Friday, September 21, 2012

Day 5 (Opening Night)

Last night was our last rehearsal before tonight's opening night performance.

I did OK. I made a couple mistakes - at one point, I couldn't read my note and totally missed a light cue, so I was behind by one, and ended up leaving an actor in the dark for the first few moments of one of his (twisted and strange) monologues. Leaving an actor in the dark when he's pretty much just standing there is a big deal. A couple of the light cues follow movement by the actors - I'm still getting used to some of these actors, their timing, and this show, so these cues require more timing and a little concentration.

An actor jumped the gun and showed up on stage before an audio cue was done; he got on stage and I lighted him but the audio was still playing and I didn't think to fade it out so he had to just stand there for a few extra seconds - I know what to do now, and will watch for that in case it happens again.

I use the same words on my book as I use as rehearsal notes on music, and "watch!" is the one I use the most in both places. It seems obvious but a reminder to look up when things are getting a little hairy is never not a good idea. Another note that I use at the bottom right corner of the page, if I have to turn quickly, is "V.S." I didn't really know what the exact translation was so I had to look it up. I did know that it meant to turn the page fast, dummy, or you're going to miss something! Duh, I had to know that, otherwise writing "V.S." wouldn't make any sense. Am I telling this story right?

Anyway, in case you were wondering (are you?), V.S. stands for"volti subito":

(From Wikipedia)
V.S. (volti subito): turn suddenly; i.e., turn the page quickly. While this indication is sometimes added by printers, it is more commonly indicated by orchestral members in pencil as a reminder to quickly turn to the next page.

On one hand, doing only one week (actually, 4 days) of tech is good, because even during this week, there have been lots of changes, and so if I'd been there last week too, by this point, I would still be learning the cues anyway. On the other hand, doing only one week is bad for the reason I stated above: there are lots of new actors on stage, and I havne't had time to really learn their idiosyncracies, or the way they move. It's not an issue of being bad or good, it's just learning and seeing what they are going to do.

We did two runthroughs on Wednesday night, so I got a grand total of 4 hours of sleep. I ended up going in to work a couple of hours late yesterday, which helped. We all slept through the alarm, which is strange: even JP, who normally gets up at 5:30. I was so tired yesterday, and totally out of it. Last night we only did one runthrough, and Bo and I got home earlier than usual - I think I was in bed by 10:45. I'm really glad he was with me because I was so tired, especially on that drive home. I wasn't even talking right - and I had had coffee, and a coke earlier. This morning I woke up feeling a bit more rested than I have all week, and got up to take a shower and get ready for work. I don't usually work on Fridays, and so JP had to go to daycare an extra day this week - that doesn't make me super happy, and I miss the little guy so much but this change is not permanent, and after tonight we pretty much go back to normal. I'll be in the booth on Fridays and Sundays only. No flute choir for me, and that sucks, but I think it's all going to be worth it.

I'll let you know after tonight.

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