School Production AV Hire Manchester

School production AV hire in Manchester for shows parents will talk about for weeks.

Headset mics that don’t squeal, lighting that flatters young performers, a PA that fills the hall without scaring anyone in the front row, and a calm operator who has called school shows before. Same person, dress rehearsal to bows.

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21+ yrs

In live AV (11 at the BBC)

Every line

Heard at the back of the hall

Kind lighting

Flatters students, not glares

Same operator

Tech week to closing night

What we hire

The kit list for a school production that lands.

School productions need kit that flatters young performers, fills a school hall without overwhelming it, and gives the music and drama team something they can actually run during the show. The hard part is the headset mic plot, the easy part is showing up calmly.

Up to twelve channels of discreet flesh-tone headset mics for the principals and ensemble
Wireless handhelds and floor mics for the chorus and pit
School-hall-tuned PA with a clean vocal mix and a music-bed for the band or backing track
Warm stage wash on the cast, separate cyc lighting, simple cues the team can call
Backdrop or cyc lighting to lift simple sets without expensive scenery
Spare mic battery and capsule stock for the full run
One operator on site for tech week and every night of the show

Packages from £118 (two-speaker PA, dry hire for a small assembly or speech day) up to fully operated multi-night school productions with twelve-channel headset plots and lighting.

Every parent will clearly see, and clearly hear, every line their child has rehearsed.

Our promise on every event we run in Manchester. See how it works.

How School production AV hire Manchester works with us

Four steps from first call to closing night. No agency middlemen, no being passed around in tech week.

Free hall walkthrough

We walk the school hall with the music and drama team. Stage size, cast count, headset plot, lighting positions, audience layout.

Written spec + tech-week plan

A spec, not a sales pitch. The mic plot per principal, the lighting cues, the band feed. Tied to the tech-week schedule the school already has.

In for tech week, with the cast

We rig before the first tech run. Headset mics fitted to students in a settled order, levels set, cues run with the team before opening night.

On every show night, calmly

Same operator backstage every night. Mic swaps between scenes, batteries paced for the run, the music and drama team free to enjoy the show.

Three ways to hire

For school productions we strongly recommend operated. The headset mic workflow needs someone backstage for every show night.

Dry hire

Up to £350

Your in-house team collects, builds, runs the show, returns. Suits schools with experienced tech support. From a £118 two-speaker PA up to a full school-production rig collected from Salford.

Delivered

From £400

We bring it, build it, tune the room, hand it over, collect after the run. Your team runs the show nights.

Operated Recommended for school shows

From £2,000

Same operator backstage every show night. Mic swaps, cues called, lighting nudged so the cast lands every scene.

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School production worked examples

Real-world price anchors. Yours will land somewhere on the line between these, depending on the room.

Low end

Speech day or assembly

The room: School hall, 200 to 400 attendees, host + presenters at the lectern.

What we bring: Two-speaker PA, lectern mic, two handhelds for presenters, single screen for slides.

Service tier: Delivered tier

From £400

High end

Three-night secondary school musical

The room: School hall, multi-night run, principals + ensemble + pit band or backing track.

What we bring: Twelve-channel discreet headset mic plot, ensemble floor mics, hall-tuned PA, full stage and cyc lighting plot, band feed, multitrack recording, backstage operator every show night.

Service tier: Operated tier (for the run)

From £3,500

Indicative prices, ex VAT. Final quote follows a free venue walkthrough.

School productions we run in Manchester

Junior musical, secondary play, drama school showcase or whole-school speech day, same calm operator.

Secondary school musical

Multi-night run, twelve principals on headset mics, ensemble on floor mics, simple lighting plot, backing track or pit band.

Junior school play

Single-night show, smaller mic count, warm lighting, intimate hall sound that fills without scaring the front row.

Drama school showcase

Industry audience in the room. Cleaner camera-ready lighting, recording of every monologue, low-profile mic plot for casting tape footage.

Speech day / prize giving

Whole-school assembly format. Lectern and handhelds, screen for slides, school PA running calmly through awards.

School production AV hire Manchester in action

Real Manchester rooms, real ST | AV kit, in service of the event.

School production coverage across Greater Manchester

Manchester city schools, Greater Manchester independent and state, Cheshire and Lancashire halls. Liverpool to Leeds for the regular run.

Salford · Stockport · Trafford · Bolton · Cheshire · Lancashire · Liverpool · Leeds

Find us on Google Business for venue staff reviews and Q&A.

Featured client

“For two years now we have relied on Steven and his team to provide a first-class sound and lighting service for our productions. Absolutely impeccable.”

David Goulbourn, Headmaster

Pownall Hall School

What our clients say

★★★★★

“We recently used Steven for our youth group production and would definitely recommend. The hall we used does not have any of these facilities and Steven provided everything we needed. The sound for our show was the best it ever has been.”

Lisa Campbell

★★★★★

“Headset Radio Mics hired for a school show at Poynton High School and Performing Arts College. Steve was really helpful and supportive as well as incredibly knowledgeable. His staff were all amazing helping us get everything set up and checked before the show.”

M Rawling

★★★★★

“I am part of a volunteer team who run an annual arts festival featuring performances, events and talks. The quality of the kit supplied is exceptional. We particularly appreciate the help and advice that Steven offers before the festival.”

Pete Liggins

School production AV hire Manchester: questions we hear most

Straight answers, the ones organisers ask before booking.

How much does school production AV hire in Manchester cost?

It depends on the cast size and the number of show nights. Entry is a two-speaker PA at £118 dry hire, fine for an assembly or speech day. Delivered packages for a multi-night junior musical (6 to 8 headsets, lighting, band) are from £400. Fully operated secondary school productions with a twelve-channel headset plot, full lighting and a backstage operator for every show night are typically from £2,000 for the run.

How do you fit and maintain headset mics on students?

We fit at a quiet point in tech week, in a settled order, with the head of drama or music present. Capsules are flesh-toned and discreet. Batteries get swapped between scenes for principals and at interval for ensemble. Every student gets a mic that works.

Are you DBS-checked / safe to work with students?

Yes. ST | AV operators are DBS-checked. We work to the school’s safeguarding policy and check in with the staff member who’s on duty backstage at every visit.

Can you support the school’s music staff with the band feed?

Yes. We mic the band or pit, mix a separate music-bed into the room PA and the cast monitors, and tune it with the music director during tech week.

How quickly can you respond to a school enquiry?

Same working day. Steven answers his own enquiries. If you send the form before 4pm we’ll get a written response back the same day, with a date for a free hall walkthrough.

Do you cover schools outside Manchester city centre?

Yes. Greater Manchester boroughs (Salford, Stockport, Trafford, Bolton), Cheshire, Lancashire, and Liverpool to Leeds for the regular run.

Can you record the show for the school archive?

Yes. A multitrack audio recording from the mic plot, plus an option for a multi-camera capture, is part of the operated tier. Schools usually use it for the archive and the safeguarding-compliant parent copy.

What if the school hall already has installed AV?

Most school halls have installed PA built for assembly speech, not for a musical with twelve headset channels. We supplement (mic plot, lighting, band feed) or replace where the installed kit won’t hold the production.

Advice to event organisers

Four things to get right before School production day

Practical guidance from 21+ years of running these events. The little decisions that quietly make the day land.

Slot us into your tech week, not around it

We arrive before the first tech run, fit mics in a settled order, set levels with the music director, and rehearse cues with the team before opening night.

Brief the cast on mic discipline once

Headsets are live from sound-check. Whispering, eating crisps backstage, shouting offstage all end up in the room PA. One five-minute briefing in tech week is usually enough.

Plan battery swaps around scene breaks

Principals get a battery swap every interval; ensemble at half-time. Built into the show plan so there’s no panic dressing-room moment.

Treat the recording as the school archive

Audio from every mic + an option for multi-camera capture. Schools use it for the archive and for the safeguarding-compliant parent copy. Decide format before opening night.

CASE STUDY

Performing-arts showcase

A showcase night for a performing-arts school with twelve-channel headset mic plot, hall-tuned PA and warm stage lighting. Backstage operator every night of the run. We’ll add named school case studies as we’re cleared to publish them.

Read the case study