Backstage at the Playhouse: Man, We're Tired

So, now that the Playhouse blog is on a black page in honor of all the technicians working in the dark at the theatre (it is, right?), I guess I should do up another Backstage at the Playhouse post for all the loyal readers at home. By the way, I wrote most of this in late December, so pretend it's right after Christmas, ok? Ok.

Sister Act was quite an experience for the Production crew at the Playhouse. We had a huge set, piles of costumes, a hoard of actors, a gaggle of musicians, scads of lights, tons of sound, reams of script changes, and, well, not that many props. The running crew for the show almost equaled the size of the cast onstage. In wardrobe, we had our Production Wardrobe Supervisor (Carol Ann), two dressers (Kyle and Marie), and two wig people (Jessica and Dian). On running crew, we had our Production Rigger (Red), our Prop Master (Fluffy), an Automation Supervisor (Al), and 4 crew members (Matt, Amy, Tony, and Brad). The sound department had our Production Audio Supervisor (Pierre), and either Jake or Ian backstage. The electrics department had 3 spot operators (Daniel, Richard, and Esther), and Frank on the lighting consoles. That's 18 people working backstage and front of house to make the show happen, and they all did a fantastic job. Also, keep in mind that this list does not include all the carpenters and painters (led by Gary, our Technical Director) who built the show, and all the extra labor in all departments to get the show loaded in and ready to go on schedule. It was quite a thing.

The show closed on December 23rd, and we had four 53 foot trailers fully loaded and on the road to Atlanta with the set, costumes, lights, sound gear, motors, and props by the end of the day on December 26th. "But Dan," you're all saying, "that's impossible! Why, that's only 3 days after the show closed, with one of those days being Christmas!" Well, that's why we're all tired. The lighting department worked overnight after the close of the show on the 23rd, stopping at about 7am on the 24th, the sound department worked from 8am to 9pm on the 24th, the carpenters got the set down and packed on the trucks on the 26th, from 8am to around 6pm, and the wardrobe department washed, sorted, and packed all the costumes on the 24th and 26th. It was a busy Christmas for everybody, and the Production Department did a fantastic job working on an incredibly tight schedule.

But, all that's all in the distant past. We've restored the theatre back to it's pre-Sister Act state (it seems so much bigger now), loaded in Defiance (which is a pretty big show, even compared to the mighty Sister Act) and now we're ready to open Defiance tomorrow night. It looks like it will be a great show, so you all had better come see it. Really, you should. It'll be great. (Well, I guess we all know why I don't work in marketing.)

Have a great New Year, everybody.