Do you allow inexperienced light techs to use your equipment

tymckz

Member
This ongoing class that wants to use our lighting system now wants me to train people who have never touched a light board to use the equipment. I realize it's not in the realm of impossibility to train people but we have a pretty firm rule, you must have experience on lighting equipment to use our equipment. What's the worst thing that can happen? Do other theatres have a hard fast rule, experienced only? Thanks
 
Worst thing is they spill something on the console. Doubling down they find a way to clear all information on the console creating more work to rebuild everything.
 
I think the most important thing to teach is the proper way to use something. You can also explain why that's the proper way. Things like order of operations. The general way to operate things simply. Don't give them more information that they seem comfortable with but don't hold things back out of spite, not wanting them to succeed.
When teaching that, tell them "do this".
I learned in many business and language classes never tell someone what NOT to do because then they'll really want to do it. ONLY tell them the correct way.
 
I guess it depends on the equipment. My venue doesn't have a problem letting qualified people loose on the console. The trick is qualifying them.

If they are really inexperienced then we operate the gear. If they are a little experienced then we set up some submasters or a magic sheet and show them what to press. If they are more adventurous, we lock out the gear that could be damaged by improper use. It helps to have a good backup strategy for console programming files. It helps to have a dimmer rack where the dimmers can be capped at less than full output and the relays that power the discharge lamp MLs can be disabled.

The really inexperienced people are usually too afraid of a console to misuse it. They are looking for an easy way to make some finite changes. It's the adventurous ones that need to be watched, and maybe groomed for a career.
 
I should mention that these are not light techs. I can't edit that subject. These are student actors who they want to use the equipment. They have no future in lighting or desire to learn more than how to turn it on and make it run.
 
When I was in the the educational theatre realm I always stuck inexperienced people on console because that was usually all that I had. As long as you have back-ups of your important show files and layout the rules about liquids around the console as Amiers states and maybe some initial supervision there shouldn't be much harm they can do.

I found some of my best assistants and programmers this way. Again it is just educational so they are not going to keep doing it after but it got them involved more than just pick stuff up and moving it. And who knows they mind find a passion and change their mind about being an actor.

At a fine arts camp I worked at I had a 11 year old program a show for me. He was very interested in learning the keyboard short cuts for the Ion so even though we had the console he programmed the entire thing on keyboard. It blew my mind he could remember all the short cuts.
 
Having worked in educational theater at both the high school and college level I have no problem turning students loose on a console with rules in place. First of all he younger ones take to technology rather quickly and as soon as they realize it's simply a computer they are off and running. The question I have for you is what type of console do you have? Is it something that has faders that you can program for them to create several useful looks? Can you set up a macro that restores the console to a certain state so if they change things you can quickly get back to work? Is it an Obsession so you can torture them? Seriously, make it easy for them to do what they need to do, make a backup on a drive and keep it on your keychain and put a big "NO DRINKS" sign up.
 
Worst thing is they spill something on the console. Doubling down they find a way to clear all information on the console creating more work to rebuild everything.
And / or they change the display's language from English to Swahili overnight the night before opening; when you phone them and ask which of them reads Swahili and will they please stop by and reset it to English, none of them admit to even having touched it. It was a Strand console and they changed it from English to German. I ended up having to read the English instructions and push the appropriate buttons until I was able to reselect English.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard
 
I should mention that these are not light techs. I can't edit that subject. These are student actors who they want to use the equipment. They have no future in lighting or desire to learn more than how to turn it on and make it run.
You never know, this might be just the thing that causes a kid to get interested in theater tech.
 
My goal with less-experienced users is always to educate them; I'd rather spend some time with them and build up their skillset than create a 'foolproof' or dumbed-down system. That being said, it's often an issue to have enough time to properly train them, or, more to the point, enough time when my attention doesn't have to be drawn to other matters.

Something you might consider is a day or a full weekend that you can spend with time with one or more folks to show them around the lighting console.

It helps to have a good baseline show-file, so if, for example, your moving lights need to be powered on and off in a particular way, you have a macro or sequence that does things in the correct order. I find it imperative, though, to teach new board ops *why* it's programmed that way, in addition to just how to execute a macro.
 
Everyone starts out inexperienced.

We aren't an education facility, we're a volunteer theatre (although part of our articles is to educate, and we have sponsorship programmes). We get new members who have friends in theatre and would like to try it out - maybe doing lots of different "jobs" (stage hand, props, sound and lights usually) until they find one they like. When I joined, in 2011, I hadn't touched a (rheostat) dimmer since I left school in '79, but they took me on and showed me what was where, how to do things, and I learnt the Strand 300, and when we replaced it with an Ion, I learnt that. Now I train new members (some of whom have never even seen a lighting console before) in the same way. It's very satisfying, seeing an interest take root and grow.

So a bit of trust and some good ground rules (and backups) are needed, and a little time to lay down the basics, and it could set someone down a new career path.
 
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I guess we have equal trouble with experienced and inexperienced... Sort of a gentlemans agreement had to become a harder rule to not change the basic hang/patch much..or put it back to base, Because the stage areas don't change, and we do 5 shows a year sometimes with quick turnover..often with one person doing ALL the hang, aim, design, programmng. Then someone would come in and even re address the LED's (WTF??) and you come in to do a quick re aim, hang specials, build your show, and nothing works..

Better now with the ion because you can save each iteration of a show, along with a base patch, and penalty of death if you re address the led's Then stuff is pretty easy to identify and make work without a lot of aerial time. Oh yeah all fixed battens.. and catwalks.
 
They're students, right? They will be inexperienced until they have some training and lab time, and this will NEVER change.

What's so sacred about the console that mere mortals may not be allowed to use it?
 
They're students, yes, but they have to be taught. If totally inexperienced people play with stuff they have no idea how to properly control, they can do damage that is on MY BUDGET TO FIX. Either give them something idiot-proof (off-on switch) or make arrangements for (and proper payment for) proper training.,
 
They're students, yes, but they have to be taught. If totally inexperienced people play with stuff they have no idea how to properly control, they can do damage that is on MY BUDGET TO FIX. Either give them something idiot-proof (off-on switch) or make arrangements for (and proper payment for) proper training.,
Even something as simple as not slamming the entire rig from zero to 100% in a zero count thus drastically increasing our peak demand rates for an entire month.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard
 
If it wasn't for inexperienced light techs, I would have no Light Techs at all.....

When I was going to college for my Theater BA, I was one of those actors. During my mandatory practicum class I was made to run the light board as we programmed basic cues. I thought it was cool so I took a Lighting design course the next year. I liked that so I took the next level class the next year. And when I couldn't find any acting teaching opportunities, I got a job running a PAC thanks to the basics I had acquired. I am now 12 years in to a career in Technical Theater Education.

I guess what I'm saying is, teach Everyone you can how to use the light board, and keep back up show files hidden in your office!
 
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