Onboard: Cruise Ship Entertainment Technician

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to work as an Entertainment Technician aboard a big name cruise liner?

Those massive ‘floating cities’, packed with eager guests who possibly spent it all on a vacation of a lifetime, full of high-tech, mind blowing entertainment?

I worked for one such cruise company and let me tell you, it was an experience of a lifetime! In this article, I’m going to give you the inside scoop on ‘Ship Life’. I hope this will be an insightful read for any technician, designer, theatre practitioner or technologist curious about the possibilities of cruise line work.

I started my ship-life as an Entertainment Technician with a Cruise Line company headed by a famous, family-friendly mouse with lots of goofy friends (…*hint hint*). At 23 years old, recently graduated with my BFA in Performing Arts, I was ready to travel, make new friends and work in my chosen field… What a dream. My professional experience at the time included guitar tuition; music production/ sound engineering; sound design and lighting design.

These are my personal experiences as an Entertainment Technician with Disney Cruise Line.

The application process

The application process was intense. I looked into various cruise lines and uploaded my profile on general hiring websites before choosing to apply to Disney. I then contacted the relevant service provider in my country to get the ball rolling. At first it was not easy to apply for technician work from my country (I still don’t know why), but after some time, work and patience, I secured the first stage of application which entailed an aptitude test of sorts.

After passing the first stage, I went on to a Zoom interview with a recruiter, then a phone interview with a Senior Technician aboard the ship… I’m IN! But wait, there were many other needs to satisfy before I had it in the bag. Background checks, a full medical, and the submission of more documents. I also had to get a series of vaccinations before I was actually ‘IN’ as a General Shipwide Technician.

My first week onboard

The first week was a huge culture shock, and a very busy week indeed. Orientation, HR training, ship safety training and my first crew Deck 14 party are the memories that jump to mind. I hardly did any technical work that week, though I met and spent time with the tech team, which gave me the opportunity to observe the many ways that tech was integrated into the ship. There were numerous lounges, clubs and general areas where bands would perform; I was exposed to audio networking systems and high-end mixing and lighting consoles; the kids club areas had ‘smart floors’ and all of these could be run by what looked like a hand- held tablet.

I took notes on everything as if writing a memoir. Though I had experience with live mixing, lighting design and other backstage goings on, I felt incredibly out of my league interacting with these skillful technicians and high calibre equipment for one of the biggest entertainment companies in the world.

The stakes were always high and no doubt mistakes were made… but I found my groove.

The possibilities

I definitely operated lighting and camera equipment while onboard, however, being a musician, producer and sound engineer, I was tasked with more live and sound related duties around the ship, ie- setting up bands and operating the interactive restaurant show during guest dinner times. I loved it!

Due to my passion and skill, after a contract or two I earned the role I really wanted – Audio Technician in the Walt Disney Theatre. Here, I was able to make magic night after night, putting on shows where adoring audiences could see their favourite Disney Stars!

Note: I inquired often about the audio role in the theatre, made sure to stay on the radars of the people that would make that move happen, and continued to work efficiently.

In the theatre I was responsible for maintaining all the audio hardware on stage, including the entire cast’s microphones, all on-stage intercoms, as well as operating a stage track. I also got to set up and run shows for many special guests, notably a presentation for the director of Moana– Ron Clements, and a cabaret starring Susan Egan- the original Belle in Beauty and the Beast on Broadway and voice of Meg in the movie Hercules.

My favourite non-theatre duties were mixing Deck Stage sound during the open air shows as well as operating as a stunt technician, a duty for which I was trained on the ship.

My new role in the theatre was that of a ‘swing’, where I would cover other technicians when they went on vacation. To do this, you must be adaptable because you move around a lot! I was able to work on each of the four ships that existed in the fleet at the time, and experience the itinerary that each had to offer- Alaska, Mexico, Iceland and Italy were all stops along my way. I sailed across the Atlantic ocean and did the Panama Canal crossing a few times too. I had to learn multiple shows, because the productions differed from ship to ship, and learn each new ship’s culture, because it’s like moving from city to city.

I made so many long lasting friendships; I like to say that I have a couch to sleep on almost anywhere in the world.

I also learned so much about myself while working in this environment and it significantly shaped who I am today and how I operate as a professional, not just in the technical world, but beyond.

The other parts of ship life

Like everything, you have to take the good with the ‘this-needs-to-be-managed’ and prepare accordingly. Luckily YOU have this article to help 🙂

• Unless you are a manager or Main Stage actor on the ship, you will most likely be sharing a small, double-bunk room with someone else. Pack light, live simply and keep lines of communication open and frank.
• For all you ‘land-dwellers’, International Maritime Law will be quite different. Be prepared to work long hours. Ship technicians can expect 9-12 hour work days with no days off for the duration of their contracts- sometimes up to 6 months. Finding balance and routine will help you to manage this and you will eventually fall into your own groove. It will be difficult to say ‘no’ to the crew bar, but sometimes you have to choose to rest!
• Everyone, no matter how adjusted they are, goes through what is known as the ‘mid-contract slump’. This is where the home sickness and demands of ship life culminate and you experience a low state of being. Luckily, it’s easy to make friends on ships.

Develop your support system, ask for help when necessary and be sure to sit in the sun at least once per day. You are not a robot.

• My last piece of advice would be to really keep an open mind… okay, and maybe remember to stretch your body more often than you think is necessary 🙂

There is SO MUCH left to be said about technician life aboard a cruise ship, but this should be enough to get you started.

Click here if you’re interested in general cruise jobs, and here for Disney Cruise Line.