34 PL & P
In Focus
By Manus Hopkins
Ian Haslauer
Ian Haslauer got his start in stage production when he was only in elementary school , helping to set up the Remembrance Day assemblies in the gym . By high school , he was volunteering to set up talent shows , musicals , and band recitals , with a particular interest in lighting . As a teenager , he would call the CEO of Q1 Production Technologies , and though he was always told to stop bothering the company , he eventually managed to wiggle his way into working for them .
Shortly before starting his second year of studies at the University of Alberta , he got a call asking if he was available to work on a tour billed by Journey , Heart , and Cheap Trick . The tour ’ s first load-in in Salt Lake City hadn ’ t gone well , and they were desperate to find another person for the prep crew who could show up to work on a moment ’ s notice .
Haslauer left a note on the kitchen table for his parents to read when they got back from vacation , letting them know he was going off on tour for three months . The next morning , he was on a 7 a . m . flight to Utah . He showed up to school a month late , but with some valuable work experience under his belt . Luckily , his technical theatre program was understanding about it .
“ I ’ m not sure how I survived on that tour because I didn ’ t know what I was doing ,” he says .“ But I learned a lot .”
The next tour Haslauer landed a gig working on was a UniverSoul Circus tour that spent a week in each of its cities . This is where Haslauer really learned how lights work , as he spent all day , every day in a trailer fixing lights , rather than running the actual show . It may not sound as exciting , but in Haslauer ’ s eyes , it was helpful in giving him a much greater understanding of how to put together a light show .
“ Now , when I put cyan into a light , I actually know how that works ,” he says ,“ and if I ask for something to happen , I know what I ’ m asking . I ’ m not just some guy up there pressing buttons who doesn ’ t know anything about what the lights actually do .”
Haslauer went on to work for Christie Lites on RAIN : A Tribute to The Beatles for three years . During this time , he often had the opportunity to act as the show ’ s lighting director , gaining experience running a show and being in charge . Around 2013 , he moved to Toronto , and based on the experience he had , the opportunities just kept coming .
A key component in finding success in his field was Haslauer ’ s journey of self-acceptance . He came out as gay in 2006 , and tried to hide it for fear that it would affect his career . He spent years trying to pretend he was someone he wasn ’ t , as he thought it necessary in order to land gigs . He has a few supportive friends he wishes he ’ d believed at the time , but ultimately , their advice turned out to be what he needed to hear .
“ It wasn ’ t until I wasn ’ t afraid to be myself where I really saw success ,” he explains . “ I was a happier person and able to collaborate with others better , thus leading to being hired more .”
Among Haslauer ’ s career highlights is his time working with Pentatonix , the three-time Grammy Award-winning a cappella quintet from Texas . He toured with them for three years , doing
shows in 28 countries . “ That was the first time I really got to see the world ,” he says , adding that he was very involved in choir in high school , so the show was a perfect fit for him . “ I never thought I ’ d be in a room with 20,000 people who were all choir nerds as well .”
Another couple of Haslauer ’ s biggest credits and favourite memories are taking the reigns as the production designer for Marianas Trench ’ s lightshow for their 2019 Suspending Gravity Tour , and working with The Lumineers while they toured in support of their 2019 album , III . With The Lumineers , Haslauer did a year of promo and festival spots , then set off in January 2020 on a full tour , which unfortunately was cut short only a couple of months later when COVID-19 forced the live entertainment industry to abruptly shut down .
Since then , Haslauer has moved back to Vancouver and taken up work on a few TV shows , including season three of Netflix ’ s Lost in Space . Haslauer is used to being out on the road for 300 days a year , so the full stop has hard for him to adjust to ; he ’ d enjoyed the first six months or so of being home , before getting bored around September . He lives alone now , but finds he misses living on a bus with a group of people for months at a time .
“ It ’ s hard because you ’ re together for so much time , then you go home and you don ’ t see these people anymore ,” he says . “ We still text from time to time , but it ’ s not the same as living together on a bus . I miss all those people a lot .”
In fact , Haslauer ’ s favourite part of his career is the people he meets through his work . He also appreciates the supportiveness of the Canadian music industry , noting that he has lots of friends who do the same thing he does , but he never feels like they are competing for the same opportunities .
“ I get to meet so many people who are passionate about what they do ,” he says . “ Many of them have become good friends .”
Manus Hopkins is a freelance writer based in Whitehorse , YT and a former Editorial Assistant at Professional Lighting & Production .