The panel from The Bellows: Why You Should Hire a Production Manager. From Left to Right Eleanor Antoncic, Kevin Hutson, Pip Bradford, Remington North, Kaitlin Hicke, Ryan Wilson, and Christopher Ross
In this special presentation of The Bellows, the panel discusses the reasons you need to hire a production manager for your theatrical production. It may seem obvious to production staff and designers why it is essential to have a PM, but many small companies eschew this position out of economic need. This discussion was recorded on February 22 2016 at Theatre Passe Muraille as part of an informal series called The Bellows meant to build community and encourage collaboration and information sharing.
The panel was moderated by scenic carpenter and bellows co-founder Kevin Hutson, and he was joined by Eleanor Antoncic, production manager at the Tarragon Theatre, Remington North who is the Director of Facilities and Production at the Theatre Centre, Kaitlin Hickey a freelance production manager and designer, and Ryan Wilson who is the head scenic carpenter at Young People's Theatre.
Bios
Kevin Hutson
Kevin is the head carpenter at The Tarragon Theatre in Toronto and one of the founders of The Bellows. Kevin has also performed as a production manager, technical director, lighting designer and general technician in Toronto for may years.
Eleanor Antoncic
Remington North
Kaitlin Hickey
Kaitlin Hickey (Lighting Designer) is a production designer based in Toronto, ON. Recent theatre credits include: Art Direction, The Rural Newfoundland Project (In Good Company), Assistant Projection Design, You Never Can Tell and Sweet Charity (Shaw Festival), Associate Projection Design, R-E-B-E-C-C-A (Theatre Passe Muraille), Production Designer, Chapel Arm (Mindless Theatrics), Associate Projection Designer & Video Technician, A Moveable Beast (Volcano Theatre), Production Manager & Lighting Designer, The Book of Judith (Selfconscious Theatre), Associate Video Designer, Beatrice and Virgil (Factory Theatre), Production Manager Weather the Weather (Theatre Columbus). She is an artistic associate of Mindless Theatrics in St. John’s Newfoundland, a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada, and holds a B.Sc. from St. Francis Xavier University.
Ryan Wilson
Ryan Wilson is a passionate artist whose talent, collaborative spirit and work ethic have earned him praise from his peers. Currently the head scenic carpenter at Young People’s Theatre (Toronto), he has worked at numerous theatre companies, including Soulpepper Theatre Company (Toronto), fu-GEN Asian Canadian Theatre Company (Toronto), Factory Theatre (Toronto) and Globe Theatre (Regina, Sask.). As a freelance production manager/technical director at fu-GEN Asian Canadian Theatre Company, Wilson worked on four productions: Ching Chong Chinaman (2013), Brown Balls (2011), lady in the red dress (2009) and Banana Boys (2008). Ryan Wilson graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Ryerson University’s Theatre School in 2007.