Venue Technician

Company Overview

The Richmond Gateway Theatre Society 

Gateway Theatre is a facility owned, maintained and supported by the City of Richmond—comprising a proscenium fly house theatre, a black box studio and a rehearsal studio. The Richmond Gateway Theatre Society (“Gateway”) employs workers and operates programs in the facility.  

Driven by a passion to serve its audiences in bold and innovative ways, Gateway Theatre enriches the quality of life in Richmond and surrounding communities by creating outstanding artistic programs and serving as a dynamic hub for the performing arts. Gateway’s staff is an eclectic team with multifaceted expertise. As a group we take risks, we empower, we go beyond, we listen. At Gateway we embrace difference as something that challenges our understanding and stretches us to grow. So, if you won’t settle for the expected, you have found your crew.  

Job Description

Job Description 

Venue Technician is a job classification under the Collective Bargaining Agreement between Gateway Theatre and IATSE 118. 

Duties and responsibilities include: 

• • Functioning as Crew Chief for productions as required; providing oversight of other heads and their assistants such as Stage, Paint, Lighting, Properties, Sound, Projection, and Wardrobe. 
• • Functioning as a running crew member for productions as required, reporting to stage management during show calls 
• • Setting up, operating and dismantling theatrical equipment such as lights, sound, projection, sets, props, scenery, costumes, counterweight fly systems and stage rigging. 
• • Analyzing, organizing, advancing and executing designs and projects. 
• • Ensuring the safe operation of all stage apparatus and machinery, including all components of the fly system (when applicable), orchestra pit, stage deck and soft goods.  
• • Overseeing and maintaining the cleanliness of all stage areas, orchestra pit, control booths, sprinkler room, loading dock and all storage areas. 
• • Maintaining a safe working environment for staff, colleagues, stage employees, and guests.
• • Upholding the professional image and name of the theatre in good faith during all dealings with staff, guest artists, the public suppliers and other theatre companies. 
• • Executing and coordinating emergency procedures; and reporting all accidents/incidents to their supervisor immediately. 
• • Ensuring regular, self-directed and proactive inventorying, maintenance, housekeeping and upgrading of equipment.  
• • Ensuring the proactive upkeep of paperwork such as reports, manuals, equipment inventory, work lists and cue track sheets. 
• • Training, mentoring and/or orienting other stage workers, including casual heads, assistants, technicians and grips.

Minimum Qualifications 

• • Training or experience relevant to work as theatrical technician. 
• • Training or experience relevant to supervisory and/or leadership skills. 
• • Generalist and show crew ability in more than one category of technical theatre proficiency 
• • Professional comportment with excellent client service and leadership skills 
• • A mission oriented mindset showing independent initiative and decision making skills. 
• • Demonstrated experience with inclusion, equity and anti-oppression 
• • A workplace commitment to collaboration, leadership and skill development. 
• • Legally entitled to work in Canada
• • Proof of double COVID vaccination.

Desirable Attributes 

• • Familiarity with computers including: using network or cloud based file servers, computer aided drafting or sketching, spreadsheets and word processing such as writing reports and project proposals.  
• • Experience and/or training in supervising and directing causal workers and/or union workers. 
• • Specialist technical theatre experience and/or training such as: moving lights, programing (consoles, show computers and DSPs), networking & show control, Live digital sound mixing, Sound engineering (such as programing DSP and acoustical tuning of digital equipment), wardrobe, hair & make-up, fly system inspection and operation, stage rigging, A/V technology, or playback software like QLab or Isadora 
• • Certification/licencing of Technical skill proficiencies such as Occupational First Aid, Firearms, Pyrotechnics, Electrical (LPEC, etc.), self-powered work platforms, WHMIS 2015, Supervisor Safety, Fire Warden, A/V (AVIXA, etc.),fall prevention, rigging or equipment manufacturer training. 
• • Conversant in more than one language.