AV Consultant/Designer with extensive experience in performance AV systems for performing arts facilities, themed entertainment venues, stadiums, Mega & Giga churches, and indoor-outdoor regional or national concert venues. My designs and guidance provided to clients come from years of hands-on experience as a touring engineer and working for an AV integration firm, gaining the installer's perspective. Music and technology are a huge passion of mine, and working with artists to ensure they connect with the audience and the audience has an emotional response to the artist. I utilize my years of relationship building with the artist to strive as an advocate for the production crew (the forgotten heroes who make events and facilities run so smoothly) with the design team and the client's upper management. This is why I still freelance as an Audio Engineer, helping create those connections while continuing my hands-on experience with the latest technology, well ahead of mainstream implementation within venues.  A patron's emotional memory or response from an event comes from a well-designed, extremely collaborative team and highly coordinated building that works as one rather than multiple items within  a facility that works by themselves. 

The Consultant Council aims to serve as an advocacy group with a global focus, cultivating emerging talent and promoting the role of consultants to the broader market.

Bill Larsen, CTS, serves as District AV Technology Coordinator for ISD 197 (West St. Paul-Mendota Heights-Eagan, Minnesota), managing AV services across nine buildings including two high schools, two middle schools, and five elementary schools. He holds the CTS credential from AVIXA and serves as a Subject Matter Expert for CTS exam development. Bill is the founder of Backstage Essentials LLC, an independent consulting practice focused on K-12 performance space and AV systems. His forthcoming book, Backstage Essentials: Skills for Stagehand Technicians in Live Event Production, is being published by Routledge/Taylor and Francis in 2026. He also serves as Education Coordinator for IATSE Local 490 and brings more than 30 years of experience in educational technology and live event production.