Life on Tour: The Local Crew Handshake

Last time I wrote about building a crew that travels well, and I ended on a promise... that every show day, the pit crew gets bigger, and it starts in the first ten minutes of load-in.

This one isn't just mine to tell. My stage manager, Joshua "Dude" Marcus, runs our deck and works hand in hand with the local crew all day long. So I asked him the same questions I asked myself. Between the two of us, you get the view from the production office and the view from the deck.

Two Handshakes

When I walk in, I'm looking for the local buyer rep and the building rep. On a Live Nation tour, sometimes that's the same person if it's one of their owned and operated venues. If not, there's a Live Nation rep and a building rep.

After 34 years in this business, most of those people are friends of mine already. We've talked multiple times over the previous few days to make sure we're show ready. Usually all we do is talk over the seating map and maybe walk the building real quick. Mostly it's hugs and handshakes, and we're into it.

Dude is shaking a different set of hands at the same time.

The steward or crew chief is the leader for the labor side... the stagehands, or the union. That's who Dude needs on his side before the first truck opens.

It Starts at the Top

Dude says he can usually tell what kind of day it's going to be right away. Part of it is the advance. Most of it is a gut feeling that comes from meeting a person and looking them in the eye.

If the steward or crew chief is strong and knows their labor calls, it's going to be a good day all around. If not, Dude takes a step back and looks for anything he can do that helps both teams. Some markets are harder than others. The show still has to happen.

I asked him if union or non-union makes a difference. Union houses usually have more structure, with crew chiefs and leadership for each department. But his answer came back to the same place... "It all starts at the top." A strong leader on the local side matters more than what kind of house it is.

That works both ways. It starts at the top on our side too.

What Burns Them

I asked Dude what makes a local crew want to work harder for us. His answer was simple. Be competent. Know the goal. Use the labor well, and let them help you get the show in.

Then I asked what burns them. Being afraid to make a decision. No humility. Not treating everyone like an equal human. Sometimes touring staff get pompous because of their position, and the locals feel it right away.

It doesn't happen often. When it does, it's usually a new tour hire who walks in a little high and mighty. On our current tour, everybody's a veteran. They all know how Dude and I operate, and that we don't tolerate it, so we just don't see it.

But when it does happen, you have to nip it in the bud immediately. It gets worse and worse if you don't... especially if someone else saw it happen and nobody addressed it.

Jones Beach

Neither of us could come up with a bad local crew story worth telling. Dude said it best... the good ones far outweigh the bad, and every venue has great people. You just have to find the ones who will make your day better.

So here's a good one from this year.

We were coming into Jones Beach Amphitheater late. Bad routing and traffic made a realistic start time nearly impossible, and it was close to noon before we got there. That crew knew we were coming in late. It had been talked through on a couple of levels, days before and again that morning. They were prepared. We were prepared. The load-in went off without a hitch, and then we had a record-breaking load-out.

Those are some of the best stagehands in the country. When you walk in with a plan and execute it, and they see you executing it, they are ready to jump in and help any way they can. Show up at that venue that late in the day without a plan, and they'd fall apart on you... because you came in ill-prepared.

The handshake goes both ways. They show up ready. We have to show up ready too.

Dude's Advice

I asked Dude what he'd tell a new touring crew member about working with locals.

Hugs and handshakes in the morning. A load-out at night. In between, the pit crew got bigger again... and by the time the trucks were loaded, nobody on the deck could tell you who was touring and who was local.

The trucks leave every night. The handshake stays. Next time we roll into that building, it's the reason the local crew is ready before we are.