Executive Producer

ZRG Careers; Dallas (TX); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

ZRG Careers is seeking an Executive Producer, Festivals & Live Events for a premier live entertainment platform in the Dallas area. The role drives end-to-end planning and on-site execution of major festivals and seasonal attractions on a 165-acre property, partnering with GMs and department leads.

This hands-on leadership role requires balancing creative vision with logistical rigor, daily site walks, and proactive problem-solving to ensure flawless guest experiences and profitable operations.

Qualifications

• 5+ years leading large-scale live events.
• Experience in high-attendance festivals.
• Strong project management and budgeting.
• Ability to lead in outdoor environments on large properties.
• Exceptional communication and leadership abilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end planning, scheduling, production, and execution for local festivals and events.
• Collaborate with Marketing, Programming, and creative teams to shape guest experiences.
• Build run-of-show documents, production schedules, milestone calendars, budgets, and readiness plans.
• Direct cross-functional coordination across Food & Beverage, Retail, Programming, Facilities, Ticketing, Technology, Parking, Health, Safety, and Security.
• Lead on-site site walks and resolve issues during setup, show days, and strike.
• Oversee vendor and partner management and post-event debriefs for continuous improvement.

Skills

Event Leadership

Budget Management

Cross-Functional

Vendor Relations

Outdoor Operations

Job description

Our client is a premier live entertainment and experiential festival investment platform formed to acquire, elevate, and operate iconic, immersive outdoor renaissance faires and experiential events across the United States. Across the industry, experiential festivals are seeing surging consumer demand for tangible, interactive, and community-driven entertainment. With this heightened popularity, our client is actively modernizing park operations, scaling best practices, and investing in guest experiences to drive customer satisfaction, profitability, and multi-generational attendance.

Our client currently owns and operates four of the nation's premier renaissance festivals, attracting hundreds of thousands of guests annually across major regional properties. Recognizing the vast, untapped potential in live experiential entertainment, our client is committed to continuous operational optimization, infrastructure development, and introducing new festival and event concepts.

Position Summary

Seeking a highly hands-on, energetic Executive Producer, Festivals & Live Events to lead the end-to-end planning and on-site execution of major festivals, seasonal attractions, and guest experiences across a 165-acre outdoor property in the greater Dallas area.

Working side-by-side with the General Manager, the Executive Producer will take productions from initial concept through breakdown—building timelines, aligning departmental leads, walking the grounds daily, proactively catching operational gaps, solving field problems, and ensuring the property is fully prepared when the gates open.

This is not a desk-only role. Our client needs a proactive producer who thrives in the middle of live event operations, balances creative instincts with logistical rigor, and leads with a collaborative, can-do mindset.

Key Responsibilities

• End-to-End Event Execution: Lead comprehensive planning, scheduling, production, and execution for all local festivals, seasonal events, and special property experiences.
• Creative & Commercial Alignment: Partner with Marketing, Programming, and creative teams to shape concepts, entertainment, activities, and guest experiences that engage audiences and achieve attendance and revenue goals.
• Production Operations & Timelines: Build and manage detailed run-of-show documents, production schedules, milestone calendars, budgets, and readiness plans.

Field Leadership & Operations

• Cross-Functional Leadership: Directly coordinate across all operational departments, including Food & Beverage (concessions, bar/beverage programs), Retail/Merchandise, Programming & Cast, Facilities, Ticketing, Technology, Parking, Health, Safety, and Security.
• On-Site Leadership & Site Walks: Spend significant time in the field conducting daily site walks across the 165-acre grounds to inspect progress, identify operational bottlenecks, and resolve issues before event days.
• First Line of Operational Defense: Serve as the senior boots-on-the-ground operational leader during set-up, live show days, and strike. Swiftly resolve escalations, adapt to unexpected operational issues, and solve problems before they upscale to executive leadership.

Partnerships & Quality Control

• Vendor & Partner Management: Oversee external contractors, specialty performers, production vendors, artisans, and concessionaires, holding partners to high delivery standards.
• Continuous Improvement & Operational Cadence: Lead post-event debriefs, manage weekly operational punch lists, and review guest Net Promoter Scores (NPS) to implement continuous enhancements.

Candidate Qualifications

Required Experience & Capabilities

• 5+ Years of Proven Event Leadership: Progressively responsible experience leading large-scale live events, festivals, attractions, experiential entertainment, venues, fairgrounds, or theme parks from concept through execution.
• Large-Scale Event Track Record: Direct experience personally driving operations for complex, high-attendance events hosting thousands to tens of thousands of daily guests.
• High-Paced Project Management: Exceptional ability to manage multiple simultaneous workstreams, production schedules, budgets, and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Collaborative Leadership: Outstanding communication skills and high emotional intelligence, with demonstrated ability to motivate, lead, and earn the respect of a tenured legacy workforce.
• Creative Eye & Logistical Rigor: Strong creative sensibility to provide aesthetic direction to entertainment and cast teams while maintaining strict logistical discipline.
• Field Readiness: Physical willingness and comfort working extensively outdoors across a 165-acre property, including in extreme summer temperatures (100°F+), extended hours, weekends, and holidays during event seasons.
• Proactive Problem-Solver: A solution-oriented builder who dives into the weeds when necessary, embraces ambiguity, and operates with extreme ownership.

Preferred Background

• Experience in theme park operations, multi-use fairgrounds, or permanent festival campuses.
• Background in managing permanent property infrastructure alongside temporary festival buildouts.
• Proven track record of developing, incubating, or expanding new regional events and festivals.

Performance Metrics & Success Criteria

Events run smoothly with clear ownership, firm deadlines, and meticulous pre-season planning. Departmental communication is seamless, field problems are intercepted early, and our client's General Manager can hand you a major festival or production initiative knowing it is in confident, capable hands.