Long Time, No See! - 6/2/2023

My last blog post was over two years ago, so I think it's time to update this thing! Holy cow, I've been doing a LOT of cool stuff recently. After bouncing around jobs a few times now, I've gotten a much better grip on what I enjoy doing, and I'm super excited to talk about some of it in this post!

About a year ago, I received a job offer at the Marion Palace Theatre to become the Technical Director. I took that position, and I learned a TON! Working on everything audio related in the theatre was of course a blast, but having that position meant I needed to understand a lot more about the functions of a theatre than just the audio. We had several different community theatre shows as well as some touring acts come through while I was in that position, and it was always exciting working with people who cared about the business and art of theatre. Having to learn many of the skills in the theatre on my own was very challenging, but that's precisely why I enjoyed it. Being able to spend time going into detail on things (like how the entire fly rail system worked for example), really got me excited to work every day. Throughout the six months I spent there, I don't regret a single moment because of how much fun I had and how much I learned.

During my time in Marion, when I had a question about something that just wasn't possible to read about or search on Google for, I would have to reach out to different contacts in the theatre business who might be able to help. One of the contacts I had exchanged several emails with was Jason Gay, the former head of the Ohio Theatre and current Vice President of Operations at CAPA. His help was certainly imperative to my success at times. Late in the summer, about 5 months into my employment at the Palace, I had the opportunity to perform in the Ohio State University Marching Band at the Columbus Commons, right behind the Ohio Theatre. Before the performance began, I took the chance to approach the people at the front of house position, and give them some of my business cards, which I kept in my coat pocket for that exact occasion. Long story short, my name then got sent up the grapevine into Jason's attention.

An email from a previous acquaintance appeared in my inbox about a month after my marching band performance stating the position for Department Head of Audio at the Ohio Theatre had been newly vacated. After going through with application and interviews, I got the job! I'm positive that my introduction with the guys at the Commons helped my case, and I'm sure glad it did! Since my first day of work at the Ohio Theatre, I've had some awesome experiences working on things like symphony shows, operas, graduations, corporate events, and even with broadway shows like Ain't Too Proud, Beetlejuice, Hairspray, Six, and Hamilton! Most recently, I mixed a musical theatre show with some very talented high school students in which we used about 25 wireless microphones, two podium mics, video inputs, and an entire pit orchestra mic setup. The work I've been doing recently has been the most fun I've ever had, and I can't wait to continue! Pretty soon, I'll be mixing some monitors for the Columbus Symphony over the summer, as well as possibly installing some audio systems for churches and freelancing for local production companies. I've got a lot of cool work ahead of me!

Here are some photos of some of the work I've been doing since my last blog post: