Joey Chardukian

Lighting | Showco / Vari-Lite | 1986–1992

A Career Behind the Lights

Joey Chardukian’s lighting career connected him with some of the biggest names in live music. His years with Showco and Vari-Lite, from 1986 to 1992, placed him within the community of touring professionals who brought concert productions to life—from the work in the shop to the show on stage.

His credits include Madonna, Pink Floyd, Prince, The Who, and The Rolling Stones, alongside corporate productions, international festivals, and major live events. That range of work is part of Joey’s story: a career that reached across artists, venues, and different kinds of production.

Showco, Vari-Lite & Life on the Road

Joey’s lighting years followed Vari-Lite’s emergence from Showco and the introduction of its automated lighting system on Genesis’ 1981 Abacab tour. He became part of the next chapter of that shared history, as Vari-Lite’s presence expanded across touring and live production.

His production record brings together concert touring with work associated with Boeing, IBM, the Winter Olympics, and Carnegie Hall. These credits preserve the breadth of his experience within a company whose people and technology helped shape modern concert lighting. Explore the wider story in Vari-Lite: Born from Showco.

Phil Collins & the People Behind the Show

Work with Phil Collins forms an important part of Joey’s wider touring career, extending across multiple tours and eras. The materials he has kept and shared with Showco Archives preserve a personal connection to those years and to the people who traveled and worked together behind the performances.

That history belongs alongside the production credits. It is the story of a working life on the road, remembered through the touring community and the relationships that continued after the shows. Joey’s Phil Collins collection, presented in the gallery below, gives that part of his story a place in the archive.

The Road  Came Home

Joey is also family: he is married to Indigo’s mother. That personal connection makes his contribution to Showco Archives especially meaningful.

Joey also gave Indigo his old desk from the Showco shop, dating from before the Clair acquisition. She now uses it at home while working on Showco Archives—another piece of Showco’s working history that has become part of her everyday life.

Joey’s old office chair is a piece of his touring history that is still being used. He took it on the road with him while touring; today, it stays in his workshop when it is not in use. When Indigo visits New Mexico, Joey brings it out for her makeshift office. The same chair that accompanied his working life on tour now gives her a place to work on preserving that history.

Tour & Production Credits

Cameo; Madonna; Pink Floyd; Boeing; Hayworth; Winter Olympics; Carnegie Hall; Barbara Mandrell; Atlantic Records; Dirty Dancing; Prince; Atlantis Productions; Mike & the Mechanics; The Who; The Rolling Stones; Hollywood Rock; Vacation; IBM; Janet Jackson; New Kids on the Block; Whitney Houston; Rock in Rio; Rod Stewart.

The Joey Chardukian Collection

Joey has generously shared his personal collection with Showco Archives, helping preserve The Family Behind the Music™. The gallery brings together his Phil Collins materials, with the individual objects identified in their captions. The chair story comes from Indigo’s account.

Collection dates identify the objects, rather than establishing an assignment on every tour represented.

Joey’s Crew Closet

Explore Joey’s Crew Closet in the Showco Archives Swag Shop for crew clothing, tour bags, backstage passes, and other memorabilia from his collection.