How Production Departments Coordinate Live
The communication systems, cue sequences, and real-time decisions that keep a live concert running seamlessly across every department. A live concert looks effortless from the audience. Behind the scenes, multiple departments are making continuous decisions, executing cues, and solving problems in real time — all while the show is happening.
Communication Infrastructure
Professional concert production runs on layered communication systems. Wired intercom (typically Clear-Com or RTS systems) connects department heads on dedicated channels — audio, lighting, video, and stage management each have their own channel, with a shared production channel for show-critical calls. Wireless intercom belt-packs allow key personnel to move freely. Production radios handle logistics, security, and operations on separate frequencies. The communication infrastructure is planned during the advance period, tested during load-in, and confirmed operational before doors open. Without reliable communication, coordination fails.
Show Calling & Cue Execution
The stage manager (or show caller) is the voice that synchronizes all departments during the performance. Using intercom, the caller announces standby warnings and go commands for cues: “standby lighting cue 47” followed by “lighting cue 47, go.” Each department executes their cues on the go command, ensuring lighting changes, video transitions, and audio adjustments happen simultaneously. On complex shows, the caller follows a detailed cue sheet that maps every cue to a specific moment in the setlist. On simpler shows, the caller may coordinate only transitions and key moments while departments self-cue to the music.
Real-Time Audio Adjustments
The FOH engineer mixes the show in real time throughout the performance. Every song may require different channel levels, EQ adjustments, and effects settings. The engineer responds to what they hear — adjusting vocal levels as a singer moves between quiet and powerful passages, managing feedback, and adapting to the room as it fills with people (bodies absorb high-frequency energy, changing the acoustic environment). Simultaneously, the monitor engineer manages the performers’ on-stage mix, responding to hand signals and verbal requests between songs. Both engineers make hundreds of adjustments during a typical set.
Lighting & Video Cue Synchronization
Lighting and video cues must align with the music and with each other. A dramatic lighting blackout paired with a video content change creates a powerful transition — but only if both happen on the same beat. On timecoded shows, cues are triggered automatically by a timecode track synced to the backing track or click. On busked shows, the lighting operator and video operator listen to the music and trigger cues in real time, often watching each other’s output on monitors to maintain visual coherence. Camera operators on IMAG follow the video director’s shot calls, switching between wide shots, close-ups, and specialty angles throughout the performance.
Emergency Protocols & Live Problem-Solving
Problems happen during live shows: a microphone fails, a lighting fixture stops responding, a video signal drops, or a weather alert interrupts an outdoor event. Each department has protocols for common failures. The audio engineer switches to a backup microphone. The lighting operator adapts programming around a failed fixture. The video engineer switches to a redundant signal path. For safety-critical situations — medical emergencies in the audience, severe weather, structural concerns — the production manager has authority to hold or stop the show. Emergency protocols are reviewed during the production meeting and every crew member knows the evacuation procedure.
Multi-Act Changeovers
Multi-act shows require coordinated changeovers between performances. The stage manager calls the changeover start, and a choreographed sequence begins: backline crew removes the outgoing act’s equipment while setting the incoming act’s gear. Audio crew repatches the stage box and verifies signal flow. Lighting presets the next act’s opening look. Video loads the next content package. All of this happens in a compressed window — often 15–45 minutes — and must be complete before the next act’s intro. Changeover efficiency directly affects whether the show runs on schedule.
Festival-Scale Coordination Challenges
Multi-stage festivals multiply the coordination complexity. Each stage operates as a semi-independent production with its own crew and schedule, but shared resources — power, rigging crew, backline, and production management — require site-wide coordination. A festival production manager oversees all stages, monitoring schedules and resolving conflicts. Stage-specific production managers run their individual stages. Communication channels are structured so each stage has its own intercom and radio channels, with a site-wide channel for cross-stage coordination. Weather decisions affect all stages simultaneously and require centralized authority.
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Common questions about how production departments work together during live events.
Wired and wireless intercom systems provide clear, isolated communication regardless of ambient noise levels. Headsets with noise-isolating earpieces allow crew to hear intercom channels clearly even at stage volume. Production radios supplement intercom for logistics and security. Visual cues (indicator lights, hand signals) are used in positions where headsets are impractical, such as follow-spot positions.
