First of all, what kind of a
load-out is it? Do you know what show? Is it at a
theatre, an
arena, an outdoor
venue,
etc.? Is it a touring show or a
one-off? Union or non-union? As it's most likely to be a touring show, I'll work under that assumption, so if it isn't a touring show, some of the below may not apply.
First of all, GET THERE EARLY! No less than 15 minutes early, in my opinion, more if you can. The only thing standing between the
road guys and their beds is this
load-out, so they're gonna do everything they can to make it as fast as possible. Put down your coat, get your tools ready, finish your coffee, and be ready to go the second the
call begins. At a minimum, have a good pair of gloves and a
C-Wrench with a
lanyard. If you have one, a multitool is also a good thing to have. Unless they specifically gave you a tool list, they should provide anything else you would need as an Electrician.
Once you actually start, the biggest thing to remember is that the local crew is hired "from the neck down." Basically, they don't want you to think. Everything is color coded and labeled and organized so that the locals have to do as little thinking as possible. It's not an insult to you, it's about efficiency. The
road guys have done this out dozens or even hundreds of times before, and your biggest job is as a pair of hands and feet to move things where they tell you to. As you work more shows you start to figure out when is a good time to take initiative and when isn't, but for now just wait for them to tell you what to do. Make sure you can identify and work with
Socapex (Multicable),
Stage Pin Cable,
DMX and
Scroller Cable, and
Twistlock Cable at a minimum. Much of your job is gonna be taking cable off of pipes/
truss and coiling it into
road cases. Speaking of which, make sure you know how to properly coil cable (see
this video if you need a refresher), but also know that you won't always use proper coiling methods to save on time, especially when coiling
feeder or multicable into a
road case.
Also know that you're probably not actually going to be taking down a huge number of fixtures. For most tours, the vast majority of fixtures are built into
truss or bolted to
unistrut, so instead of taking each
instrument off, you take them off in groups of 6-8 fixtures. If the
fixture doesn't have a
conventional C-clamp on it (excluding moving lights), it probably stays with a
truss/
unistrut - but ask just to be sure! If you see any cables
bundled together with zip-ties or
friction tape/
e-tape, it's a good bet that all of those cables want to stay and be coiled together. Same goes for connectors - if you see connections that are really taped up, don't break them (unless told to, of course). Don't try to show off or show other up - if you're stacking
road cases, it's much better to wait for 4 guys and do it safely than trying to do it with 2 and dropping it or hurting yourself. Don't ever put your hands in your pockets or sit down while working - this is just a personal thing, but you don't want the
road guys to look over and see you relaxing and shooting the breeze while they are trying to work. If you don't have a job at the moment, stand alert and look around for something to do or wait until you're given another job. And, whatever you do, don't start texting or chatting on your phone during the
call!
I wrote a lot, but much of it is pretty much common sense. Ask questions if you're ever confused about an instruction, and keep a cool head, and everything else should work out fine. And most importantly - have fun!!
EDIT: I need to stop getting distracted when I post - there were no replies when I started!!