School to Career - Radio City Music Hall - SVP & GM Radio City Facilities



	You'll find a lot of activity going on backstage at a production, especially one as complex as the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. As SVP & GM Radio City Facilities, Richie Claffey is in charge of the production and all the backstage elements at Radio City Music Hall, which includes overseeing lighting, sound, carpentry, wardrobe, projection and all other technical elements of the show. For Richie Claffey, this is more than a full time job. "There is a lot of over time that goes into this career, almost 80-90 hours a week easily. If there is a show coming in one day, you need to be there at 8am for set up and stay until 11pm for the ending of the show and breakdown, so it is a long day!," explains Richie. Hands On Experience Richie has spent most of his life in or around the entertainment industry, starting as a stage hand working in his father's theater as a boy and gaining a lot of experience. After high school, he took a job working backstage at the Center City Ballet Theater and then landed his first position at Madison Square Garden at the age of 17. He started as an electrician, and worked as head carpenter. Now, more than two decades later, he is still working with MSG as well as with Radio City Music Hall as SVP & GM Radio City Facilities, a position he reached because of his diverse backstage experience. "Between working for my dad, at MSG and at the Center City Theater, I had a wide variety of experiences that have helped me with my current position," explains Richie, who adds that being well organized and able to interact comfortably with a wide range of personalities is important, since you are dealing with the many people involved in various aspects of a production. Advice "I would say to stay in school, graduate and receive your high school diploma. Also I would encourage students to go to college, because with a higher degree of education, you can really go far with your career," says Richie, who also recommends honing up on math skills for working with budgets and taking woodshop classes to learn the fundamentals of working in a stage crew position. "I have really been lucky with my career, having the privilege of being able to work with some really great tours," says Richie, who in 1992 toured the world with Bruce Springsteen and in 1997 served as labor coordinator for Garth Brooks' HBO concert "Garth in the Park."