Stage facilities manager brings passion to his work

Jake Fray
The Advocate

John Rourke, the new stage facilities manager for the performing arts theater at MHCC, has been viewing performances from the inside-out since high school.

Rourke has had a passion for the stage since attending Quigley South High School in Chicago, where he participated in the theater department.

	John Rourke

“I started young and found that I had a passion for theater,” he said. “I took all the classes and I continued through college.”

Rourke went to Eastern Illinois University and found he had a passion for working behind the scenes rather having the spotlight on him.

“I have done all sorts of shows,” said Rourke. “From rock concerts to Broadway productions to little productions, I’ve done it all.

“I took all the classes, acting, directing — and technical theater, and that is what I wanted to do,” said Rourke. “The truth is struggling actors usually end up waiting tables until they are discovered and I didn’t want to end up that way. Doing technical theater pays the bills and that is what it has done for me. It is still paying my bills,” he said with a smile.

Following college, Rourke went through the entertainment technician certification program, which licensed him as a certified rigger of theater. After graduating and staying on the East Coast, Rourke decided it was time for a change and he and his girlfriend decided to head to Oregon six years ago.

“We had no jobs,” he said.” Nothing was lined up and we just needed a change.”
He was working oddball jobs until one day, his girlfriend picked up an issue of The Oregonian and saw a listing to be the head fly man at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.

“It was kind of a weird place to hear about a job like that in the newspaper but I applied and got the job,” he said.

During his time there, he built a resume that most would envy.

He was the head fly man which meant going into the rafters of the hall and hanging wires, sets and signs for that night’s show.

While working at the concert hall, Rourke became interested in the IATSE (International Alliance of Theater Stage Employees) where he also worked and started setting the rigging for rock shows at the Rose Garden and other venues such as the Keller Auditorium.

“Part of the job is having fun but the bands can be really nice or total jerks,” he said. “Guys like Lyle Lovett and bands like AC/DC come and thank all of the stage help. But groups like the Rolling Stones don’t want you to even look at them because they think they are better then you.”

Rourke decided he needed a change and sent a resume to the ETCP company and was hired on to be a set fabricator for the hit movie “Coraline.”

“That was really interesting,” he said. “I really wasn’t expecting to be hired on because I had no experience in movie rigging. When I went to the interview, my boss who hired me said it was similar rigging as in theater and I was hired.”

Rourke was hired for three months strictly for tearing down and rebuilding sets.

“It actually was supposed to only be for three months but it turned into an eight-month job, which was cool to watch.”

After working on the movie, Rourke said he was burned out being the head fly man and didn’t know what to do.

Then he found out about a job opening at MHCC. Danny Cook, the former theater facilities manager, was leaving and Rourke was interested.

“Danny and I are friends outside of this place,” he said. “I asked him about what the job has me doing and I thought to myself, ‘I could handle this,’ so I applied and now I have the job.”

For Rourke, it is different from any job he’s ever had.

“This is the only job where I’ve had my own office, and computer and I am in charge of everything and all I have to do is manage people and point my finger instead of having to do all the work myself,” he said.

“John is very organized,” said Daryl Harrison-Carson, who is the technical director for the theater. “He has only been here for a little while but he is getting along with everyone here (at MHCC) and is doing a great job. He seems like a fun guy.”

Outside of being a stage rigger, Rourke just likes to kick back ad mellow out with a little fun.

“Pretty much outside of work, I just like to drink and play rock ’n’ roll and do the club scene,” he said. “I have been in and out of bands for a while but the band I am currently in, which is called The Jethrines, has been what I like to do.”

His current band has never played in front of a crowd, but will have its first show May 29 at The Know (2026 NE Alberta St., Portland).

“I can’t play an instrument, but I am the lead singer and writer for the band,” he said.

With stage rigging in his blood, Rourke can’t wait for his first big project with the MHCC theater.

“With being certified and Obama’s stimulus package, the theater is getting money for a new rigging system. The current one is not the best, if you know what I mean,” he said.

“But the school is hiring me to do the project because I am certified in stage riggings so I know the whole nuts and bolts of putting in a proper stage rigging system.”

Overall, Rourke is excited to be part of the new project as well as adding another attribute to his resume.

“The project is going to be sweet,” he said. “I can’t wait to start the project and this is something new for me to try and I am excited for the opportunity.”