The last two weeks of Feb have been a another busy for the Pirates, and there’s a lot to be proud of! Let’s take a look….
For the good part of a week we had a team of stage techs and a qualified IPAF driver over at Pinewood Studios, working with the brilliant Universal Pixels for an permanent install of LED lights. For this gig we primarily provide mixed skilled techs (our personnel with knowledge across Lighting, Sound, AV and Stage) and IPAF trained scissor lift operators. Many challenges, including misaligning bolt holes across the hundreds of fixtures, meant that we had to scramble an additional 5 appropriately skilled crew each day to site, to drill out and fix the issues. With a lot of hard work, the job got done to schedule, not easy though!
London Stage Carpentry
Meanwhile we also had a team of 8 stage carpentry techs working alongside the staff at The Hackney Empire, building a show for one of our favourite clients – English Touring Opera, who are embarking on their spring tour. Fun times were had by all, as well as some show building of course!
At Pirate we welcome a jam-packed, busy day and this month saw quite a few of these. One in particular in late Feb, in which we had teams situated in many sites across the UK, working on a variety of projects. First off in London we had a crew handling a load in for Dear England at the National Theatre (a client of ours since the origins of the company) and another team at the National Youth Theatre’s popular rehearsal rooms assisting with a particularly heavy load in and rehearsal set up for a new production of A Knight’s Tale.
Furthermore, returning to the new venue – Sadler’s Wells East, a group of experienced Pirate lighting and sound techs, as well as a follow-spot technician, worked on a lighting rig – unloading, cabling and setting up lx booms. A very smooth fit up thanks to the crew’s knowledge and expertise!
In Swindon, mixed skilled techs from our Bristol team helped out with the fit up for ever popular Rocky Horror Show at Wyvern Theatre. Split across lighting, sound and stage the crew were eager to help out and showed confidence in their skills across different departments.
Prisons & Wizards
In Watford the our Milton Keynes team returned to Warner Bros Studio Tour, helping out with a variety of tasks of the technical and customer departments, including handling the deliveries of Butter Beer! Levioso!
The day also brought us to a bit of a unique venue at Bronzefield Prison, in which we managed to persuade some of our brightest stage techs to assist with the fit up for a production of Made in Dagenham produced by Pimlico Opera Productions, who are known for bringing high standard productions to unconventional spaces, including schools and prisons. The crew were obviously kept in one room all day, with no communication with the outside world. Despite going a little stir crazy, the work kept them busy enough.
This month we also had our Pirates at great Hammersmith Apollo building the usual flat floor over the top of the auditorium. This is a regular gig for us and it’s not for the faint hearted. The crew were responsible for handling and fitting over 400 decks, all with bespoke sized legs to level off the sloping structure of the Hammersmith floor. We’d usually be building this for one of the venue’s many award shows, however in this instance Hammersmith were showcasing the venue to prospective producers. The event was a roaring success and the build, as well as the eventual de-rig was one of the best so far. At Pirate we’re always striving to improve….
Last Minute Makeover
Over at the Lyric Theatre, London Pirate stage techs built a sound barrier between the sound desk booth and cleared production desks, and also assisted a tidy of the venue, taking out seats and loading them into a van, all in the mad final hours before the first preview.
We finished the month with a super shift from a group of our stage techs, with a day of helping out the production carpenters from Datum, building a skate school for Starlight Express show rehearsals at 3 Mills Studios. This included laying a floor, skate ramps, and some lighting and sound. Our recently qualified forklift driver, under the supervision of more experienced operators, rose to the challenge of manoeuvring the ramps brilliantly, while the rest of the crew ensured they went above and beyond in support of the client’s needs.
Another month of hard graft, team work and happy clients! Onto the next one!
Why Choose Pirate for your Event Production Crew?
This week was a testament to the skill and adaptability of Pirate Crew. Providing event technicians across the UK – London, Windsor, Bristol, Cardiff, Milton Keynes, Nottingham and more!
Whether it’s managing complex theatre builds or supporting unique immersive events, our team brings professionalism, expertise and a sense of humour to every project. It’s no wonder we’re the trusted provider of event production crew services for venues across the UK.
Looking for skilled and reliable crew for your next event? Contact Pirate Crew today to see how we can help bring your project to life.
