A Scenic Automator is someone who creates and controls a complex sequence of scene changes that happen on stage in front of the audience. A good example of this would be a production of The Lion King. The stage is raised to represent Pride Rock at the beginning of the production and then this part of the stage is lowered to then make the stage a flat surface. This is all done electronically and in time with the music.
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Automation can be a highly specific field. It is possible to train within theatre however the below qualification area would definitely help:
See our training opportunities in the above areas here.
A Scenic Automator is a very specific job within theatre. You can often transition from a Stage Crew or Stagehand position into automation. Once you are trained up into this position, you have a very distinct skill set and can then transfer from show to show, depending on what shows actually use automation. Smaller production tend to have smaller or simpler sets so you will mostly be working on larger productions.
Find out what Backstage Crew members do here.
A Scenic Automator can earn between £25k - £45k.
You can also search vacancies using The Stage Jobs here.
http://www.theatrecrafts.com/pages/home/topics/automation-scenic/
https://www.thestage.co.uk/advice/2017/theatre-automation-operator/
https://www.tomorrowsengineers.org.uk/real-jobs/theatre-automation-engineer-ben-phillips/
Photo: Alex Brenner
Published: 5 December 2019