CAMELOT Theatrical Special Effects

It was wonderful to attend the Greater Lakes Association of Performing Arts (GLAPA) production of Ken Ludwig's "Moon Over Buffalo" last Saturday night and to see all of the running crew's names in the program with asterisks after each signifying "Technical Theatre Certified." This meant that every tech on the crew, rigging, lighting and sound, had attended and passed our three-week Technical Theatre Certification Course involving a week on rigging theory, operation and safety, a week on lighting design, programming, instrument intallation, maintenance and operation, and a half-week on audio (mikes, placement, sound effects and operation of the sound board and computers) plus a practicum involving a live performance. These techs now hold certification cards for the Pequot Lakes Community Theatre allowing them to operate the equipment and giving the school administration a degree of comfort in knowing that "the most dangerous place in town" was in trained hands.

It's interesting to see that ESTA, the Entertainment Services & Technology Association, is working on developing an Entertainment Technician Certification Program (ETCP), (follow the hyperlinks) a new industry-wide program being developed with the following organizations: Canadian Institute for Theatre Technology (CITT), International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), International Association of Assembly Managers (IAAM), Themed Entertainment Association (TEA), and United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT). Two key areas have been identified for initial development - electrical skills and rigging skills.

Okay, I'm excited to hear about this initiative but, looking deeper into it, it sounds a bit like herding cats to me. So you've got your ESTA ETCP card; now what? If you're a non-union employee of a community or municipal theatre with ETCP certification hosting a visiting IATSE company loading in, who pulls rank? Can non-union techs even qualify for the certification? Does the ETCP guarantee you IATSE or CITT membership? And my "spider-sense" really starts tingling when I read that a goal of the ETCP is to provide a "legally defensible" set of standards. Yipes! The program is already being designed with a courtroom in mind.

Electrical codes are fully established in all 50 states. Most states have no theatrical rigging codes or inspection requirements. Accidents happen every day, usually involving grade school or high school kids who are setting up a pageant or a show under the guidance of an untrained teacher. "Multi-use, community-access" theatres are the danger ground here, and "Theatre Use Policies" are a must. Is this where the ETCP Certificate holder reigns? Does it give the "legally defensible" right to challenge shool superintendants across the country and to lock down theatres to "certified personnel only?" I'll be interested to see how the ESTA initiative progresses; the driving forces look pretty impressive but I hope they're not just thinking Broadway and Disney World here. The schools, community and municipal theatres are where the focus needs to be; we've got the same gear out here and the owners and administrators haven't a clue until the ambulance arrives.

posted by C. J. # 12:04 AM