So we all thought today was going to be a tough day. We were supposed to get farmed out to Middleton to help with their load it. It's a big outdoor theater with no shade in the middle of summer. So we would be building platforms and scaffolding and hanging lights in the hottest heat of Charleston. Not one was looking forward to it but Jarrod. And then Jarrod got transferred to working on an electrics project at the Memminger, so it would just had been Chris, Sean, Katie, Andrew, and myself.
Then, they told us we would only be at Middleton until lunch, since there were so many crews going out to help and it would get done really fast. Awesome. Only a half day in the hot hot heat. The evening would be spent at the Memminger helping them load in Circa, a circus piece which we were assuming would have a lot of rigging and stuff to be done.
Then, Sunday evening at our grill out, Andrew got a call saying there were too many crews going out to Middleton and that the Gaillard crew needed help putting in their sound wall. So, hooray we didn't have to work in the heat! Boo, we have to do the grunt work for the sound wall. No one really new what to expect, but everyone knew it was going to be really difficult. After that was done, we were still scheduled to help out at the Memminger.
So we get the Gaillard, and we're ready to go. We started with 26 plywood 4x8 slats that needed to be moved from a storage room in to the theater where the sound wall would go (right underneath the balcony). We worked in teams of two, and Andrew carried by himself. It was exhausting. I'm still sick, though getting better, but I am a lot weaker than I am normally - and I'm not even that strong then. So I was struggling, but we got it done. We worked out a good system of tabling the slats and then angling them through the doors, and then tabling them gain to get them across the seats of the auditorium.
Once those were in, we had to move the 26 metal frames into the auditorium, and place them downstage of the slats. These were a little lighter and could be carried by one person. But I couldn't do it. I could carry the weight, but the shape required me to hold my arms above my head, and my hand were shaking by the time I got to the drop point. So Andrew had me stop and just help lay them out. Chris got frustrated, but I didn't care. I was still helping as much as I could.
Once those were done, the other began to bring out the 26 poles that would hold up the plywood and the frame. I started working on the hardware, screwing in the eye-bolts that the poles would be hooked to. Someone would bring in a pole, and I would clip it in. It was a good system and we got done pretty fast.
And supposedly moving all of those things was the easy part. Then, the metal frames would get attached to their poles. The plywood would get dropped into the frame, and then the frame would be stood up and the top would be attached to the poles. It was tedious. It took three people to flip and transfer the plywood, and three people to line it up properly in the frame, and three people to stand it up and attach it to the poles. So Katie, Andrew, and I flipped and moved the plywood. Andrew, Chris, and Sean dropped the plywood into the frame, and Sean, Chris, and Rick (one of the Gaillard crew members) would stand everything up on the pole. It seemed to be an okay system. But when we got to the center, we had to avoid the tech table. So Katie and I would flip the plywood, and the two of us and Andrew would drop the plywood into the frame. Then We would pas the set to Chris and Sean and they would help Rick attach it to the pole. I guess not one at the Gaillard has ever done it like that before, but the system worked really fast and were were done in no time. We told one of the house crew member and he liked the new system so he made note of it to use in the future.
Once that was done, we hung a pipe from the ceiling going downstage from the wall on either side. Then, we had to get on ladder (which were on the rake of the house, so they weren't entirely level) and tie up curtains to hide the seats that were lost behind the sound wall. It took a little bit to get started and get everything lined up right, since we were working in the air, rather than at the floor like we would if we were bringing batons in on stage. But we got it. Andrew and I were on ladder and we leap-frogged each other, me tying while Andrew took weight, then him tying what he had taken while I took weight.
The whole thing was supposed to take us 3 hours with a good crew (and we didn't know if we'd be considered a god crew), but we were done in 2.5. Which was good, but we were all joking that they would select us special to come in and do it next year. Hopefully not. But we'll see.
So Andrew called Raj at the Memminger, expecting that we would go over early and then get out a little earlier in the evening. But Raj didn't need us. He said it, and then double checked jut to make sure, but they were cruising a long as well and didn't need the extra hands. So Andrew called Rhys, expecting that we would get farmed out somewhere else. There had to be more work to be done. But there wasn't. We were let go. We were supposed to farmed out all day, working until 5, but we got out at 11:30. We had the whole afternoon off, called back to the Robinson at 8am to finalize our load in for the third rep.
So here I sit. Trying to figure out what to do with my time off. I want to keep working and learning! But a nap would be nice too...sleep off the rest of my cold. We'll see.
So it was an easy day today. We'll see what tomorrow brings.
Then, they told us we would only be at Middleton until lunch, since there were so many crews going out to help and it would get done really fast. Awesome. Only a half day in the hot hot heat. The evening would be spent at the Memminger helping them load in Circa, a circus piece which we were assuming would have a lot of rigging and stuff to be done.
Then, Sunday evening at our grill out, Andrew got a call saying there were too many crews going out to Middleton and that the Gaillard crew needed help putting in their sound wall. So, hooray we didn't have to work in the heat! Boo, we have to do the grunt work for the sound wall. No one really new what to expect, but everyone knew it was going to be really difficult. After that was done, we were still scheduled to help out at the Memminger.
So we get the Gaillard, and we're ready to go. We started with 26 plywood 4x8 slats that needed to be moved from a storage room in to the theater where the sound wall would go (right underneath the balcony). We worked in teams of two, and Andrew carried by himself. It was exhausting. I'm still sick, though getting better, but I am a lot weaker than I am normally - and I'm not even that strong then. So I was struggling, but we got it done. We worked out a good system of tabling the slats and then angling them through the doors, and then tabling them gain to get them across the seats of the auditorium.
Once those were in, we had to move the 26 metal frames into the auditorium, and place them downstage of the slats. These were a little lighter and could be carried by one person. But I couldn't do it. I could carry the weight, but the shape required me to hold my arms above my head, and my hand were shaking by the time I got to the drop point. So Andrew had me stop and just help lay them out. Chris got frustrated, but I didn't care. I was still helping as much as I could.
Once those were done, the other began to bring out the 26 poles that would hold up the plywood and the frame. I started working on the hardware, screwing in the eye-bolts that the poles would be hooked to. Someone would bring in a pole, and I would clip it in. It was a good system and we got done pretty fast.
And supposedly moving all of those things was the easy part. Then, the metal frames would get attached to their poles. The plywood would get dropped into the frame, and then the frame would be stood up and the top would be attached to the poles. It was tedious. It took three people to flip and transfer the plywood, and three people to line it up properly in the frame, and three people to stand it up and attach it to the poles. So Katie, Andrew, and I flipped and moved the plywood. Andrew, Chris, and Sean dropped the plywood into the frame, and Sean, Chris, and Rick (one of the Gaillard crew members) would stand everything up on the pole. It seemed to be an okay system. But when we got to the center, we had to avoid the tech table. So Katie and I would flip the plywood, and the two of us and Andrew would drop the plywood into the frame. Then We would pas the set to Chris and Sean and they would help Rick attach it to the pole. I guess not one at the Gaillard has ever done it like that before, but the system worked really fast and were were done in no time. We told one of the house crew member and he liked the new system so he made note of it to use in the future.
Once that was done, we hung a pipe from the ceiling going downstage from the wall on either side. Then, we had to get on ladder (which were on the rake of the house, so they weren't entirely level) and tie up curtains to hide the seats that were lost behind the sound wall. It took a little bit to get started and get everything lined up right, since we were working in the air, rather than at the floor like we would if we were bringing batons in on stage. But we got it. Andrew and I were on ladder and we leap-frogged each other, me tying while Andrew took weight, then him tying what he had taken while I took weight.
The whole thing was supposed to take us 3 hours with a good crew (and we didn't know if we'd be considered a god crew), but we were done in 2.5. Which was good, but we were all joking that they would select us special to come in and do it next year. Hopefully not. But we'll see.
So Andrew called Raj at the Memminger, expecting that we would go over early and then get out a little earlier in the evening. But Raj didn't need us. He said it, and then double checked jut to make sure, but they were cruising a long as well and didn't need the extra hands. So Andrew called Rhys, expecting that we would get farmed out somewhere else. There had to be more work to be done. But there wasn't. We were let go. We were supposed to farmed out all day, working until 5, but we got out at 11:30. We had the whole afternoon off, called back to the Robinson at 8am to finalize our load in for the third rep.
So here I sit. Trying to figure out what to do with my time off. I want to keep working and learning! But a nap would be nice too...sleep off the rest of my cold. We'll see.
So it was an easy day today. We'll see what tomorrow brings.
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