By SEAN BOSTON
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — A career that began behind the concession stand at Hutchinson’s Historic Fox Theatre is taking Blake Luman across the Pacific Ocean this summer.
Luman, a Hutchinson native and Buhler High School graduate, is preparing to travel to Asia as the head audio technician for a Disney On Ice production. The upcoming tour is the latest step in a behind-the-scenes entertainment career that has already taken him to more than 70 cities across the United States, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico.
The 2021 Buhler graduate also attended Hutchinson Community College, graduating in 2023 before continuing his work on the road with Disney On Ice.
Luman’s introduction to live entertainment came as a teenager at the Fox Theatre, where his mother worked. He started selling tickets and working in the concession stand when he was 15 years old. By the time he was 16, he was gaining his first experience on the technical side of live productions.
“It all started with my dear mother,” Luman said. “I started at the Fox Theater back in high school when I was 15 years old. I started selling tickets, started in the concession stand when I turned 16, and right before COVID hit, I got asked to run a spotlight for one of the shows over there.”
The COVID-19 pandemic brought live performances to a halt shortly after Luman began working with lighting equipment. When events returned, he continued developing his skills at the Fox.
Luman estimated that he worked on more than 20 shows at the theater. He later gained additional experience with Bandy Sound in McPherson and assisted with festivals in Hutchinson and surrounding communities.
As his interest in the technical side of entertainment grew, Luman began considering how he could turn that experience into a career. He took theater courses while attending college but ultimately decided the best way to continue learning was through hands-on work.
He considered attending a production school in Florida but said the cost would have been significant. Instead, Luman chose to learn directly from experienced professionals while working on touring productions.
“I told myself I learned more by the superiors above me,” Luman said. “It’s just worth it. Take it on the road, and I love it.”
Luman joined Feld Entertainment and Disney On Ice in 2023 when he was 20 years old. His first official stop with the company was San Juan, Puerto Rico, before he began touring along the East Coast.
He initially worked in lighting, building on the experience he gained at the Fox Theatre. The job involved more than operating equipment during performances. Luman said lighting crew members also spent time maintaining and repairing equipment behind the scenes.
“We’re repairing lights every day,” Luman said. “That’s all I’d be doing during each show. I’d be backstage, opening lights up, changing out lenses, changing out belts.”
After one season in lighting, Luman decided to move into audio work. He served as an assistant in the audio department during his second season before advancing to the head audio position.
The change placed him in charge of one of the most important technical components of each show. Audio work involves much more than adjusting music levels during a performance. Luman must help make sure the production’s equipment works properly in each arena, connect the show’s sound system with the venue and coordinate audio in areas such as the concourse and backstage spaces.
The touring production includes about 110 cast members, crew members and staff. Luman works closely with the production stage manager and performance director.
The performance director focuses heavily on the cast and the overall presentation of the show, while the production stage manager oversees the technical crew and helps handle venue-related challenges.
“If you want something to look different, sound different, he’s the director of the show, per se,” Luman said of the performance director. “My production stage manager, he kind of takes care of the entire crew, so he’s my personal boss.”
Luman recently completed a West Coast tour with a Disney On Ice production built around high-energy music and Disney characters. The show features Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy as part of a party-style performance with a DJ theme.
“If you take Disney On Ice and mix it with EDM-style music, that’s what the show is,” Luman said. “It’s this entire party from start to end.”
The production is especially enjoyable for Luman because of its emphasis on audio.
“I love it,” he said. “I pump the subs every single show.”
His upcoming assignment will take the production to Asia, where Luman will continue working with some of the same cast members and crew members. He will also work with much of the same equipment, including a new audio console installed near the end of the previous season.
Before performances begin, Luman and the crew will spend about two weeks preparing the production in the first city on the tour. That process will include technical rehearsals and preparation for aerial performers who fly above the ice during portions of the show.
The trip will also mark Luman’s first long-distance overseas flight. He said the journey will include a flight of about 12 hours from Los Angeles to Tokyo.
Luman said ice skating and Disney On Ice have a strong following in Japan, where the production is celebrating 40 years of performances.
“They love it,” Luman said. “Ice skating is huge in Japan. Disney On Ice has been over there for 40 years now.”
Although the upcoming trip is a new experience, extended travel has become a regular part of Luman’s life. A typical touring season lasts about eight months, often running from July through April.
His work has taken him throughout the East Coast and West Coast, along with multiple trips to Mexico City and Canada. He has also visited New Orleans and San Juan, Puerto Rico, two of his favorite stops.
Luman keeps a souvenir from each hotel stay along the way. His collection of room keys has grown to about 200 cards.
“I keep all my cards just on the back of my phone,” Luman said. “Every time I get to a new city, I find my old one and throw it in my backpack, and I have a zipper dedicated for it.”
The collection eventually became heavy enough to draw attention from airport security. Luman said he now keeps the cards with his touring equipment instead of carrying them in his bag.
Luman is a member of the Wichita-based stagehands union, which helps negotiate contracts, salary, travel arrangements and other details for touring productions. When he is back in Kansas, the union also provides opportunities for him to work at Wichita venues such as INTRUST Bank Arena and Century II Performing Arts and Convention Center.
The career path has given Luman the opportunity to turn his early experiences in Hutchinson into a full-time role with an international touring production.
Just a few years after learning to operate a spotlight at the Fox Theatre, he is preparing to help bring a major Disney production to audiences across Asia.
“I finally got the opportunity to head over to Asia for this next season,” Luman said.