A concert, play, or event lives or dies on its sound and lights, and setting them up, running them, and fixing them live, is your work. The technical crew behind every show that goes right.
The work is physical and high-pressure: loading in and setting up gear, mixing sound and running lights during the show, and tearing down after. You work to a schedule and a live clock, and there are no retakes once the show starts. Much of the craft is calm, fast problem-solving when something fails in front of a live audience.
What's demanding is the long, irregular hours and the physical load: late nights, heavy gear, and travel are common. The pay can be uneven, and the work is often freelance or gig-based. It spans concerts, theater, corporate, and houses of worship, each with its own gear and pace to learn.
It fits someone hands-on, unflappable, and energized by live events. If you want a desk, steady hours, or predictable pay, the gig rhythm may not suit. But if you love live production, and the rush of a show that runs flawlessly because you made it, the work tends to be genuinely exciting, night after night.
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Roles like this one sit within a broader occupational category. The numbers below reflect that full landscape — helpful for context, but your specific experience will depend on level, specialty, and where you work.
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Roles with similar work and overlapping career paths
View all Arts & Media roles →A concert, play, or event lives or dies on its sound and lights, and setting them up, running them, and fixing them live, is your work. The technical crew behind every show that goes right.
Median pay for a Sound and Lighting Technician (Sound and Lighting Tech) is about $61K nationally, with the field ranging roughly from $36K to $118K depending on experience, employer, and metro (BLS).
Employment in this field is projected to decline about 4.6% through 2034, with roughly 10,130 people working in it today (BLS).
Closely related roles include Lighting Engineer, Lighting Designer, and Production Technician.
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