Technical Riders and Stage Plots
Definition
A technical rider is the document in which an artist or a touring production lists its technical requirements. It usually contains the input list, which assigns each source to a console channel with its microphone or DI box, together with the monitor and mix needs, the backline, the power, the stage dimensions, and the equipment the production brings or expects the venue to supply. The stage plot is its drawing: a top view showing where performers, instruments, monitors, microphones, DI boxes and power points are placed, so that the local crew can prepare the stage before the artist arrives.
The guide
The advance is the exchange in which the touring production and the venue compare these documents with what the venue and its system can provide, well before load-in. The comparison covers the number of inputs against the console and the stage box, the available power, the number of monitor mixes and the physical space on stage. A mismatch found at this stage can be settled by email, whereas the same mismatch found at soundcheck takes time from the schedule.
These documents are useful only while they are current. An outdated input list, or a stage plot that no longer matches the touring rig, causes the delays and confusion the documents are meant to prevent. Touring practice is therefore to update rider and plot whenever the show changes and to reconcile them with each venue before the trucks leave.
The rule
Every technical requirement is advanced and reconciled with the venue before load-in.
Glossary terms
Sources
- MusicNSW, Tech Rider & Stage Plot Template : contenu d'une fiche technique et d'un plan de scène · musicnsw.com
- Tour Manager Info, How to Make a Stage Plot and Input List : plan de scène en vue de dessus, liste d'entrées voie par voie · tourmanager.info
- Living A Vocal Life, Advancing Your Show: Stage Plots and Performance Riders : l'avance d'un concert avec le lieu · livingavocallife.com
- Tour Manager Info, How to Properly Advance a Show or Tour, l'avance avec le lieu : fiche technique, plan de scène, liste d'entrées, horaires · tourmanager.info