CMU School of Drama


Saturday, July 09, 2016

Real Roadies Review 'Roadies'

NPR: Doug Redler came to the life almost by accident. He took what he thought would be a short break from writing for Billboard magazine to help out a guitarist friend who was touring with Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry. But in the three decades or so since that first outing, Redler has built a long resume as a roadie – he prefers the term "guitar technician" — working with the Black Crowes, the B-52s, Hall & Oates, Peter Gabriel, Paul Simon, Slash and The Dixie Chicks.

1 comment:

Olivia Hockley-Rodes said...

As someone who's dream job is to be a roadie of some sort, this was super fascinating to read about. Yet, just like the real "roadies" interviewed, the general plot of the show does feel very outdated. The term roadie is certainly outdated, back from the 70's groupie culture. Discussions about music loosing passion certainly isn't something that I think would occur often; the job does go hand in hand with the music, but the job is also just a job, and I know I can easily work on a play without loving the play itself. I'm super excited that this show was mad however, because I feel like the backstage positions at a concert are often left undiscussed, both in the music community and in the tech theater community. I'm very excited to watch this show, because although slightly problematic, it shines light on an aspect of technical theater often left in the dark.