Stage Technologies
Theatre automation often installed as house infrastructure. The position data is well managed; access is governed by the venue and the vendor.
What it is
Stage Technologies builds theatre automation -- winches, lifts, revolves, flying bars and scenic tracks -- run from operator consoles with cue stacks, profiled moves and a safety system distinct from the motion control. It is common in West End and Broadway houses and in large receiving theatres, frequently installed as permanent house infrastructure rather than brought in by a production. That distinction shapes the integration. The system may be owned by the venue, maintained under a service contract, operated by the house automation crew and shared by successive productions. Installed software versions and configurations differ house to house, and an arrangement a previous show negotiated does not necessarily carry over to yours. Treat every venue as a separate integration and confirm specifics with the house automation department and the vendor.
How we work with it
Identify who owns the system before designing anything around it. In a house installation that is usually the venue and its automation crew, with the vendor holding change control over the configuration, so any output has to be acceptable to both and may touch the service agreement. Ask what the installed version can publish, what it costs, how long it takes to enable, and whether it survives a future software update. Agree the coordinate frame and axis naming in writing with the automation department. Then keep the integration one-directional and out of the way: read position, translate to stage coordinates, publish on a separate network segment, and define what lighting and media do when the feed stops. Prove it during technical rehearsals on real moves.
House-owned systems mean two approvals: the venue automation department and whoever holds change control
Deck tracks and lifts give repeatable scenic position, often the strongest case for deriving rather than re-sensing
Version and configuration vary between houses; nothing learned in one venue transfers unverified to another
Read-only, on its own network segment, with defined consumer behaviour when the data stops
Right when
- The moving thing is scenery on the house automation and the cue structure is already built around it
- The run is long enough in one house to justify the pre-production negotiation and the testing time
- Lighting and media need to follow scenic position exactly rather than approximate it with timed cues
Look elsewhere when
- Performers move independently of the automation, which is most of what a followspot actually cares about
- A short residency or touring stop where vendor and venue approval will not fit inside the schedule
Who do we ask for access to the data?
Usually two parties. The venue automation department operates the system day to day and will have a view on anything touching it during a run. The vendor typically holds change control over the installed configuration, and enabling an output may sit inside a service agreement. Starting with the production electrician or the automation supervisor and letting them route the request internally is faster than approaching either party cold.
Is derived scenic position accurate enough for lighting?
For scenery on a track or a lift it usually is, because the axis is constrained and the machine knows its own position to a tolerance far tighter than a beam edge. The harder part is not resolution but geometry and timing: converting axis position into a correct stage coordinate, and knowing end-to-end latency from controller to fixture. Both need measuring on the actual system rather than estimating.