The World is Their Stage: See-Hear Productions, Inc.
by Greta Perry
When organizers for the northshore’s Krewe of Olympia wanted a fantastic production—à la Cirque de Soleil—to kick off their 2007 Mardi Gras Ball, they knew just who to call. So did organizers of the Madisonville Wooden Boat Festival, planners for the Miss Southeastern Pageant, and coordinators of the New Orleans Saints “Home to the Dome” production. Locals have known for years now just whom to contact when they seek the very best in innovative stage and set design, high-tech audio and visual aids, and breathtaking lighting productions—See-Hear Productions, Inc.
The local company, now receiving national attention, is run by two men who have yet to celebrate their 30th birthdays. John LeJeune and Patrick Theriot, friends since high school, have built their dream jobs and are the prototype for young success and ingenuity. They enjoy being around each other, recognize each other’s strengths, put tons of money back into their business and continue to deliver five-star entertainment productions. They are proud of what they have done, are excited for each upcoming event, love being on the cutting edge of a field they completely immerse themselves in and strive to deliver an experience and service that brings energy to any event.
John began his first business, Rock-it Productions, at age 11, and Patrick joined in a few years later. After graduating from Covington High School, both went on to college: Patrick to the University of Southern Mississippi and John to Southeastern. When the two met back up on the northshore, they continued expanding on an already successful D.J.-M.C. service. (This company dominates the market on the northshore in the DJ industry and continues to work as a separate entity to See-Hear Productions. John manages this company while working behind the scenes at See-Hear.) John and Patrick were running the D.J. company and noticed the Covington Holiday Inn’s frequent need for audio-visual equipment and LCD projectors. Thus the vision for See-Hear was born. John invested in the initial equipment purchase in 2002, and the rest is history. The company continues to expand and is in constant high demand—the business nearly tripled in each of the four years since its inception. It often books up to 15 events in any given week and has grown enough to accommodate a continuously growing customer base.
See-Hear Productions operations are based somewhere in the middle of nowhere, down a winding road in Sun. Step into its facility and you are quickly impressed with the company and completely forget how young it really is. Raven, the administrative assistant, greets you with a smile and you are escorted to an office surrounded by pictures of celebrities with whom they have worked, both locally and nationally. Housed in this office are a fabulous group of guys that make up the group of seven full-time employees who keep the business a success, including warehouse manager Andy Ragan and technical director Chase Kesner. See-Hear also hires up to 50 part-time employees to handle events and is always searching for quality experienced audio and technical personnel.
This office is the place where the visions of an event come to life. It’s where a production becomes the primary focus and planning begins. Jamie Rochelle, sales and marketing director, says, “We want every event to have a ‘wow’ factor and have an individual signature attached to it that sets it apart from all other events.”
“We don’t want participants to be spectators at an event,” says Patrick. “We want to immerse them in it and make them active participants.”
John adds, “We will do whatever it takes for however long it takes to make each event perfect.”
Denise Gutnisky gets credit from Patrick for their expansion from an audio/visual rental company to a full-scale production company in 2003. Denise runs the Trailhead in Mandeville and had worked some small events with See-Hear Productions. She was also responsible for booking the entertainment for the “Wednesday at the Square” concert series in downtown New Orleans. The connection was made, and See-Hear expanded into the New Orleans market. Today, John and Patrick say distance is not an obstacle; they will gladly accept jobs that require travel. Loading the trucks with equipment and heading off to big jobs in Houston, Denver or Tulsa is fairly common these days. After Katrina, they realized that they couldn’t solely rely on a region in hurricane valley. They continue to expand and diversify their services to meet the creative and technical needs of a vast range of clientele.
Sandy Franco, owner of Franco’s Athletic Club in Mandeville, can’t say enough great things about these men. “I love their fresh new ideas and the fact that nothing holds them back.” She initially hired them for a regional event that Franco’s was hosting, which involved 14 other states in attendance. See-Hear was her choice, and together they achieved the vision and success she desired. Since that event, Sandy says See-Hear is her only choice to use for professional event production.
Name-dropping is something we all like to do, but nowhere is it more appropriate than in the production world. These guys are quick to rattle off a star-studded list of clientele, including former President Bush, former President Clinton, Lionel Richie, Bill Cosby, The Steve Miller Band, John Legend, Jay Leno and the New Orleans Saints. However, they are also equally as proud and boastful of their northshore productions, pharmaceutical company gatherings and Castine Center and Northshore Harbor Center events. If you’ve been to a concert given by Four Unplugged, you’ve seen their work as well, as See-Hear is used exclusively by the popular northshore band. On May 10, the company will be organizing a spectacular production at the “Go Red for Women” fashion show at the Castine Center
One thing is certain: See-Hear Productions has expanded beyond state lines, but will always call the northshore home. Bringing a plan from concept to flawless execution will continue to be the passion and drive of these two local young men. They hope their work and dedication will make the northshore proud.
See-Hear Production, Inc.’s website is http://www.seehearpro.com.
