All harsh sounding and hoping that in your first post you don't give up as others have especially in this question. Good posts in the past on jobs and hints on sorry, not getting britches too high - but certainly keep them up at the waist
line. (Must be old but I cannot understand Undies showing pants falling down style.)
Mostly you don't get your BMW position in showing up, you have to start by sweeping the floors first and it is reality. Sorry, I'm good or was good at programming a Kliegl Preformer II,
Strand Lite
Pallet III, Somewhat functional with the
Q-File and excellent with the
Vision. Can I hop onto some modern light board and function with it??? no, better attempting to screw it up for someone these days. Was a
programmer of light boards, and
Master Carpenter and designer with some noteriety for set and lights, now mainly just some sort of ME in me today learning how to use a metal laith because I needed to create some 1/2-13 to M12-1.75 threaded adaptors.
Mostly over the years life and work I could get got in the way of me mostly reading a
book and waiting for the "Go" or "go back"
button, waiting in some shows with Ertha Kitt that tended to stray some in scenes but was always amazing no matter skipped or gone back to scenes in finding cues. Really, reading a
book with a
hand on the go
button and stopped reading if something happened over the headsets or was prepping for a
cue. Obviously last scene or "Hair" I wasn't reading but otherwise, couldn't think of a more boring position during shows. Every day the same thing and isolated
in one quit booth after programming was done. Preferred pin
rail in than I was at least active and or helping to change costumes or catch people blinded by the light was more what I preferred before getting the 9:5 life at work and adventure at home in old lights. For me at least - finished tonight a Capitol
Stage Lighting #1 c.1928 Olivalitte - Yey, another
fixture under the belt to learn from and three days in the works and thought about.
Milage might vary and programmers for shows certainly next to the designer have a key position - assuming some rock tour, but if rock tour... you don't quite get there by high school experience. Recommend College if even Full Sail that these days has a much better name for itself than it used to have. Than less time in slinging cable but still doing so. Still recomment full college in gaining learning in a
broad base of education and training in more than one subject of theater. What light boards you can control will as noted be obsolete by the time you get to use them professionally. Best to learn the theory of them, theory of design, taxes, business, math, science and theater in general before troubling yourself in sweeping floors for a while than doing the light board.
Such a concept is a 70's concept in how to make it big. Don't always have to get the Masters Degree in lighting design today in making it big or at least doing the light board, but go as far as you can in school before settling as each degree you get makes your time in slinging the cable shorter and time in growth and pay check dividens bigger. Really - more school and education is bigger pay check as an end result to retire from some day. Stay in school - get to college especially during a recession that isn't hiring as much. Educate yourself in waiting out a smaller job market.
Summer work, focus just for a job with any company that you can get a job with in saving money for school but primary focus is school. If possible during vacations from school come back to work there or elsewhere for that period but stay in school. Graduate and you don't have a problem in not asking for a
programmer job but a good job that you will see
programmer as only a stop on the way to other things.
Programmer is not some job to retire in a position with.
Also in resume help - don't be afraid of going bold for mission statement or career goals, it might make for something to be noticed for discussion in interview or at least get you noted in standing out. For me this was in applying for work other than as a designer (
cover letters and rusemes tailered to where I was applying.) So as my goal in my last job: become "The Grumpy Old Man of the Theater, or a World Famous Designer - Not very likely." Was told during the interview that they already had one Grumpy Old Man but were willing for more, and as for other, also possible with work. It amongst other presentation stuff and in the chatting a talking
point which I was in control during the interview for just a mission statement type of thing. I want your job similar only different in that I didn't want his job - I wanted higher and these days in some way I am parallel to him that hired me.
Mission statement or where in a resume you can put in your ambition beyond - want your job but without reason, think "KISS" - Keep it simple stupid. "To become a world famous designer - not very likely, or become the grumpy old man of the theater" worked for me under this simply expressed and honest in also how I wound up goal of mine that the company worked with in growing to find that position I grew into.
Most want the adventure and life of doing shows, I wouldn't simply stop at being a
programmer, but someone that wants to be the best of them and crew chief as that is a very related thing. And after that, if you don't want to become the designer in this middle step between crew chief and designer, at least if you just want to
settle on it - state that it's your goal in achieving. That of course limits you and in high school it's all about what you currently know - I was going to become a set designer or TD not persay a ME. Last
point, don't lock yourself in.
I hugely wanted to become a set desiger and somehow had to
thru school learn a second field that I now learn a living from. Educate yourself in at least a second field.