The Days Leading Up To Opening

Hello All,
In this entry I am going to talk about my days at Skylight leading up to opening. On the 12th of May, Skylight had their 10/12 tech day. This was a day that was spent walking though as much of the show as they could. This was done so that all of the designers have the time to sync what they created for the show with the action on stage. For this 10/12 they almost got through the first act. For me this was just a day of observation. Also on first tech the only thing that was required from the sound department was to make sure the com system was working and to be three if the play got to the point where the chromolume effect was used. Tech for the rest of the show was completed on the following Tuesday (5/15/11).

On Tuesday tech was finished from the ending of act one through act two. Once gain there was little needed from the sound department. However on these days, I was able to start to understand the show and the different things that were happening.

Orchestra Dress was on the 16th and that was the day that the actors were in full costume and had their mics. On this day Gary wanted me to be backstage observing the traffic patterns in case I needed to go back and attend to a mic problem. Being backstage gave me a different perspective of the show. There are some transitions that required quick changes and the way that the crew responded to them was very structured. During the second act, I moved to the dress circle of the theatre to watch and listen  to how the sound was different in the theatre. Gary told me that the dress circle in the center is where the audio sounded the best. I would have to agree. The reason this is the case is because the sound coming from the orchestra pit is aimed upward and hits that section the best. Sitting in the dress circle was also where I think the best place to sit during the chromolume effect. At the end of the night I was given my task at the end of the show. The task that Gary gave me was to turn off the rack in the tech gallery and then go down into the dressing rooms and collect the mics. When collecting the mics, I have to make sure they remain on so that the battery drains completely. Gary told me that this was done so that the batteries receive a full charge and hold their charge longer. That night made me start to fell that I belong in the group because now I had a task to complete on a nightly basis.

Preview night has finally come. This was the day that was open to those who have work on the show to come and see the fruits of their labor. At the top of the show Gary gave me a new task. At 6 minuets before top of show I was to stand down by the orchestra pit and wait while Gary was checking to see if he has a mic signal from every member of the cast. If he does not have someone, I go to the dressing room and ask that specific person to come out to the area where I am standing and talk into their microphone. Once Gary has them the actor goes back to the dressing room to finish getting ready. When Gary has everyone, I turn down the volume on the headset and head up to observe Gary behind the board.

In the next blog I will be writing about the run of the show and the different things that have come up during the run of the show.

Until next time........

Theresa "Resa" E