Author Topic: If the director says working on 2 shows at once will give more time... They're L  (Read 4057 times)

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PSMKay

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Reading the story of "Who says there's no crying in stage managing" I am reminded of the time i took on too much.  I will always remember a Macbeth to Dark side of the moon in trash bags and duck tape and a musical disaster that was some of the best time in my life... (looking back now of course... not while i was experiencing it.)

It was my junior year of high school and i was begining my search for college. I had already stage managed around ten shows and my school was adding a Musical theater class to do the first musical theater preformance in years.  i talked to the director over summer and said i would love the experience to work back stage but as i was already stage managing the prodution of Macbeth that would reharse after school and go up a week after the musical, i did not want to take on to much at once.  she looked pleased and i told her my only condition was that i would not be put as any role in the musical (im practicly tone deft and not big on acting.) she said fine dont worry.. i should have already been worrying.  


the first week of school she not only had me stage managing both plays, but in them as well.. She said that way i would have more time to work on them. (she could be very convincing) plus did i mention that Macbeth was put to Pink Floyds Dark Side of the Moon and the muscial was Zombie Prom (if your havent heard of it think grease meets cry baby meets bye bye birdie) and the AD was the same person  for both as well, but  had worked on  all of one other prodution as Tech.  In addition there were no prop people on Macbet and was told i was in charge of it and every ASM i hired got taken to run the lights, Sound, or Costume Changes.  I was running out of people, time, and sanity and very quicky.  And no one "had time" to take on responsiblity.


I got it down to an art. i was sewing between note taking in Chemistry, painting goblets to look like stone while in history, and going over notes and scripts in english.  at home i would type everything up do homework and research colleges after pulling a doubble reharsal 4 days a week.


by the time the Musical went up i had a bad cold and was running from the stage to the green room at intermission in heels for calls and changing my make up in the dark while colling cues. during the run of Macbeth i had the flu and bron. together and was getting cough drops and kleenex as opening night gifts.  as the director yelled while i ran again in heels and this time a long skirt made out of thick noisy garbage bags and ducktape (we had a low budget for period costumes) i triped skidded across the tile of the green room and landed at the feet of a male actor desperitly trying to do his own eye liner and failing horrible..... i lost it. i cried. i screamed. and i cussed a stormed. i was even threatened with suspension for such vulgar language. the actors were horrified. and the costumer tried desperitly to stand me up and fix my ripped trash bag skirt that she had worked so hard on to look elegant .  it was the most stressfull time of my life and i never forgave the director for it.  


yet as i laugh now looking back remember the look of an actor as i shoved the headset to them and ran through the doors to cough up phlem and king duncan stopping dead in his tracks in a week voice asking if i would be able to go on stage , i would do anything to go back.  and i still love the rush of stage managing... never take on to much, but when you do learn to love the story and laugh about it... it just might take 4 years.


 

riotous