Today was probably one of the better days. The exhaustion is getting to me and I can tell, but I am pulling through it. Obviously - there isn't really another option.
The morning was ridiculously easy. We did a lot of cleaning, a little bit of re-cabling and labeling, just busy work, basically. We took an early lunch and came back at 1 - and then we focused. I love focusing. It was a good 4 hours of focus, but we worked hard and got everything done. The stage manager was the one who came to focus instead of the designer. So that was cool. He came with a minor plot and spike taped and basically marked on the floor where he needed each light to be. It was a cool system. I've filed it to use later if I ever need to do a focus on a show - regular or touring. I want to sit down and talk with him about like...stage management stuff too. But I don't know that I will get a chance once we are busy with the run of the show. We are teching and doing a preview tomorrow, so we will be with the company all day, so we'll see. But the focus was good. I was nervous at first, focusing with a professional, but there was no need. It was easy and fun. I learned that you can bang on a light if it doesn't quite do what you want. As long as it's off. Then the bulb wont break. So when I couldn't barrel it to get it sharp, we banged on the barrel. When I couldn't shutter-cut off a curtain because the shutter was caught, we banged on it. It was sort of fun, hah. I also learned that sometimes it's better to not have a sharp focus if there is a lot of light bleed or "flare" as Robert, the stage manager, called it. He was really helpful and eager to help Sean and I learn as we worked on the lights and it was a lot of fun.
After that, we switched over to Taylor Mac, the next show in our first repertory set. We took dinner, and then we came back and chilled. Focused a few of the Taylor Mac lights with Andy again, so I enjoyed that. Like I said, focusing is my home base. I know it and I am comfortable with it. Hopefully by the end of the festival, all the rest of the electrician stuff will be just as comfortable to me. Once Taylor Mac got there, it was pretty easy going. Jarrod is light operator for the show and he is programming that one too (Sean and I will get to program for Khmeropedies and County of Kings, which will be cool, and a little stressful). So we were basically on standby for most of the tech. I sat backstage and ran up the house lights when needed, but other than that, it was really relaxed.
Taylor was done with his tech by 8:45 or something, so we switched the rep back to Khmeropedies and get ready to go home for the night. We are supposed to be in show blacks for tomorrow, and Jarrod specified long black pants. I'm a little in screwed, because when I packed, I followed SVSU's rule that you only need long sleeves and long pants if you are seen onstage during a change. everyone else just needs clothes that are black. But that rule doesn't fly here. Everyone has long pants and a t-shirt. So I have yoga pants, and I will tape over the colored part on the waste. Then I will have to go shopping and find more suitable clothes. The little things you learn in the real world, right?
So, all in all, today was a lot better. Hopefully it stays this way.
And I keep forgetting to add! They told us Sunday (us being Sean and I, they being Jarrod and Andrew) that, as the apprentice electricians, we had to work on this thing called the Pickle. Every opening night of the shows, we have to electrify a pickle themed like the show. And I guess the pickles look really cool because they glow because of the salt. So I was really nervous about that because I don't really like designing, and I'd been screwing up so much I didn't want to screw up the pickle too! So I stressed a little. But Sean and I were talking and we have a lot of really fun ideas. I'm kind of excited to work on the Pickle - it will be a nice break from the real work of the shows. But we haven't had any down time to work on it. Jarrod said we were supposed to work on it at the theatre when we had downtime. But we work pretty constantly. And when we had downtime today while we waited for people to get there, we were on standby, so we couldn't really leave to go do pickle stuff. So I don't know. We have to make two by Friday. I'm not really sure how it will work out. But we shall see! Taylor Mac, the drag queen, and Lemon Anderson, the New York jail bird will have pickles! (We're thinking a disco ball glitter pickle and a pickle in a jail cell.) Maybe I'll post pictures when we get it done.
Hopefully I will have time to post in the next few days!
The morning was ridiculously easy. We did a lot of cleaning, a little bit of re-cabling and labeling, just busy work, basically. We took an early lunch and came back at 1 - and then we focused. I love focusing. It was a good 4 hours of focus, but we worked hard and got everything done. The stage manager was the one who came to focus instead of the designer. So that was cool. He came with a minor plot and spike taped and basically marked on the floor where he needed each light to be. It was a cool system. I've filed it to use later if I ever need to do a focus on a show - regular or touring. I want to sit down and talk with him about like...stage management stuff too. But I don't know that I will get a chance once we are busy with the run of the show. We are teching and doing a preview tomorrow, so we will be with the company all day, so we'll see. But the focus was good. I was nervous at first, focusing with a professional, but there was no need. It was easy and fun. I learned that you can bang on a light if it doesn't quite do what you want. As long as it's off. Then the bulb wont break. So when I couldn't barrel it to get it sharp, we banged on the barrel. When I couldn't shutter-cut off a curtain because the shutter was caught, we banged on it. It was sort of fun, hah. I also learned that sometimes it's better to not have a sharp focus if there is a lot of light bleed or "flare" as Robert, the stage manager, called it. He was really helpful and eager to help Sean and I learn as we worked on the lights and it was a lot of fun.
After that, we switched over to Taylor Mac, the next show in our first repertory set. We took dinner, and then we came back and chilled. Focused a few of the Taylor Mac lights with Andy again, so I enjoyed that. Like I said, focusing is my home base. I know it and I am comfortable with it. Hopefully by the end of the festival, all the rest of the electrician stuff will be just as comfortable to me. Once Taylor Mac got there, it was pretty easy going. Jarrod is light operator for the show and he is programming that one too (Sean and I will get to program for Khmeropedies and County of Kings, which will be cool, and a little stressful). So we were basically on standby for most of the tech. I sat backstage and ran up the house lights when needed, but other than that, it was really relaxed.
Taylor was done with his tech by 8:45 or something, so we switched the rep back to Khmeropedies and get ready to go home for the night. We are supposed to be in show blacks for tomorrow, and Jarrod specified long black pants. I'm a little in screwed, because when I packed, I followed SVSU's rule that you only need long sleeves and long pants if you are seen onstage during a change. everyone else just needs clothes that are black. But that rule doesn't fly here. Everyone has long pants and a t-shirt. So I have yoga pants, and I will tape over the colored part on the waste. Then I will have to go shopping and find more suitable clothes. The little things you learn in the real world, right?
So, all in all, today was a lot better. Hopefully it stays this way.
And I keep forgetting to add! They told us Sunday (us being Sean and I, they being Jarrod and Andrew) that, as the apprentice electricians, we had to work on this thing called the Pickle. Every opening night of the shows, we have to electrify a pickle themed like the show. And I guess the pickles look really cool because they glow because of the salt. So I was really nervous about that because I don't really like designing, and I'd been screwing up so much I didn't want to screw up the pickle too! So I stressed a little. But Sean and I were talking and we have a lot of really fun ideas. I'm kind of excited to work on the Pickle - it will be a nice break from the real work of the shows. But we haven't had any down time to work on it. Jarrod said we were supposed to work on it at the theatre when we had downtime. But we work pretty constantly. And when we had downtime today while we waited for people to get there, we were on standby, so we couldn't really leave to go do pickle stuff. So I don't know. We have to make two by Friday. I'm not really sure how it will work out. But we shall see! Taylor Mac, the drag queen, and Lemon Anderson, the New York jail bird will have pickles! (We're thinking a disco ball glitter pickle and a pickle in a jail cell.) Maybe I'll post pictures when we get it done.
Hopefully I will have time to post in the next few days!
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