Funnest Tech Run Ever

[SMLois]

Yesterday following an extremely tight Q2Q we had time to do a tech run of Seussical (TYA).  All through rehearsal we had joked that the tech run would be a time for people to goof around a bit.  And luckily a few of them did.  Our Monkey's entered with Bananas at one point and Mr. & Mrs. Mayor took every opportunity to make out.  In addition, we lost our JoJo before the run through (due to child labour laws) so another cast member who played joJo in a previous incarnation of the show climbed into the miniature bed and sang JoJo's songs.  It was very very fun.

So I guess my question for you all is, what's the funnest little joke that has made you smile during tech (not something that was totally inappropriate).

[On_Headset]

Didn't make me smile at the time, but I once worked on a production of Blithe Spirit in which we had a shattering-glass effect offstage: the maid, having discovered the ghost, would scream and drop a plate with a shatter.

We did the tech run on my birthday, and as a prank, one of the ASMs spent $20 at Goodwill, bought up a bunch of old mismatched China, and had a grand old time shattering it at inopportune moments. ("AIEEEEE! *smash*" "HOLD! That wasn't the cue!" "Sorry!" "We'll run it from..." "AIEEEEE! *smash*")

[missliz]

We had to keep running a complicated entrance/exit in Cherry Orchard. Lopakhin had a cue line to Gaev- "And YOU! You sound like an old woman! An old woman!" In one of the runs, he reached into the well and pulled out....an archival photo of the actor playing Gaev in drag. As an old woman (from The Importance of Being Earnest, actually). Everyone lost it.

[yomanda]

In Footloose, our director was also cast in a role.  He played the pastor and near the end of act II he has a solo where he has a change of heart.  During the solo the congregation slowly comes onstage and sits in the pews while his back is to them.  For one of the tech rehearsals, I made photo copies of his face that the cast held in front of their faces, so that when he turned around all he saw was himself.  He heard snickers behind him, so he knew something was up, and when he turned around changed his line to say, "I had a dream, that the world was full of beautiful people." 

And recently we did Jekyll & Hyde.  In the first scene Jekyll is at a mental institution where his father lives.  He is unconscious on a bed and the 2nd night of tech the actor who plays Jekyll's father added a toe tag and death certificate on his clipboard.

 

[ericjames]

I'm not sure about funniest moment... but while in college, we did Macbeth.   (its actually the only show that I have ever acted in... very poorly I might add...)    Anyway... it was one of longest tech days ever (especially for my school), we started around 1pm and ended up staying until past midnight.  Somewhere around dinner time, we are at the banquet scene and paused for lighting issues.  So we are all sitting around the banquet table when suddenly the guy playing MacDuff pokes his head through a trap door in the set and says "I'm ordering pizza, you guys want anything?".  It gave us all a great laugh and relieved some of the stress.      The unfortunate thing is that we were still in that scene when the Pizza arrived a little later.....

[yomanda]

I didn't think of this before, but I must say, that the "Funnest Tech Run Ever" for me would have to be on November 2, 2010.  The show was Jekyll & Hyde and it was the first night using our volunteer stage hands.  In addition to this, our director had decided to put me in the Engagement Party scene to lead 4 couples in a slow background dance I had choreographed while Emma & Henry were singing "Take Me As I Am" downstage.  The actor I was dancing with also happened to be my boyfriend. 
At the end of the dance I was making my exit and he stopped me by saying he had a question to ask me.  Well, once tech starts I am totally and completely focused on the task at hand so I naturally thought he needed some clarification on the choreography or some other technical element coming up.  That's when he took my hand and said the past 20 months have been amazing and he didn't want them to ever end.  I still didn't get it until he went down on one knee and pulled out the ring box.  My response was, "What?"  I was desperately trying to wrap my head around what was happening.  But when he said, "Amanda Joy, will you marry me?"  I said yes.  Needless to say we took 5 after that, and when rehearsal was over the director had a special cake for everyone to eat to celebrate.  And that was the best tech rehearsal ever. 

[Tempest]

Oooo, congratulations, yomanda!

[Tempest]

Tech for this last show, I was mixing up a new batch of blood, and had dripped a little on my hand, to check the color against skin.  As I was walking to the sink to wash it off, the ATD came down the hall, the other way.  On a mad whim, I said, "Robert, you really need to fix some of those protruding screws backstage!" and held out my hand to him. 
"Yeah, sure, where---- OH MY GOD!!!!!"
I wanted to keep the joke going, but couldn't keep a straight face.  I was laughing for at least five seconds before he finally calmed down and figured out he'd been had.  Then he chased me all the way to the bathroom and I had to lock myself in to avoid a beating.
It was a great laugh, and made my tech week.  I didn't even plan it!

[loebtmc]

My most fun tech? ART - we did everything easily, quickly and efficiently and went home early. Period. That's mine.

[jaslada]

The Full Monty....the whole tech was rolling along beautifully - music, dance, scene changes...all just about perfect...we come to the final number...the guys are prepped to go the full monty...final moments come...perfect execution of the LQ. My light board op was sooooo excited to that the LQ was perfect - she jumped up and hit the go for next LQ - which was the curtain call light. I almost fell off the bridge laughing at the guys' expression. I did apologize profusely and made my board op put her hands behind her back after execution of the LQ going forward....

[hbelden]

My light board op was sooooo excited to that the LQ was perfect - she jumped up and hit the go for next LQ - which was the curtain call light.

That makes me laugh so hard!  My board op did that once during a performance, but my cast was already halfway to the wings.  They just grabbed the valuables and ran for it.  I had no idea what was happening because I had my eyes on the IR.

[Calie.Davis]

In Godspell we had a batten with a crane that would go up and down and make it look like we were loading crates onto a dock. On the last tech run our prop woman (who is a remarkable woman) instead of unloading a crate off the crane they used a stuffed bear instead

Then in a play called Dolls (sex ed play) where we have teenagers play babies . Our prop woman (again XD) gave a baby a cigar and had him imitate the baby from "Who framed Roger Rabbit?" Oh my goodness it was a riot

[DeeCap]

My most fun tech? ART - we did everything easily, quickly and efficiently and went home early. Period. That's mine.

My tech for "Fully Committed" was like your tech. We teched the show in one afternoon, and got home early every night.

[BeccaTheSM]

I did a production of 'Things We Want' recently. The show is pretty simple, but I was brought into the process just in time for tech -- I hadn't even seen a run first, just read the script. (The previous SM quit quite last-minute.)

They had allotted a 10-of-12 for tech, with a dress to be next afternoon. There was even a potential TBD time for extra tech the next morning. We not only finished tech quickly, but had a dress run before dinner. And then another one after dinner. So we had the next day off until the opening show.

It was probably the smoothest tech ever. And I came on board that day.