar porjector) and since he didn't know how to turn it on, he just played with everything, the eq, our wireless mic system, the mixer. Too bad he got majorly yelled at by The District Office, the TD, and our Stagecraft teacher, he's never touched the system again (thank the Lord)

[delnor]

Is this director a student or staff member? If a student yeah I would say somthing directly to him or tell a staff member about it. People need to know thier place. You are sound so thats what you do, directors direct. If he wants to "direct" you to do somthing with sound, then thats fine. Otherwise he shouldnt touch it.

[TheMockery]

The saying "Do what the director tells you to do, then do it the right way" might apply to this situation as well. But, of course, be respectful when addressing control issues. I definitely agree with delnor though, everyone needs to know their place and the limits of their abilities..

[TechDirector]

Originally Posted by TheMockery

The saying "Do what the director tells you to do, then do it the right way" might apply to this situation as well. But, of course, be respectful when addressing control issues. I definitely agree with delnor though, everyone needs to know their place and the limits of their abilities..

lol......nah i'll just act snooty to him for as long as i go to the high school. lol j/p. I have addressed the issues and i think he's finally getting the idea that i don't want him touching my sound board. lol.

[thorin81]

OK! There is definitely a chain of command that exists when it comes to something like this. I am under the opinion that when the show goes into tech rehearsal that the director's job is over. He has no bussiness changing anything else. PERIOD! I also think that everyone has a job in the theatre for a reason and you do your job and no one elses. There needs to exist a definite respect for the abilities of each of the departments and you follow the proper chain again to change anything. Never do it yourself (unless you are in an educational theatre setting, then the director/instructor has every right and responsibilty to make sure that the show gets the best that it can.). Let me know if you have a different opinion. I would Love to hear it!!


Good Luck!!

Thorin81

[The_Terg]

I's say that I go through that problem weekly, only on a lesser scale. My settings are constantly lost by multiple people. Firstly, the AV coordinator of the school (Who sets up for assemblies) has a tendency to adjust one channel. this is not a problem, I can just copy the settings over.

However, the board settings are getting lost more and more often by someone else. I suspect it to be a younger techie, ignoring my signs and remarks. Ill usually come to school the next day to find all my EQ's neutralled and trim's neutralled.... (arg....) Thankfully I have a pretty darn good memory for that kinda stuff.

[ship]

Originally Posted by thorin81

OK! There is definitely a chain of command that exists when it comes to something like this. I am under the opinion that when the show goes into tech rehearsal that the director's job is over. He has no bussiness changing anything else. PERIOD! I also think that everyone has a job in the theatre for a reason and you do your job and no one elses. There needs to exist a definite respect for the abilities of each of the departments and you follow the proper chain again to change anything. Never do it yourself (unless you are in an educational theatre setting, then the director/instructor has every right and responsibilty to make sure that the show gets the best that it can.). Let me know if you have a different opinion. I would Love to hear it!!


Good Luck!!

Thorin81

I would agree in principal but seperate out the job of the light board operator and that of the designer. A designer designs the show to his specifications. The light board operator is like the stage manager in that once the curtain opens the board operator is trusted in following thru with the director or designers intentions and not introducing his or her own design or concepts. Slight technical adjustments apply and can be as needed modified by the running crew - stage manager acting as director and designer and board operator acting as the operator tech person in fulfilling the designer's intent. No matter how bad your opinion of the design, it's still the designer or in this case faculty manager's design that is being produced not the tech person's own interpitation of it. Should it become necessary to correct technical problems after the designer's work is done, the stage manager is respoinsible for representation of the outcome given imput from the tech person on site that sound board operator.

That's at least a strict description of the difference between what is designed and what is implemented. The designer might not know better but short of your help in the design it should not be changed if at all possible if you respect the chain of command and what is being done - no matter how badly. Realistically, the board operator has lots of responsibility on his or her hands. Artisitic design things are constantantly under scruteny technically. It's just a question of realizing the designer's intent in a technical way given it could not be done in the prescence of the designer for it. If the board op is the designer there is no problem. If he or she is not than it should be approved by the stage manager in my opinion.

It also covers your ass.

I have never really experenced this because our director was formerly the dech directer at AHS, and i learned just about everything about tech from him. So he can touch what he wants lol. But he was fired , well he "resigned" whatever. Man people were flipping out all over, i cried too. So we are getting a new director for next year.. i hope they know what their doing.

[avkid]

our director does not touch our equipment ,he just yells at us to clean the booth!!