Q & A with Gabi Scheff

Photo: @insupportofmusic

Like many industry professionals, Boston based Gabi Scheff got her start in live production working in a local shop. Touring became her primary focus in 2012, where she’s built an impressive resume working as lighting designer and director with artists including Heart, Ann Wilson, The Waterboys, and Ani DiFranco.
She’s currently taking some time away from the console to supervise the advanced remote follow spot FollowMe! System on P!nk’s extensive arena and stadium tour.
You can find Gabby on her website http://www.gabischefflighting.com and follow her on Instagram @gobowench

Favorite concert or live show you’ve attended as a fan (not for work)?
Jason Webley at the Red Barn at Hampshire College, 2009. Some college friends and I took a tiny road trip from Providence, RI up to western MA for this one. I'd never heard of the guy before, but it sounded like fun. The show was super low-key... just a bunch of kids sitting on the floor of this old barn space. Jason Webley comes in with a guitar, an accordion, a jug of coins, and nothing else. By the end of the show, the whole audience was completely under the spell of this wacky, folky, organic, honest, modern day troubadour. No stage, no real PA, nothing but bistro lights overhead. It remains the most enchanting and powerful live music experience I've had.

Is there anything you try to do every off day?
Get outside! We spend enough time in venues (even if they are sheds or mobile stages), so I try to enjoy nature. Recently it's been in the form of planning out a running route and enjoying the beauty that local greenways provide. Then I also have a great reason for my second favorite day-off activity: hunting down local culinary delights!

What are one to three work-related tool(s) you can’t do without? (Computer, gear, tool, phone app, etc.)?
As a designer: my Macbook Pro, my iPhone (for a multitude of reasons), and my Klean Kanteen coffee mug.
As a technician: my Caterpillar Echo steel toes, Kershaw pocketknife, and my Leatherman Skeletool.

Are there any standard industry practices that you’d like to change?
I feel as though it's beginning to shift-- but the general idea that sacrificing sleep, food, and work/ life balance for the gig needs to be examined. I've been incredibly fortunate to work within camps that care about their touring family deeply. Seeing these productions help accommodate when there's an emergency at home, an important commitment off tour, or a need to step aside from the road for family matters means so very much when we already give entire chunks of our year (not to mention the mental space we dedicate beforehand) to these jobs. Mental health and physical wellness are paramount when we put our minds and bodies through the ringer, and it's important that this industry continues to improve the ways we are able to approach and access help.

Since you began working in this industry are there any concepts or practices you’ve implemented that have had a positive impact on your work (reduced stress, saved time, etc.)?
So many. The most important ideas I carry day-to-day are: clear communication, a positive, gracious attitude, and taking responsibility for your actions. In short: do good work. There's so little time and patience for arguing over semantics. I've found that the ability to accept that something's gone wrong and move past it in a productive manner wins far and beyond proving that any particular person is at fault. This absolutely applies to both the FOH and dimmer beach end of things. While my audio friends love the phrase “Nobody goes home humming the light show,” I know for a fact that you are remembered for the kind of energy you bring into the workplace.

Where do you see the industry going in the next 5-8 years?
Technology changes and advances at such a rapid rate, who knows! In the lighting world, there's a massive meld happening between lighting and video. I'm curious to see where the pan-visual end of things ends up. It's exciting to see this growth of technology accompanied by a bright, passionate wave of fresh young tech-oriented designers who are challenging and pushing the capabilities of the gear that comes out every year. Hopefully the live concert industry continues to grow both in terms of popularity and production value. At the end of the day, everyone deserves to escape into the music that they love, and it's amazing to see such intensely magical shows available to the general public.

What ruins your day at a show?
Bad attitudes. We're all in for a long day, and we're all here to put on the same show. If folks are having a rough day, taking it out on the people around them is simply unacceptable and disrespectful. If someone chooses to express their displeasure or stress in an aggressive or threatening way (passively, physically, or verbally), I'm far less likely to take them seriously in future interactions.

What improves your day at a show?
Having fun. Working closely with strangers every day can have its ups and downs-- you never know a person's background or sense of humor when you shake their hand first thing in the morning. When your local house folk and stagehands come in with a positive outlook for the day and help you crush your work with a few good laughs along the way, it's a fulfilling experience.

Our industry isn’t as glamorous as often perceived, what continues to motivate you to work such long hours and be away from home for extended periods of time?
There's certainly the instant gratification element. When I'm out front running a show, it's the high of hearing the crowd cheer when house lights go out, and knowing that an entire room full of people are going to experience the first moments of this show exactly how the production wants them to.
As one of eight lighting crew on this current tour, it's being a part of a beautiful, smooth, efficient machine that brings an absolute spectacle to thousands of people in every city. Beyond the workplace, it's simply a pleasure and an absolute gift to experience the world along the way.

How do you stay connected to home while away (or do you)?
I don't know how people did this before smartphones. For being a roadie, I sure am a homebody! Being able to communicate via text (including photos: Show me your breakfast! What are the cats up to?) and video call certainly helps me reel in the distance a bit. It's too easy to get lost in road life, so having the time to call home and dip a toe into reality is invaluable. I'm incredibly fortunate to have a strong home base (family, roommate, and friends) who all help keep me grounded and current.

What's the most important thing in your suitcase?
An Aeropress and an 8 oz. insulated stainless steel tumbler. The promise of a hot shower and a good cup of coffee will carry me through some pretty rough times. It's a little touch of home and humanity that we can all use on the road.