I worked at Busch Gardens Virginia for 6 seasons, and installed an ice rink on their outdoor
stage another 2 seasons. I was in a slightly different situation than most theme
park technicians, in that it was right after retiring and I lived in Williamsburg. I have since worked at Universal Studios Florida, and Cypress Gardens Florida. Busch virginia is without a doubt the most beautiful of all theme parks and is a wonderful environment.
Now having said that, You will be doing the same thing four to five times a day as was stated by Footer. The entertianment staff there is the nicest that I ever worked with.
The show you work on will be already hung gelled and programmed before you arrive. A show at that
park runs for 3 seasons before they change it out.
There is one big production show that requires a pretty large crew and several others that require only a few crew members. The large show moves very fast and requires a lot of scenery changes. There are usually about 4 to 5 crew backstage and 4 in
FOH. Show control is just starting the timecode after the audience applause dies down.
The sound guy on that show will mix about 20 wireless and a timecode controlled
track with about 4 channels of sound. There are 2 followspots, and one fly person. After the first few weeks, the show isn't called except
safety notices from the fly. Everybody knows their parts so well that there isn't any reason to
call the show. Most of the rest of the shows have a
stage manager that also mixes the sound and in some cases one or two other techs. There are 2 cast and crews for each
venue. They refer to them as the Red cast and the Blue cast. If Red and blue do the same show, then each cast will have two days off. On the days that the other cast is off, you will have five shows. On Fri, Sat and Sun, you will have four shows, and the other cast four shows. You will alternate everyother week, being the morning cast and the nesxt week the afternoon cast. On the weeks that you are the morning cast, you may have an opportunity to be on the evening crew of the ampitheatre that does one show just before the
park closes. That
venue changes shows every month and some of the shows require a decent size crew and some only require 2 people. If you are on that crew, you could be operating a Gladiator
followspot that is 420 feet from the
stage. It will give you a whole new understanding in slight movements in a huge
followspot.
If you are in a
venue where the afternoon show is different than the morning show, then you will work 6 days a week and will have either wed, or thursday off. In those venues you will do five shows a day and on the other casts day off you will do 6 shows.
Most people do 4 to an apartment. The
park will give you names of others working in entertainment, but it is up to you to make the connections.
I loved the
park, I loved the shows, but if I was trying to
gain really useable experience, I would take a good summer
stock over Busch.
Tom Johnson