Technical Director

The Position:

Technical Director

Job Summary:

Muhlenberg College invites applications for Technical Director for productions to join our nationally recognized Department of Theatre & Dance. The Theatre and Dance programs at Muhlenberg College are dynamic, large, physically and intellectually engaging programs that serve approximately 300 majors and minors. The Theatre program produces 4 major productions and the Dance program produces 3 productions each academic year as well as supporting smaller events such as staged readings and lending (limited) support to the student run MTA (Muhlenberg Theatre Association) and MDA (Muhlenberg Dance Association). The Department houses four performance venues: two proscenium theatres and two flexible studio theatres. As a community committed to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging, the department seeks candidates who strive to bring vision, mentorship, communication, and collaboration to our campus through the Technical Director position.

Characteristic Responsibilities:

• Create a welcoming, healthy, safe, productive, inclusive, and supportive educational environment for our diverse student body and other community members with an emphasis on student learning and development.

• Operation & Collaboration with the Lighting and Sound Specialist, Assistant Technical Director, Scenic Painters and Props Artist(s), Workstudy student workers and student volunteers:

  • Provide leadership, supervision, and oversight to the Assistant Technical Director and Workstudy student workers and student volunteers.

  • Manage and ensure an organized and safe work environment.

  • Manage shop, production, and equipment budgets as designated.

  • Order, track, and maintain shop materials (lumber, hardware, etc.).

  • Manage schedules, deadlines, and workflow of productions, coordinate safety training for students, and assign tasks and other work as needed.

  • Responsible for tracking and reconciling corporate credit card purchases.

  • Supervise maintenance and organization of tools, equipment, and facilities.

  • Attend and contribute to production and staff meetings.

  • Oversee and maintain the off-site storage facility of department inventory, including scenic elements, props, and furniture.

  • Ensure safekeeping of department facilities, venues, and equipment.

  • Maintenance and repair of the scene shop and department equipment to ensure clean and safe working conditions. 

• In production:

  • Lead the planning, technical construction, installation, maintenance and transfer of scenery (built, purchased, rented, or otherwise), strikes and load-outs.

  • Oversee rigging for all productions produced and presented.

  • Produce working and construction drawings from design packages.

  • Determine the feasibility and safety of all designs.

  • Collaborate and communicate with scenic designers design/tech faculty to discuss designs, shop schedules, resources, budget, and mentorship of student designers.

  • Attend tech rehearsals and/or performances as needed or arrange for appropriate coverage of tech rehearsals (requires nights and weekends).

• Student facing:

  • Hire & supervise student employees and volunteers with an emphasis on safety and security, including lift and counterweight operation.

  • Create student work schedules, approve timesheets, and assign tasks to students.

• Coordination & Collaboration with the design/tech faculty, PM, and the Chair of Theatre & Dance on:

  • the functioning of the shop as a healthy and productive learning environment for students, including updates on projects (daily and ongoing) and proposed changes to the shop as requested.

  • the use and preparation of the shop and other spaces for class and other departmental purposes.   

  • field requests for volunteer opportunities for students.

• Serve as department liaison to the College Safety Committee.

• Supervise support for events (departmental and otherwise) scheduled for evenings and weekends in the various venues that fall under the responsibility of the department.

• Potential for the opportunity to teach a stagecraft course. [This additional work would be compe