Acrobatic Rigger Responsibilities

As the acrobats continue to amuse us with their breathtaking performances, we do nothing but wonder how do they land up safely after each performance. This part of acrobatics is managed by an acrobatic rigger who installs, inspects, tests and maintains the rigging equipments. He coordinates with various workers and instructs them to get work done.

An acrobatic rigger is the one who selects the rigging material. He checks the quality of all materials to ensure safety and reliability. He sets up the platform or stage, ties the ropes, constructs custom rigging systems, inspects and tests the setup, . He has to dismantle the whole set up and store all the materials once the show is over. He has to maintain records of the installation and inspection for review in case anything goes wrong during the act.

Although the job of an acrobatic rigger may seem another mechanical and monotonous profession, it is the degree of responsibility attached to this job that makes an acrobatic rigger important. Any minor mistake in the rigging equipments or the set up may result in an accident that might cause serious physical injuries or even death of an acrobat. Thus it is necessary for an acrobatic rigger to be alert to ensure safety of the acrobats and also manage emergency situations if things go wrong during the show.

The responsibilities of an acrobatic rigger have been explained below for your reference.

Selecting, Purchasing and Storing Materials

Getting the best materials and equipments is the basic requirement to ensure safety of an acrobatics event. To get this done, the acrobatic rigger visits the dealers in the city and inspects the quality of materials and equipments sold by them. He purchases the most advanced and safe materials and equipments. He arranges for its transportation to and from the venue during an event.

Stage/Platform Setup

The acrobatic rigger reviews the stage or platform designs made by the art director for an event. He constructs custom designs and installs all the materials and equipments at the venue.

Inspection, Repair and Replacement

The acrobatic rigger has to inspect the materials and equipments once they are installed at the venue. Prior to the event, he ensures that all the repairs are conducted and replacements are done if any material or equipment is found faulty or unsafe.

Maintenance of Records

An acrobatic rigger keeps records of the installation and inspection of acrobatic materials and equipments. It is important to keep these records for investigating any accident occurring at the venue.

Emergency Assistance

An acrobatic rigger is present at the venue of the event. He provides emergency assistance if anything goes wrong with the acrobatic materials and equipments.

To work in the position of acrobatic rigger, you need the following qualities:

• Because you will be constantly on the move and responsible for all the arrangements, you need to be physically and mentally active to get all arrangements done in time.
• Being technically proficient with various machines and tools will help you to install and setup the venue and also test the same for durability.
• You also need to be familiar with the emergency rescue operations and procedures to help the acrobats in case of an accident at the venue.
• You should be able to work under pressure and lead the workers to get the work done at the right time and in accordance to safety standards.

There are no specific educational requirements for this job. Being skilled in various computer applications and operations of various equipments is adequate to get into this job.

Average salary for an acrobatic rigger ranges from $20,000 to $60,000.

By reading the description on acrobatic rigger responsibilities, you get to know all the details about this job.