Jay Withee has had an interesting and multifaceted 20-year career in the entertainment and theatre industry working with companies such as TAIT, Cirque Du Soleil and Dragone. Currently, Jay is the Head of Services & Support – Asia for TAIT in Hong Kong.
Prior to joining TAIT in 2019 as a Controls Engineer, Jay was the Technical Show Manager with Dragone at The House of Dancing Water at the City of Dreams Resort in Macau. At The House of Dancing Water, Jay held the roles of Automation Operator, Lead Automation Operator, Assistant Head of Automation, Head of Automation and Deputy Technical Director. Jay had been involved with The House of Dancing Water since its installation and creation, enjoying all the complexities that were involved in bringing this large-scale production to life and operating it on a day-to-day basis. He has been involved with other creations of similar scale including Cirque du Soleil’s KA at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Jay started his technical career working for the cruise industry, spending almost five years on the ships. In this time, he held the position of Automation Technician, Field Service Engineer and Rigging Specialist, while getting the opportunity to assist on some of the largest theatrical installations sailing the high seas today, including Royal Caribbean’s Liberty and Independence of the Seas.
A graduate of ECPI University, Jay earned his Bachelor of Science in Electronic Engineering with a major in Mechatronics.
In his spare time, Jay has chaired the Entertainment Technology division of the Professional Advisory Board for St. Clair College in Windsor, Ontario, Canada and been a member of the Industry Expert Advisory Group for Millersville University in Millersville, Pennsylvania. Jay has also had the opportunity of being part of the TheatreArtLife start-up team.
Jay lives in Hong Kong with his wife Anna and two kids, Tyler and India.