New Jersey Stage Issue 73 | Page 95

The people that do the work behind the scenes are responsible for the quality of the production. Everything they do is in service to the artist and to present the best experience for the audience and artist simultaneously. It becomes glaringly obvious when you watch these great artists doing a stream from their iPhone just how much professional production factors in to the overall quality of the experience. The folks in my industry will be some of the last to get back to work. It’s something we want to do more than anything so please know that when we see people out in public wearing a mask, social distancing and following guidelines we appreciate them. Our livelihood depends on it! I have friends in the business going to school to train for entirely different work. Stagehands can do other work but it’s hard to find work that will compensate you like you would be when using your highly valued niche skill set. Live audio mixing doesn’t really have an equivalent outside of the entertainment industry, not even studio work. Although there are people that do both, they are pretty distinct. Most of my colleagues have been trying to collect unemployment but for many gig workers that’s been an uphill battle. I work for a venue full time and got furloughed June 29th so it’s kind of NJ STAGE - ISSUE 73 INDEX NEXT ARTICLE 95