Automation Specialist

Job Description

Job Description

Now Hiring: Automation Specialist
Department: Production
Reports to: Head of Automation
Status: Full-Time, Non-Exempt, Union
Hourly Rate : $30.30/hr.
Expected Dates: 11/1/2026
Location: Ashland, OR
This position is represented by IATSE Local 154.

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) is seeking a technically skilled and inventive Automation Specialist to join our Scene Shop team. This role is ideal for someone who enjoys combining electronics, programming, fabrication, and theatrical problem-solving to create safe and dynamic automated effects for the stage.

The Role You’ll Play

As Automation Specialist, you’ll research, develop, prototype, install, program, and maintain automated effects for OSF productions. You’ll work at the intersection of electrical, mechanical, and theatrical systems, collaborating with creative and production teams to turn ambitious ideas into reliable stage effects.

What You’ll Do

Automation Systems: Install, program, maintain, troubleshoot, and repair automated theatrical effects.

Research & Prototyping: Develop and prototype electrical and mechanical devices for new stage automation effects.

Programming & Controls: Program and configure drives, controllers, microcontrollers, custom control circuits, and electrical enclosures.

Fabrication & Installation: Fabricate electrical components and support welding, metalwork, rigging, and installation of automated effects.

Technical Rehearsals: Provide automation support during tech and collaborate with creative teams to develop complex coordinated motion profiles.

Cross-Department Collaboration: Partner with other Production teams on show-related projects and assist with scenic carpentry, welding, and fabrication as needed.

You’ll Thrive Here If You…

Have 3+ years of experience fabricating, installing, and maintaining automated effects , plus 2+ years of experience prototyping electronic equipment .
Bring knowledge of microprocessors, programming, AC/DC circuits and drives, PLCs, motor controls, and 3-phase/208V electrical power distribution.
Can read electronic schematics, wiring diagrams, and scaled construction or design drawings.
Have experience with CAD tools such as AutoCAD and SolidWorks.
Are skilled at troubleshooting both low- and high-voltage electrical systems.
Can work independently, safely, and efficiently in a fast-paced production environment.

Preferred Qualifications

Theatrical automation experience.
Metal fabrication experience.
Proficiency in SolidWorks drafting.

Physical & Schedule Requirements

Ability to lift and move materials and equipment weighing up to 50 pounds; climb and work from ladders and personnel lifts; and regularly squat, crawl, kneel, and work overhead. The standard workweek is Monday–Friday , with occasional nights and weekends for load-ins, load-outs, technical rehearsals, and show emergencies.

Organizational Background

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) was founded in 1935 in Ashland, OR, and has grown from a three-day festival of two plays to a nationally renowned theatre arts organization that presents a rotating repertory season of up to 10 plays and musicals, including illuminating interpretations of Shakespeare, other enduring classics, and new works. OSF productions have been presented on Broadway, internationally, and at regional, community, and high school theatres across the country. OSF received the 1983 Special Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre and is one of the largest nonprofit theatres in the nation with three stages, including an outdoor Allen Elizabethan Theatre.

Statement of Purpose

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival creates world-class theatre, revealing our collective humanity through illuminating interpretations of new and classic plays, and inspiring a love of our art form for current and future generations.

Company Values

• We are committed to working toward inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility, creating a space of belonging for all audiences and employees—through concrete actions and systemic improvements.
• We nurture and support our artists, attracting and retaining diverse, innovative talent across the organization.
• We believe in the transformational power of collaborative artmaking and performance.
• We recognize the importance of responsible stewardship of resources and sustainable business, financial, and environmental practices.
• We serve the public good and engage with and respect our community of artists, audiences, staff, local citizens, patrons, donors, and the greater theatre community worldwide.