Tony Bonilla Part 1: An artist becomes a rigger, a rigger becomes an entrepreneur

Fifteen years ago, Tony Bonilla was already an experienced rigger, having toured with theatrical productions and rigged special events. Seeing some gaps in what was being provided in the business, he decided to create his own company: BNW Rigging. At the time, it was intended to be a D/B/A for his own work and an organization through which he could conduct training. Now, BNW is a multimillion-dollar company, one which has distinguished itself with the design, installation, and operation of massive and unique rigs, as well as the administration of rigging at some of the largest and most unusual event venues in the New York area.

Without people like Tony, and companies like BNW, we could never get our lighting systems off the ground. There is both an art and craft to the kind of rigging that Tony specializes in, and in part one of our interview with him, we were able to discuss his artistic roots in sculpture, how he transitioned into theater, and how and why he created BNW. We also dug into one of his most impressive installations to date: a wedding chapel built out of truss on Aspen Mountain, inspired by the Thorncrown Chapel in Eureka Springs.

Join us for Part 2 of the discussion next time. We’ll have more lighting-specific information, information for other entrepreneurs, and an in-depth discussion about another massive project.