A Day in the Festival Life of the Production Team

Ever wonder what happens behind the scenes at The Bath Festival?  While the festival would have been happening, we’re sharing a series of articles from our festival team and partners to give you some insight into what goes on to make the festival happen! Below is a day in festival life from the Production Team, Elysia Collins and Kate Hall. If you are able to help the festival continue by donating please click here.

The production team of Bath Festivals is made up of our Programme Director, Kate Hall, Production Coordinator, Elysia Collins (that’s me) and a Festival Assistant that we bring in each year as we get closer to the festival.

However, it is not just us three that become part of our team in some way or another. We work with lots of fantastic people during the festival that help keep everything on track. Event Managers, Assistant Event Managers, Venue Managers, Front of House staff, Artist Liaisons, volunteers and many more really support the running of all of our events and make our job such a joy to do.

Above image: Volunteer talking to audience at Penguin Cafe performance at The Bath Festival 2019

We manage a large team of people and have to ensure that everyone knows what they should be doing on each day. You can usually spot each member of the production team running around town carrying bags of stuff from venue to venue and talking frantically on the phone. Working in Production means no matter how much you plan for things and think you are organised, something will always be forgotten or left behind and it’s our responsibility to fix it!

Above left: Elysia Collins (right) with Festival Assistant at the time Cinnamon Trundle in a lift full of  festival production equipment to be taken to venues.  |  Above right: Kate Hall (left) with Head of Programming at the time Judith Robinson at the Children’s Literature Festival

One moment that was particularly hairy in 2019 was getting sent an updated rider (a list of technical equipment and instruments needed by an artist or band) on the day of the concert and needing to find a mandolin, on a Sunday. We managed it in the nick of time by borrowing a very, very expensive mandolin from a friend of a friend. We never let that out of our sight.

Above image: Apparat performing at The Bath Festival 2019

Each day working for the production team is very different with lots of new challenges thrown at us, however, we wouldn’t want it any other way.

Kate Hall and Elysia Collins
The Production Team

Above image: Kate Hall second on left and  Elysia Collins third in on right with the rest of the team at The Bath Festival Finale Weekend 2019

We need you help so we can continue to bring the best of music and books to Bath through The Bath Festival and Bath Children’s Literature Festival, as well as our all year-round creative learning outreach programme. Please donate to our #BackBathFestivals crowdfunder campaign.