Nancy May
Nancy May – Biography
Early Life and Background
Born in Denver and raised between Colorado and Kentucky, Nancy May grew up riding
ponies and horses and cultivating a curiosity for the world. Her family set a high bar for
interesting lives: her father, a child psychiatrist and devoted Deadhead; her mother, an
immunologist whose research focused on tuberculosis and AIDS; and her three younger
brothers, who grew up to become an orthopedic surgeon, a Hollywood film editor, and a
health-care entrepreneur. Her stepsisters continued the trend—one is a nurse
practitioner and the other is a vice president at Pixar.
By her teens, Nancy had already set her own goal: to live an interesting life.
Education
Nancy began working concerts while attending Colorado State University, originally
majoring in horse veterinary medicine. A chance meeting between her father and the
late John Rubey of Feyline resulted in a mentorship that shaped her entire career.
She shifted her studies to Arts & Humanities with a minor in Technical Theatre, but her
education was happening backstage—working two to six shows per week, learning
production from the ground up. When graduation day came, her diploma simply arrived
in the mail while her brothers sang “Pomp and Circumstance.”
Career and Achievements
Nancy learned the concert business from every angle—power, trucking, riders,
advancing, stagecraft—absorbing knowledge from stagehands, touring personnel, ticket
takers, carpenters, and promoters.
At Feyline and Technical Theatre & Staging (TTS), she expanded her expertise
before being hired by the City of Denver as Assistant Manager for McNichols Sports
Arena and Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Her first event was the U.S. Figure Skating
Championships, and soon she was working everything from NHL and NBA games to
Disney on Ice, NCAA regional finals, film shoots, nonprofit galas, and countless
graduations. She also learned speed: clearing floors for load-outs, resetting for TV
placements, and managing complicated stage transitions.
Nancy then moved to California to become Production Manager for the Universal
Amphitheatre, where she adopted the motto: “Sleep is for sissies.” Her first show was
Comic Relief, launching years of daily load-ins, live broadcasts, and large-scale
concerts. During the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards, she was even called upon to
break up a backstage fight—an incident still referenced by MTV.
Over a single seven-day stretch, she oversaw The Who performing Tommy, two Bee
Gees shows, and the MTV Awards—all while hand-processing payroll for 150
stagehands in DOS.
She continued to learn from industry greats such as Richard Priest of Stagehands Local
#7 and cherished moments like K.D. Lang singing “Crying” during the Roy Orbison
tribute and the intimate performances from Graham Nash and Jackson Browne at
Bobby Brooks’ Celebration of Life.
MCA/Universal then tapped her as Interim General Manager at Blossom Music Center
in Ohio during its management transition.
Transition to Television
At the Universal Amphitheatre, Nancy met legendary producer Gene Weed of dick
clark productions (dcpi), who encouraged her to bring her talents to television. After a
New Year’s Eve show with Barry Manilow, she joined dcpi.
Her early assignments included the Fiesta Bowl Parade, the Golden Globe Awards,
and the Academy of Country Music Awards, quickly earning a reputation as one of
the best daily production managers and budget leads in the company.
Despite not being Catholic, she was hired as Director of Administration for World Youth
Day 1993 and the Pope’s visit to Denver—overseeing housing, transportation,
registration, food services, medical, translation, and communications for 180,000
registrants, and beginning the advance for a Papal Mass expected to draw 400,000.
Nancy’s television and live event credits continued to expand:
Executive in Charge of Production for John Tesh at Red Rocks and John Tesh
at Catalina Island
Numerous award shows and specials
Hot Country Nights on NBC
Executive in Charge of Prime Time Country, including taking the show on the
road
Work on UFC 1: The Beginning (as noted on her IMDb page)
Children’s programming for DIC, including Tattooed Teenage Alien Fighters from
Beverly Hills
Productions such as Television Night at the Hollywood Bowl, All American Girl,
Junkyard Wars, Tuckerville, Crossroads for CMT, and the prep and first episode
of Hell’s Kitchen
Infamous events such as Pixelon iBASH and the Hollywood Christmas
Parade, both remembered partly because their principals later went to jail
Return to Denver
Nancy returned to Denver to work once again for the City—this time at the Denver
Performing Arts Complex, overseeing Broadway tours, ballet, opera, symphony, and,
of course, graduations. She was eventually reassigned “back home” to Red Rocks
Amphitheatre and the Denver Coliseum, managing approximately 350 shows a year
at Red Rocks and 70 annually at the Coliseum.
Her work spanned concerts, ice shows, sporting events, the National Western Stock
Show, and large-scale cultural events.
Consulting and Recent Work
Since leaving the City of Denver, Nancy has served in roles including:
Head of Ceremonies for the FISU Winter University Games in Lake Placid, NY
Accreditation Coordinator for FIFA Club World Cup matches in Nashville
Consultant for AMS Planning & Research on the redevelopment of the Miami
Marine Stadium—a project noted in the Miami Herald
Contributor to multiple community efforts, including work in decommissioning and
relocating homeless communities
Support for her brother’s health-care startup
Work with Swallow Hill Music
Personal Life
Nancy lives in Parker, Colorado with a lively assortment of dogs, cats, and
horses—affectionately known as the “House Pets from Hell.”
Legacy and Impact
Nancy’s career reflects a philosophy of lifelong learning, relentless work ethic, and lifting
others as she climbs. Her proudest achievements are not the shows she has
delivered—though there are hundreds—but the people she has mentored along the
way, helping them move their careers and lives forward.
And yes… there were quite a few shows.
Selected Stories and Anecdotes
Started as a bouncer at Red Rocks and wrote the first security manual for the
venue—still in use 20 years later, complete with her original typos.
For security one year: “We bought red shirts so the blood wouldn’t show.”
Worked U2’s first U.S. shows at the Lincoln Center in Fort Collins and the
Rainbow Music Hall. Later served as Production Assistant for U2 at Red Rocks
– Under a Blood Red Sky, where she appears briefly in the footage.
During U2’s “Rattle and Hum” filming at McNichols, fire alarms triggered from
the fog effects brought firefighters in gas masks and axes. She received a
“Special Thanks” in the credits.
Picked the brown M&Ms out of ten pounds of M&Ms for Van Halen—twice.
Arranged for her Prime Time Country host to ride a longhorn steer on Fremont
Street in Las Vegas while dressed in an Electric Horseman suit.
Put out a small off-stage fire at 2:00 a.m. during the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon.
Oversaw the transportation of the world’s most expensive TV truck via barge to
Catalina Island for filming John Tesh—while battling unpredictable tides.
It’s been a wild ride—and she wouldn’t have it any other way.