# Concert Lighting Companies in LA???



## punktech (Apr 26, 2010)

i'll be *finally* getting my BA in May 2011, and i'm hoping to move to LA or Southern California (i hate cold, and i already lived in Florida and hated it, plus LA is an entertainment Mecca). and i'm wondering if i could get the names of some companies in SoCal, particularly the LA Area, so that i can look them up/contact them to see if they're hiring in May '11 or are interested in accepting my resume for future hiring. i'd prefer companies involved in touring concerts, but anything is helpful.


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## Footer (Apr 26, 2010)

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PRG has a large office in LA. 

If you don't like the weather in Florida, your going to hate the weather on the road. It seems like every tour manages to spend the worst parts of winter in either New England or in the upper midwest. Something to think about. 

They will accept your resume'. They won't hire you until you show up at their door or they are in a crunch. LA is one of the worst markets to break into. There are more stagehands in LA then anywhere else in the country short of NYC (and that might not even be true). 

Most tours start out of the midwest and that is where many of the major shops are. Bandit and Upstaging just to name two. Many technicians that I run into that are on the road on music gigs are out of Nashville. However, there are touring companies all over the US. Nashville, Chicago, Atlanta, New York City, Madison, and a huge number that are out in the middle of nowhere (Creative Stage Lighting for example). 

I am a huge advocate of the "don't move until you have a job" line of thought. LA is an EXPENSIVE town, especially if you don't have friends there that you can bum a couch for a few weeks. Wait until about December or January. Start watching Artsearch and Backstage Jobs. Fire your resume' to anyone that will listen. 

Also, read this thread.. http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/collaborative-articles/9123-getting-job-industry.html


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## punktech (Apr 26, 2010)

the attraction to LA is based on the fact that i have a very good friend and former college room mate that lives there, and she has agreed to once again live with me (we figure that if the two of us could handle living in a tiny college room together we'll be even happier with a whole apartment). i definitely am only moving out there if i get a job there, i too am a strong advocate of "move where the work is". also, i love a challenge, and i already knew LA was a challenging market to break into, and one of better ones too, imho, so i feel like if i can break in there first, i'll be able to break in anywhere i want to be later on.


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## Footer (Apr 26, 2010)

punktech said:


> i definitely am only moving out there if i get a job there, i too am a strong advocate of "move where the work is". also, i love a challenge, and i already knew LA was a challenging market to break into, and one of better ones too, imho, so i feel like if i can break in there first, i'll be able to break in anywhere i want to be later on.



There is the catch22 right there. I run into this every time I am on a job hunt. Most shops don't want to hire someone for a labor job, even a skilled labor job, unless they are local. Unfortunately, 90% of jobs straight out of college are more labor then anything else. 

In the music world degrees don't matter, the time you have put in and the people you know do. If you want to get into concert touring, you really do just have to bite the bullet, move, and hope you can get a shop gig. Its a gamble. Now, if you know someone who is working for a production house in LA that can get you in, your going to be a lot better off. 

Keep in mind also that pay in California for our line of work is not much higher then in the rest of the country and your living expenses are double or sometimes triple what they are in other parts of the country. On one of my job searches I had an offer from a theatre in California and an offer from a Theatre in Atlanta. Pay was the exact same at both. However, my living expenses in Atlanta was HALF of what it would have been in California. In order to make ends meet in California I would have had to live in a hole in the ground and hope that I could secure a refrigerator box for a roof. Either way, I ended up in Atlanta. 

The cruise ship industry might be the thing for you if you enjoy living in small quarters, like hot weather, and want to do music gigs. Pays not great, but living expenses are $0.


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## Pie4Weebl (Apr 27, 2010)

Good luck with the LA thing, I graduate in... (looks at watch) 12 days, and I had looked a lot at the LA thing and talked to a few designers out there. I quickly learned it was not at all a good place to try to break into, especially these days. If you want to tour Epic is the only majoring touring company out there aside from PRG.

Also good luck with trying to get a job a year out, as I learned its not going to happen. I tried to look for work for this summer starting in in January of this year and did not hear a peep back. For my new position that I'll be starting in two weeks I only heard back a week ago, its a very much we will hire you when we have a need for you kinda world.

From personal experience I can say the job market blows right now, the only reason I got a good offer is that I have a couple of "bigger name" references who would go to bat for me, if I didn't have those I would be stuck here in STL still and that was even with being able to relocate to anywhere.

So moral of the story, look wide, talk to your friends who might be an in for you, and consider a cruise ship if you can't find anything better. Actually, the real moral of the story, spring semester senior year is when you should start worrying about your real life, you can chill out now!


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## Footer (Apr 27, 2010)

Pie4Weebl said:


> So moral of the story, look wide, talk to your friends who might be an in for you, and consider a cruise ship if you can't find anything better. Actually, the real moral of the story, spring semester senior year is when you should start worrying about your real life, you can chill out now!



But in the time between now and the real world, WORK. Work for you local IA hall. Try to get in with a local production company/summerstock/theme park for the summer. I know its a bit late now, but you can at least try to get in with them. The more connection you can make outside of your university the better.


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## cdub260 (Apr 27, 2010)

While we're not a touring company, May is when we begin hiring the stage crew for the Pageant of the Masters. The pay is far from spectacular and it's seven nights a week from July 5th. thru August 31st. most years, plus a solid week of dress rehearsals in late June. We're about 50 miles south of L.A. in Laguna Beach, so the commute would be terrible if you were living in L.A., but it would be something relatively local to put on your resume. Give it some thought. If you're interested a year from now, contact me and I'll give you the contact information for my boss, who does the actual hiring of our crew.


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## punktech (Apr 27, 2010)

just out of curiosity, does anyone here know if Candace Brightman has her own company? i have a connection that worked with her, and i'm just ballsy enough to ask him if he'd give me a recommendation. i don't mean to sounds conceited or anything like that by asking this, it really is pure curiosity.


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