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If
you’ve seen the Las Vegas production of Phantom of the Opera, you’ve
witnessed groundbreaking state-of-the-art special effects that may one day
become the new norm in entertainment facilities.
In the dramatic climax of the show, the 2,100-pound
Paris Opera House chandelier suddenly freefalls nearly 50 feet when the
theater suddenly goes black, leaving audience members with the terrifying
feeling that they might be struck by it. Of course, the chandelier abruptly
stops during the six seconds of darkness, just over the heads of the
theatergoers, and ascends back into the ceiling’s dome. This thrilling
technical stunt comes with a $5 million price tag, covering high-tech
gadgetry and 10 months of toil for a team of mechanical engineers,
electrical engineers and programmers.
Two years earlier, a Cirque du Soleil performance at
Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Hotel revealed a stage that’s not a stage, but a
50-foot deep abyss with moving scenic elements. The Cirque du Soleil
spectacle Ką used two massive slabs that could rise, rotate and tilt,
creating the optical illusions of a two-deck barge revolving on a placid
sea, a boat rocking wildly and sinking, a sheer cliff and a battleground,
viewed by audience members from above, for the evening’s cinematic climax.
Other technical feats included scenes enacted in midair with performers on
wires or clinging precariously to poles, an indoor fireworks display and
battle scenes with live, flaming arrows.
Bigger and Better
This technical wizardry isn’t just about the glitz and glam of Las Vegas.
Experts say performances like Phantom of the Opera and Ką are raising the
bar of audience expectations in facilities across the United States. “What’s
happening in Las Vegas is driving the entertainment industry,” says Bill
Sapsis, president of Sapsis Rigging Inc. “Shows are incredibly more complex
than anything we’ve seen, so they’re moving enormous scenic elements. Once
you start doing that, there’s no turning back.”
Each year touring shows up the ante in their quest to b e
bigger and better. That means more elaborate lighting, props, loudspeakers
and rigging. “The shows literally get heavier every year,” says Harry
Donovan, president of Seattle-based Donovan Rigging
Inc., the self-published author Entertainment Rigging, and a rigger
for 22 years who had toured regularly with popular stars such as Bruce
Springsteen, Rod Stewart, Johnny Cash, Aerosmith, Black Sabbath, David
Bowie, Jimmy Buffett, Elton John and the Eagles, to name a few. “Rock and
roll shows go up about 2,000 pounds a year. And the heaviest shows have
increased in size by about 3,000 to 4,000 pounds a year.”
Sapsis reports that the recent Paul McCartney touring
show required “150,000 pounds of roof load — he broke the record. The
majority of buildings in this country can’t carry that kind of weight. While
everything is bigger, there’s a limit in the amount of weight facilities can
carry from a static and dynamic standpoint.” There’s also little room for
error in today’s bigger shows. “If the control side is programmed
incorrectly, the scenery and the lighting could come to a sudden stop, and
that transmits a shock load back to the building,” Sapsis warns. “That could
result in a structural failure.”
When the Show Must Not
Go On
Rigging of systems for lighting, loudspeakers, screens, trusses and scenery
is not only inherently dangerous, it’s also largely unregulated. There are
no national building codes at
cover rigging installations and no national standards for the manufacture of
rigging components or the periodic inspection of these systems. In addition,
installers of these systems aren’t required to be licensed.
Granted, the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) does require that individuals who work six feet off
the ground must be attached to a fall arrest system or a fall prevention
system. “Most arenas have fall arrest systems over stages,” says Eddie
Raymond, vice president, IATSE Local 16 and a workshop leader on rigging
safety. “But in new shows, rigging is not only over stages, but also over
the audience, where no fall protection systems are installed. I know of one
show that toured are-nas around the United States, and at least 60 percent
of the arenas didn’t have fall arrest systems where they are required.
“One of my pet peeves is the men and women who do the
rigging work get stuck in the middle — between facility managers and the
touring shows that come to the facilities, neither of whom want to cover the
cost of a fall protection system. Riggers are forced to decide to either
refuse to do the work or do the work as safely as possible under the
circumstances, which is illegal and unsafe.” 
Safety First
Even if there are few national regulations overseeing the entertainment
industry, facility managers can take these five safeguards recommended by
experts to prevent accidents and reduce liability.
Hire certified riggers and
electricians.
Work with riggers and electricians who
have completed the Entertainment Technician Certification Program (ETCP), a
program of rigorous assessments for professional technicians. The voluntary
certification program was developed by the Entertainment Services and
Technology Association (ESTA) in conjunction with the International
Association of Assembly Managers, Alliance of Motion Picture and Television
Producers, Canadian Institute for Theatre Technology, InfoComm Intl.,
International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, The League of American
Theatres and Producers, Themed Entertainment Association and United States
Institute for Theatre Technology.
“It’s crazy that there are no requirements for licenses
for riggers in North America,” Donovan says. “Because of that lack of
regulation, the ETCP certification is important. It’s the only way to know
your riggers know what they’re doing.”
Thoroughly inspect rigging
and fall protection systems. “Shut down the facility at
minimum once a year, more often if you’re having shows more than 300 days a
year,” says Jay O. Glerum, author of Stage Rigging Handbook, now in its
third edition. “This is one of the most important dates you can set for your
facility because you’ll find problems before they occur. Conduct a thorough
inspection of every nut, bolt and part, and fix whatever problems you find.
All rigging equipment is machin ery like an automobile, and it will wear out
if it’s not regularly maintained.”
Raymond
recommends that this inspection process be thoroughly documented in a log
with serial numbers of all the equipment, date inspected and who inspected
it.
Know your facility’s
limits. “A highly experienced rigger and structural
engineer need to confer with each other and come up with 20 to 30 scenarios
for load patterns for your venue,” Donovan recommends.
From there, you can evaluate whether the rigging, lighting and scenery for a
touring show can be safely hung in your facility. Before the setup of a
touring show, examine and weigh with dynamometers the show’s equipment;
compare a rigging plot from the show against the building’s beam plan to
make sure the building is being rigged as expected; and carefully inspect
the touring equipment.
Meet the standards. Ensure
that your equipment complies with industry standards established by ESTA’s
Technical Standards Program. In this program, technical standards have been
established for common equipment used in the industry, including camera
cranes, wire rope ladders, metal halide ballast power cables and aluminum
trusses. (Visit ESTA’s Web site, www.esta.org
, for more details.) “If you don’t comply with these standards, it increases
your liabilities,” Glerum says. “The check just gets bigger if an accident
occurs.”
Have a plan. Along with a fall arrest
system for riggers, you need to have a rescue plan on file, and key staff
needs to be well versed in it, Raymond advises. “Dialing 911 is not a rescue
plan,” he adds. “A rigger could die hanging in the harness in the time it
might take for a rescue team to get there.”
fm
Lori K. Baker is an
award-winning freelance writer and editor specializing in business, health
and human interest profiles. Her clients include national, regional and
custom publications as well as corporations and nonprofits. She can be
reached at lorikbaker@cox.net .
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