Hey everyone, I’m a freshman at UConn majoring in Theater Design and Technology with a concentration in Lighting. I’m still figuring out whether I want to lean more toward lighting design or electrics, but I know I want to get more hands-on experience and start building connections in the industry.

I’m enjoying my classes, but I’m also getting impatient to actually get out there and work. I’d really like to start meeting people, getting experience, and learning how the industry works outside of school.

I’ve read a lot of posts about the Local One Replacement Room and the general advice seems to be that if you consistently show up, make yourself known, have your OSHA 30, bring your tools, have a good attitude, and build a relationship with Bobby, you may eventually get a chance at a gig.

So I’m wondering if that would actually be worth doing in my situation.

My schedule means I would realistically only be able to go during my school breaks. I have about a month off from mid-December to mid-January, and then I’m available for most of late May through late August. During the school year, I’m in Connecticut and wouldn't realistically be able to make it into NYC consistently.

I live in Westchester, so getting into the city would cost me around $30 round trip in train fare every day. Because of that, I don't want to spend weeks commuting in if I'm completely wasting my time or if my limited availability makes it unrealistic to get anywhere.

For some background, I’m not completely starting from zero. I’ve designed lighting for five of my high school productions, including both plays and musicals. For the past year and a half, I’ve also been working roughly 1–2 gigs a month at a local theater near me, the Tarrytown Music Hall, where I’ve gotten a decent amount of hands-on stagehand experience. I’ve done load-ins/outs, worked shows, and gotten experience around professional production and touring crews.

I'm also planning on getting my OSHA 30 and making sure I have the tools I'd need before trying to get into the Replacement Room.

So my questions are:

• Would it be worth spending my winter break going to the Replacement Room consistently, even though I can only do it for about a month?
• Would the same be true for the summer, when I'd be able to go for roughly three months?
• If I do go, should I basically commit to Monday–Friday and get there as early as possible, especially since I've heard getting there early can make a difference?
• Does only being available during school breaks put me at a major disadvantage, or is it still worthwhile to start making connections this way?
• Given my current experience, is the Replacement Room even the right place for me to be trying to get started?
• Is there anything I should have/do before showing up that would make people take me more seriously?
• And for anyone who has actually gone through this process: how long did it take before you started getting calls/gigs, and what did you wish you knew when you first started?

I’m not expecting to walk in and immediately get work. I understand that reputation, relationships, consistency, and being willing to start at the bottom are a big part of this. I’m just trying to figure out whether spending my breaks commuting into NYC every day is a realistic way to start building a path into the industry, or if there’s a better way I should be using that time.

I’m serious about doing this and I’m willing to put the work in. I just want to make sure I’m putting my time and money toward something that can actually lead somewhere.

Thanks to anyone willing to share their experience, especially people who have been through the Replacement Room/Local One process themselves.

-------TL;DR--------

I’m a UConn freshman studying Theater Design & Technology (Lighting), with 5 school lighting designs and ~1.5 years of stagehand experience at Tarrytown Music Hall. I live in Westchester and can only realistically go to the NYC Replacement Room during winter break (mid-Dec–mid-Jan) and summer (late May–late Aug), with about a $30/day round-trip train cost. Is it worth showing up consistently during those breaks to make connections and potentially get gigs? Does only being available during school breaks put me at a major disadvantage, or is it still worthwhile to start making connections this way? Looking for advice from people who have actually been through the process.