alparrott
Diamond Member
I have not been updating this thread as fervently as I did my thread last year for "Rocky Horror" because... well, life has been hell this week, as in extremely taxing.
My day job as a college program director was going to conflict with my passion as a musical performer from the get-go. I told the production team going in that the week leading up to opening night, I would be commuting to a state conference in a town about 125 miles away each day (roughly a 1.75 hour drive each way). This meant that my schedule for three days was up at 5, on the road by 6, meetings and trainings from 8 to 5, drive back to my town and straight to the theater by 7, warm up, play the rehearsal until 11:30, go home and fall into bed, wash, rinse, repeat. It must be said that this team is more like family to me than a theater company. When I told them about this conflict back when they first contacted me for the show, they immediately said, "We'll deal with it, you are our drummer, we want you in this show". The cast and crew, all of whom could have been done with their work days one or two hours earlier each night, all rallied around me as well -- which was very gratifying and touching. The first night, I was a few minutes late and literally came running into the theater. Everyone stopped what they were doing to cheer and give hugs and high-fives. I have been in serious bands where there is not this level of mutual support and affection. If you have the opportunity, I recommend trying at least one musical theater gig in your lifetime.
Anyways, on to the nitty gritty. The sitzprobe ("play through the music through with the cast" rehearsal) was last Saturday and went well. Sunday we loaded in, got some sound levels and did technical rehearsal on Act One. Monday we did technical on Act Two. "Technical" means working out blocking, lighting, choreography, musical, logistical, or other elements of the show that were not apparent until you got everything together on stage for the first time. For the pit, it meant a LOT of stopping and starting the music over and over again. One major issue during technicals is that the sound levels are not quite dialled in, and most of the actors' headset microphones are left on the entire rehearsal. This meant constant fiddling with my in-ear mixer and conversations with the sound desk. I actually would text the sound engineer directions on the in-ear mix, as I only have a single input coming off the desk.
Another incredibly complex issue is that this show requires two keyboards, each of which is sequenced through different patches as the show progresses. Each keyboard player has a Mac running Mainstage keeping track of the patches, which were passed on by a friend of the MD who ran the show last year in Arizona. The issue was that many of the patches were not corrected for volume or EQ, and so occasionally I would get a synth trumpet blaring into my headsets because I'd had to turn up to hear them on the last patch. This issue persisted to the dress rehearsal, where during Act Two the Key 2 patches were so loud I couldn't even hear myself in the mix. It was a very dismal dress rehearsal and I was genuinely concerned. We did about 30 minutes of work with the sound engineer after dress rehearsal and the MD came in at 7am the next morning to work with the sound guy on key levels. A lot of work had to go into it to get it sorted.
Wednesday was a soft opening, a preview show for friends, family, staff, supporters and sponsors. As such we had a very appreciative audience, and from the get-go they were laughing, clapping, and generally absorbed in the experience. As anyone can attest, a good crowd usually makes for a great show -- and this was our very best performance to date. Even the producer and director were stunned at the performance. Afterwards, a fairly raucous after party was had.
Last night was the actual opening. It was an older, paying audience, and they were much more reserved than the preview audience. It was a tougher run-through, but we made it by without too many snags. I had a few minor gaffes, but one sticks out in my head (no pun intended): At the end of the closer for Act One, "Comfort and Joy", there is a spot where I have to do a cymbal choke and a tom fill in the same measure, four times consecutively. I nailed the first two, but at the end of the second fill I must have dropped my right-hand stick, because I went up for choke number three, and I had no stick in my hand! I grabbed another one quickly, but in doing so I fell onto an off-beat for the next sequence (which thankfully only lasts a few measures). Fortunately the MD is very easygoing and is not a totalitarian perfectionist, so when this stuff happens we tend to laugh about it so long as it's not a habit.
So, performance three tonight, I finally got a full night's sleep and don't have to drive to Timbuktu and back the same day, and the initial reviews are very complimentary. If you are in Washington state and puzzling over something to do on your weekend between now and August 16th, consider a trip to Wenatchee. PM me if you need info on tickets and to let me know you're coming!
Here's some production and backstage photos as well. Thanks for checking out this (somewhat long-winded) catch-up post.
My day job as a college program director was going to conflict with my passion as a musical performer from the get-go. I told the production team going in that the week leading up to opening night, I would be commuting to a state conference in a town about 125 miles away each day (roughly a 1.75 hour drive each way). This meant that my schedule for three days was up at 5, on the road by 6, meetings and trainings from 8 to 5, drive back to my town and straight to the theater by 7, warm up, play the rehearsal until 11:30, go home and fall into bed, wash, rinse, repeat. It must be said that this team is more like family to me than a theater company. When I told them about this conflict back when they first contacted me for the show, they immediately said, "We'll deal with it, you are our drummer, we want you in this show". The cast and crew, all of whom could have been done with their work days one or two hours earlier each night, all rallied around me as well -- which was very gratifying and touching. The first night, I was a few minutes late and literally came running into the theater. Everyone stopped what they were doing to cheer and give hugs and high-fives. I have been in serious bands where there is not this level of mutual support and affection. If you have the opportunity, I recommend trying at least one musical theater gig in your lifetime.
Anyways, on to the nitty gritty. The sitzprobe ("play through the music through with the cast" rehearsal) was last Saturday and went well. Sunday we loaded in, got some sound levels and did technical rehearsal on Act One. Monday we did technical on Act Two. "Technical" means working out blocking, lighting, choreography, musical, logistical, or other elements of the show that were not apparent until you got everything together on stage for the first time. For the pit, it meant a LOT of stopping and starting the music over and over again. One major issue during technicals is that the sound levels are not quite dialled in, and most of the actors' headset microphones are left on the entire rehearsal. This meant constant fiddling with my in-ear mixer and conversations with the sound desk. I actually would text the sound engineer directions on the in-ear mix, as I only have a single input coming off the desk.
Another incredibly complex issue is that this show requires two keyboards, each of which is sequenced through different patches as the show progresses. Each keyboard player has a Mac running Mainstage keeping track of the patches, which were passed on by a friend of the MD who ran the show last year in Arizona. The issue was that many of the patches were not corrected for volume or EQ, and so occasionally I would get a synth trumpet blaring into my headsets because I'd had to turn up to hear them on the last patch. This issue persisted to the dress rehearsal, where during Act Two the Key 2 patches were so loud I couldn't even hear myself in the mix. It was a very dismal dress rehearsal and I was genuinely concerned. We did about 30 minutes of work with the sound engineer after dress rehearsal and the MD came in at 7am the next morning to work with the sound guy on key levels. A lot of work had to go into it to get it sorted.
Wednesday was a soft opening, a preview show for friends, family, staff, supporters and sponsors. As such we had a very appreciative audience, and from the get-go they were laughing, clapping, and generally absorbed in the experience. As anyone can attest, a good crowd usually makes for a great show -- and this was our very best performance to date. Even the producer and director were stunned at the performance. Afterwards, a fairly raucous after party was had.
Last night was the actual opening. It was an older, paying audience, and they were much more reserved than the preview audience. It was a tougher run-through, but we made it by without too many snags. I had a few minor gaffes, but one sticks out in my head (no pun intended): At the end of the closer for Act One, "Comfort and Joy", there is a spot where I have to do a cymbal choke and a tom fill in the same measure, four times consecutively. I nailed the first two, but at the end of the second fill I must have dropped my right-hand stick, because I went up for choke number three, and I had no stick in my hand! I grabbed another one quickly, but in doing so I fell onto an off-beat for the next sequence (which thankfully only lasts a few measures). Fortunately the MD is very easygoing and is not a totalitarian perfectionist, so when this stuff happens we tend to laugh about it so long as it's not a habit.
So, performance three tonight, I finally got a full night's sleep and don't have to drive to Timbuktu and back the same day, and the initial reviews are very complimentary. If you are in Washington state and puzzling over something to do on your weekend between now and August 16th, consider a trip to Wenatchee. PM me if you need info on tickets and to let me know you're coming!
Here's some production and backstage photos as well. Thanks for checking out this (somewhat long-winded) catch-up post.
