Festivals, Fairs, Racetracks, Amphitheatres, Casinos, and Local Lighting Equipment
be parked near the stage and manned with a director, video engineer, and camera crew expressly so audiences will be able to view the performer up close.
Fairs and Racetracks State fairs are commonly prepared, organized, and ready for touring productions, and the conditions are similar to festival organizations. The production requirements are customarily followed to the letter. The fair may be open for several days, and each night will feature a touring group and sometimes a package of two name groups. The difference between a festival and state or county fair is that the lighting systems at county fairs are standard, having either two 40-foot pre-rig trusses with 60 PAR luminaires per truss (front and back) or sometimes three truss systems and 180 PAR luminaires. The larger state fairs, such the Minnesota State Fair or Ohio State Fair, will have the budget to add moving luminaires if so asked by the touring company. They will also change the color filters to specifications and arrange the dimmer patch to suit the touring lighting plot, which would be sent in advance of the show date by the lighting designer or production manager. Sometimes, touring lighting designers will carry their own lighting consoles and will soft-patch DMX dimmer circuits into their console channels to resemble, as closely as possible, their normal show channels’ layout. This method reduces programming time and helps retain show continuity even though there will be a different lighting vendor every day. The bands that perform at state fairs are usually out of the top radio rotation but still well known because their past hits continue to maintain their popularity. They will not carry much production. Lighting systems, risers, and audio systems will be provided for them as specified in their production riders. They are hired because they are still popular with fans, and one of the primary reasons for fairs to stage concerts is to draw people to the fair. Among the discount approaches that the marketing departments of fairs rely on to bolster attendance is including admission to the fair with the price of the concert ticket. Tours that do not carry production will have small road crews—an equipment manager or two,
a lighting designer, a monitor mixer, and front-ofhouse sound engineer. In the worst case, someone on the crew will double as a production manager and would also perform as the show’s lighting director or the artist will rely on someone with the lighting company to bring a capable lighting designer. This would be considered a very basic level production and lighting show. Nonetheless, these outdoor situations can be very challenging for touring lighting designers with more compromises than imaginable. For the most part, the local equipment vendors that serve state fairs are professional and accommodating, and most stage crews are either union or professional stage company help. On the other hand, equipment in the lower grade county fairs can be older rental gear and in disrepair, or the staff may not be qualified to the level needed. This means that normal elementary troubleshooting will cause inordinate delays in the setup. In some instances the house stage crews are (literally) prisoners. At some county fairs, the local prison releases prisoners on good-behavior day passes to help the fair with odd jobs. Being on the stage crew happens to be one of those jobs. Outdoor stages, large or small, are a challenge. High humidity, rain, wind, heat, cold, dust, dirt, mud, or the sun streaming in during focus are all important considerations. When the show starts, these distractions have a tendency to fade away. All you can do is strive to make the best of each day.
Amphitheatres Amphitheatres are, by and large, an enjoyable experience when touring. The reason is that many of the outdoor amphitheatres consulted with practicing touring production managers or stage managers, and the architects and consultants asked them about what they would actually like to see built and what their touring needs were—things such as high roofs with catwalks to allow the riggers to hang points fast and safely, plenty of truck space for eight or ten trucks so the trucks can stay parked at the docks, plenty of room to store cases, and space to move large equipment. You will also find plenty of power situated very close to where most dimming systems ■
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