Announcement: Texas Scenic Company is now part of Wenger Corporation
PERFORMING ARTS
Most of us have looked up to see equipment that is held in place firmly with steel beams and wire rope. Many of us are also quite familiar with hoists designed to lift heavy loads and set them back down again. However, there is another type of mechanism that, although perhaps not as familiar, is just as important to our work: brakes, dampers, dashpots, lanyards, and lifelines are some of the mechanical devices that can be used to control a free-falling load and help bring it safely to a stop. In this session, we will explore the engineering fundamentals of work, deflection energy, and energy dissipation, and show some examples of how it is applied to the equipment that we see backstage.
Presented by the Engineering Commission
Speaker(s):
Peter V. Svitavsky
Engineering
Intermediate
Location: 201B ENG, Promenade Side- Long Beach Convention Center
Fire curtain codes are continually evolving. This session will cover both the historical context of fire curtain codes and their current and future states. Fire curtains have played a crucial role in theater safety for years, but many people are unfamiliar with the codes that require a fire curtain and the code that defines its function.
Fire curtains have been mandated by law in the United States since the Iroquois Theatre fire in Chicago in 1903, which tragically resulted in the deaths of over 600 people. This incident remains the second deadliest fire and explosion in a single building or complex in U.S. history, surpassed only by the World Trade Center disaster in 2001, which occurred 98 years later.
Presented by the Technical Production Commission
Speaker(s):
Dan Culhane Bill Conner
Technical Production
Foundational
Location: 102A&B TPR, Promenade Side- Long Beach Convention Center
Sometimes, you’re trying to rotate something heavy, fly something large, or lift something massive, and your trusty 5HP motor just isn’t up to the task. The obvious answer? Use a bigger motor. But bigger isn’t always better: large motors come with space constraints, tricky wiring, and mounting headaches. Using multiple smaller motors can power the same movement, with greater flexibility. With multiple motors, we can use more compact models, distribute power where needed, and add scalability to our design. But there’s a catch: using more motors also increases the control system complexity, since we need to keep the motors synchronized. Each motor needs to follow the motion plan. Faults from one motor need to be propagated to the group to prevent damage to the element being moved. And we need to protect each motor from becoming overloaded. This session explores various group motion strategies, from mechanical linkages to simple control methods, software coordination, and drive-level electronic gearing. As we examine these options, we’ll discuss the pros and pitfalls of each approach.
Speaker(s):
Christian Basse, Gareth Conner
Exhibitor
Intermediate
Location: 101A EDU, Promenade Side- Long Beach Convention Center
Automation systems in live performance are popular and powerful. System Designers are obligated to design systems that keep performers safe and equipment undamaged. Everyone knows the “big red button”, but how do we design systems that are smart enough to avoid Emergency Stops? In this session we will explore sensors, controls, and strategies to automatically avoid potential danger:
These topics will arm attendees with more techniques to keep performances safe without solely relying on the reflexes of the automation operator.
Speaker(s):
Gareth Conner Kody Green Dan Lisowski
Engineering
Intermediate
Location: 201B ENG, Promenade Side- Long Beach Convention Center
Take a brief journey through the genesis of rigging standards in the entertainment industry, from their humble beginnings in 1975, through USITT milestones in the 1980’s-’90s, then through a 13-year metamorphosis in ESTA’s ANSI standards program to first approvals in the late 2000s, up to the current state of standards in the industry. Help answer the question, “Where do we go from here?”
Brought to you by the Engineering Commission.
Speaker(s):
Richard Nix, Dan Culhane, Reid Neslage
Engineering
Roundtable
Location: 201B ENG, Promenade Side- Long Beach Convention Center
While accessibility on stage and in audience areas has seen significant progress, backstage environments in theatres often remain overlooked in inclusive design conversations. This discussion will explore practical approaches to making backstage areas and equipment more accessible to technicians of all abilities.
Building on the conversations started at NATEAC ‘24’s Charrette Space, we will divide into small groups to identify barriers to access in user’s day-to-day lives and create/ideate actionable solutions to reduce or eliminate those barriers. The groups will be; system/equipment design, management, lighting, sound/media, costume design/wigs/makeup/millenery, scenery and scenery construction, stagehands/show run, and a group to capture cross-discipline challenges and solutions or items that don’t neatly fit in the other categories.
You may be a good candidate to participate in this session if you:
As we intend to take notes during the discussion, please consider bringing a phone, tablet, or computer view in real time.
A little history: The North American Theatre Engineering and Architecture Conference (NATEAC) in July 2024 was devoted to the large theme of access in all forms across our industry. During that conference, roundtable discussions took place in “The Charrette Space” that provoked dialogue about accessibility, with topics ranging from back of house and technical space design, impacts of building design on neurodivergent patrons and artists, and equipment control design. They were inspiring discussions. We are looking to take the information and momentum gathered there and in discussions like the one here at USITT further to form plans of action for the industry. One action would be to generate standards or practices for backstage areas, since the ADA does not offer concrete requirements for these areas that architects, shop managers, educators, and equipment designers can use in the development of real spaces and equipment. This session is the jumping off point for a new working group that will explore just that and determine if those ideas will become a recommended practice within our industry or an ANSI standard that can be cited by design professionals and code writers.
Speaker(s):
Kascey Haslanger, Eric Huss, Caroline Andrew, Amanda Fisk, Eben Alguire, Verda Beth Martell
Architecture
Inclusion
Roundtable
Location: 102C ARC, Promenade Side- Long Beach Convention Center