Lillis Meeh grew up around fire. In fact, they were practically raised in a special effects shop. Their father, Gregory Meeh, is one of the founders of J&M Special Effects, one of the leading providers of live special effects in the New York area. “My earliest memory is breaking blood bags into a bathtub,” the younger Meeh recalled. “I was three, and the blood bags were research and development for ‘Cyrano de Bergerac.’ I remember giggling really hard and having the best time. My second earliest memory is firing the skull staff at ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ when I was four. That time I remember being surprised and awed by how intense such a simple thing can be.
Wowed by these special effects (written “fx” by those in the trade) and wanting to spend more time with their dad, Meeh tagged along to the warehouse.
By the time Meeh was 12, they were helping out at J&M. “I swept the floor at the shop on my school vacations and quickly started doing other small tasks like cleaning machines, or cleaning breakaway bottles when they came out of the mold,” Meeh said. “I’m a nepo baby, to be honest. I’m fortunate to have had the access that I did.”
Still, Meeh made the most of that access, studying technique and putting in the effort. “[My dad] and the other staff at J&M made sure I was learning how to do things correctly and well,” Meeh said. “I wanted to make my dad proud, so I worked really hard — and still do.”
That hard work led Meeh to a production assistant gig with the Lincoln Center Festival when they were 16; it was their first time joining Local One crew, which offered valuable lessons. By 18, Meeh earned their pyrotechnician’s license.
Meeh earned their first supervision credit on Second Stage’s Off-Broadway 2010 production of “Trust,” managing the limited run while home from college. Then, they served as an effects technician for NBCUniversal, associate special effects designer for the most recent Broadway revivals of “Oklahoma!” and “King Lear” as well as Off-Broadway’s “Soft Power.” Today, Meeh is the interim special effects supervisor for “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” one of the few Main Stem productions with that role. Meeh began with the play in July 2018. Here, they offer the inside scoop on creating the magic.
Broadway News: Different from a special effects designer, what does a special effects supervisor do?
Lillis Meeh: A special effects supervisor is a pretty rare job. Most shows don’t have enough fx to justify having a specific person in charge of all the special fx. On “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” we’re responsible for both operating all the fx during the show as well as overseeing the maintenance of fx systems and ordering fx consumables. We also train the performers in safe operation of any fx they have to interact with and oversee the safety of the company with regards to the fx in general.
