Striking and Closing Too Many Husbands

Too Many Husbands was the first of our shows to close this season. It was our third to open. This particular show required all of the P.A. staff backstage with the exception of me who ran the sound board. It was a heavy show for props, specifically furniture. As such it had a fairly significant amount of distress on the scenic units, especially the large cityscape flat which I know I've previously mentioned, which brought up the question of what scenery was going to be used.

Directly after the show I had to strike all my sound equipment like normal save for retrieving a wireless receiver and speaker hidden in the baby prop. That was strike for sound and then we did changeover into 2 gents for the next day. The real trick after that was to load all of the larger props, namely furniture, onto the truck and drive them to the prop shop. Now we had to pack a bedroom ( a queen size bed and bed frame, 3 chairs, a desk, small fire pit, a vanity, a pouf) a full kitchen (stove, table, 3 chairs, 2 stools, a large sideboard), a living room (a sofa, 3 chairs, coffee table, small table, and a stove). Oh, and it was raining so we had to cover everything in tarps. It was a gigantic game of helterskelter tetris but we fit it all in on one load.

The scenic strike was broken up a little bit differently because we weren't absolutely sure what was going to the burn pile (most scenery gets burned then whatever is left, mostly steel is salvaged). We organized it such that it was easily accessible for Bill and Nate (TD and ATD respectively) could decide at a later date. They ended up burning the main walls and windows and transporting the cityscape down to the shop for outside projects.

A PA's Best Friend

Friends let me introduce to you the indispensable tool of choice for a PA: 

The Dog Bone.

This precision instrument is a ergonomically curved ratcheting wrench capable of loosening bolts with a head the diameter of either 9/16" or 1/2". It is used on a daily basis. Specifically, the 9/16" is used on all the scenic units Up the Hill and the majority of them in the Touchstone. The primary reason this tool is so important to us is because almost every scenic unit is large enough to require some variety of bolts. It's curved shape helps fit into those tight corners where pesky bolts are hidden. Whether that is a modified stage screw or an assortment of regular bolts it is assured that a dog bone is behind tightening it. It is often used in conjuncture with box wrenches, of the 9/16" variety as well, drift pins, dead blows, screwguns, multitools, and a good amount of good old fashioned human leverage.  It's very durable which is a good thing as it's often used as a hammer as well. Platforms, walls, railings, stairs, are all bound together by the tightening prowess of the bone.

Jokes and specs aside this tool really is indispensable in my day to day duties. It makes bolts quickly without too much hassle and doing things quickly is an essential part of the P.A.'s job. The ratcheting function and the curved handle in conjunction with each other create a versatility that is indispensable on the fly.

Woof!

Time off and going back to school... What a week...

Had a huge weekend last week, as it was the last weekend we had all shows open. There were a few changeovers that had to be done quickly but we've gotten in such a rhythm we've been able to handle them efficiently.

The real trick has been weighing all my commitments with never being at school.  Financially things have been reigned in more than ever.

Getting away from all of that.

I was left a comment asking what could be improved here. So here is my answer to that:

I think the largest thing that is problematic for me is scheduling. Sometimes shows are set up then taken down immediately, only to be put back up again. It has to also be considered that during rehearsal and tech that we have a different set up (maybe putting up the chute or waters). The production assistants almost never know specifically when they will be needed until about 12 hours beforehand, if that.

I would say the fix for that is to have better communication between different department heads but that already happens. I think more than anything else it's just a reality that happens because of the nature of the job description. I don't really want to get into the hypotheticals of narrowing a job description and or hiring more staff because that's just going to create new problems. It's a necessary evil and it works but it is still a pain for everyone.

Another thing that needs mention is the specific packing of the clubhouse. It's packed incredibly tightly at the height of the season with all shows running and it creates issues when we start doing multiple show days. Sometimes we have to assemble specific pieces of a set before a tear down and set up on a two show day. For example when the Hamlet and R&G wall was new it took a long time to put together so we assembled pieces of it in the clubhouse. Not only is it a lengthy process that consumes a lot of space it also changes the dynamic of what is expected of the changeover. Another important piece of information I neglected to mention is we have extra hands helping on the large changeovers like that. We get acting apprentices that aren't busy with shows.

In short, this all leads to a myriad of problems that are fairly unpredictable. The added space, should it be added, would alleviate some of the need to assemble and disassemble the pack. It would also help with traffic flow onto the stage and allow larger scenic units to be stored easily.

I'm sure there are more things that I will think of in coming days but these have been in my mind for some time.

We start student matinees this week so the ever changing process continues.

Also worth mentioning is that PA requests have become more frequent as the season winds down. We've moved out apartments and also done a few maintenance requests. I painted a porch with two of my coworkers today.

I have a number of posts to put out soon as I'm trying to catch up on the old blogging (mostly just tidbits about my most used tools or running shows).

This week so far has been slow and restful after the stressfulness of the last two show day for me. Last weekend went off without any hitches but it was a great amount of running around. That was the way the entire weekend went and is expected to go again this weekend. With some changeovers that we aren't use to tensions were a little heightened and we took a little longer than usual.

With only one up the hill show tuesday through thursday a temporary reprieve from shows has opened up the production crew to help out some in some places that I hadn't yet had to deal with.

Namely on tuesday we came in early about 9 o'clock to help company management clear out some apartments and organize storage in preparation for the influx of unused company property. It's exactly what it seems like, we turned into a moving company. We took out some company vehicles and cleared two apartments of all the furniture and belongs. It was estimated that it might take two days but we finished in a few hours.

Another responsibility that has come to light is the maintenance of set pieces. Specifically the sets that have been in use all summer like Two Gents and Husbands that have gotten some miles on them. Husbands has 4 large series of flats that fit together to create buildings. With the constant strangeness of the weather the warping of the flats and the constant shifting of the pack have caused some of the muslin to tear and need staples or a pair a flats to be muscled into place. For Two Gents finagling the bridge and deck pieces has become something of an art in and of itself. The combination of coffin locking warped decking together takes a lot fudging and the combination of wood and steel and bolts on the bridge are never consistent.

The Hamlet and R&G wall  had been particularly frustrating as of late. Specifically making the bolts between the wall pieces and the trusses. The trusses are not even kept in the clubhouse and as such are subject to the full fury of the elements. So the heat swelling of the truss (particularly the stage right truss piece) has warped the straight truss into a bowed line. I had to bore out some holes to make sure the connecting bolts could be made.

Other than that it's been a good few days, shows running smoothly. I have 4 shows this weekend and I had A&C and Molly tonight. A&C is starting to hit a stride the past few runs (it runs again tomorrow). We have a hard few changeovers but then we have the break.

It's going to be interesting for me to start school over the break because I'll have to find new balance between everything. More on that later.

Technical glitches suck.

Last Friday was a long day. A two day show for me, with a morning changeover because the board members were discussing improvements up the hill. I believe I was on property for over 12 hours. My morning went fairly smoothly running Molly Sweeney. Then I went up the hill to run sound for Husbands.

The show was going well up until the last three seconds of the play. There are three cues. The first is a wedding bells slow fade up. The second, a bump up on the levels of the wedding bells and the third is a song for curtain call.

When the go was given for the first cue I pressed the button. No problem. The cue starts softly and I thought nothing of it when I didn't hear anything right away (I usually can't hear much, if anything, until the bump cue is given). This is the weird part. Qlab advanced to the next cue just like it normally does but for some reason wasn't playing the first cue. So the level bump did not do anything because the source file of the wedding bells wasn't playing.

This happened very, very quickly and as such I didn't have time to refire the first cue because I had no idea that it wasn't playing. So I played the next cue on pure faith that nothing had gone horribly wrong with the system. It worked which was also perplexing but a little sigh of relief did escape me nonetheless.

So my immediate diagnosis of what had happened was that something went bizarre with the software (since the last que played just fine, the patch was good and I was getting levels flowing through the system and sound on stage). The really strange part of the entire thing is that when I pressed go it advanced to the next cue without manual intervention and the active "play" symbol was present. If that wasn't the case I would have blamed the situation on myself for accidentally missing the go button and hitting the advance selection button but that wasn't the case (the two are right next to each other, which shouldn't be a problem). The only explanation was that something went wrong internally. I even fired the cues after the show to make sure something wasn't wrong with the source file or to make sure the levels didn't get reset.

I really hate when things like that go on performance reports from my end. Even though it's not my fault I still feel responsible for that moment of uncertainty. The orchestration of the actors and crew was thrown just ever so slightly and that's what I hate. So while I try not to let it get to me, not to over analyze after such a extensive diagnosis, I have to remind myself that it's a testament to how much I care about every aspect of the production. Because this particular instance makes me wary of a glitch of this caliber it makes me that extra bit more careful with all the other aspects directly under my control. So I continue to strengthen my resolve and continue to grow.

With that under my belt, today, I'm running two shows again. The first two show day that includes A&C and Husbands. We've already had some technical difficulties in Touchstone on Molly and as a result had to hold the house for a few minutes. So far it's been a brilliant performance by the actors with a phenomenal house but we still have far to go.

Looking forward to a social event tonight as well. Words Words Words a poetry night at the local bar.

Here are some production pictures of the Plays this season taken from a google image search of each play (photo credits are not my own):

Two Gentlemen of Verona

Antony and Cleopatra

All My Sons

Dickens in America

Too Many Husbands

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Hamlet

Molly Sweeney

These are mainly to reference scenic units I may mention

Also here's a link of a video to better illustrate the All My Sons set:

http://americanplayers.org/experience-apt/backstage-apt-blog-post/all-my-sons-audience-reactions

In short my time at American Players Theatre has been an absolute blast. I'm still in a slight state of shock because everything happened so fast.

To give brief narrative to how I came about being here, I need to start my story back in November of last year. I applied to American Players (in Spring Green, Wisconsin) for a Sound Assistant position last November on short notice. They had been hiring early. Originally, I did not get the job because the Production Manager thought that my school schedule would interfere with the season. Not so, as it turns out.

Anyway, early in July I got an unexpected call saying that the current Sound Assistant (or sound P.A., I'll get to what that means in a bit) had to leave because of personal reasons. The Production Manager, Michael Broh called me up asking if I could come in for an interview as soon as possible. Later that week, the 4th of July actually, I interviewed.

I was never wrecked to say the least because they ran me through the all of the duties I would be assigned... IF I got the job. I literally had about two seconds to sit down and explain what I could bring to the company then we toured the facility and met about 50 million people. At the end of the interview I was told I'd hear back in a few days.

I kept in contact and sent a thank you follow up and the next day I received the call to start the following tuesday. So, I packed up and flew off the hook and here I am.

When I got here I was immediately thrust into the full swing of things. With five shows already running(Three Up the Hill, our outdoor space and two in the Touchstone, our indoor space) and another three in rehearsal my "training"needed to be fast an furious. I shadowed the fellow I was replacing for the first week learning the ins and outs of my position, then I was on my own.

The bulk of what I had to learn was the way in which the scenic units had to be put together (facilitated by the Deck Chief, one of my bosses). This is because we run in repertory. So I had to learn where to put scenic units when the Production Assistants (P.A.'s) took them out of storage in our "clubhouse," where to make bolts, bent nails, stage screws, coffin locks what order to take them out in and what order to pack them back into the the storage bays. The shows I had to learn Up the Hill were Two Gentlemen of Verona (2gents), Too Many Husbands (husbands) and Hamlet. In the Touchstone I had to learn Molly Sweeney and Dickens in America. The difficult part of this is being fast, safe and efficient. This is especially important because changeover between shows often happens in about an hour, with a performance of one show then taking down then immediately putting up another with the performance directly afterwards. In addition to all of that we had rehearsal scenery for All My Sons (sons) and Antony and Cleopatra (A&C) and eventually sets that we had to learn from the scene shop staff and Technical Director (another boss).

This was on top of my show assignments for being run crew during the performances. I had two starting out. I run the soundboard for Too Many Husbands and am on run crew for Molly Sweeney. I would also be put on run crew for Antony and Cleopatra later as well.

My show responsibilities for sound are facilitated by the Sound Engineer and Stage Manager, two of my other bosses. It was relatively easy process to learn as the show was out of tech and the show file (run in Qlab) was pretty solid already. However, learning the overall system was a tad tricky as I wasn't accustomed to it and had 2 performances before I was left alone with it. Essentially I had to diagram it's signal path from source to speakers to understand. We run Qlab3 which was somewhat familiar but a newer version of software than I'm used to. We run that into a Yamaha DM100 digital mixer that is linked to Qlab through MIDI controls (also a new way of running things for me). This runs to a MOTU and various other signal processors in a rack, and wireless receivers for mics. This then runs to 8 speakers in the house along with the capability of having more satellite speakers.

I didn't have many problems picking up the system but one specifically I learned from was during performance I couldn't get a satellite just offstage right to work (even though I had it during sound check). It turns out there were two hard patch panels that had gotten switched that I hadn't been made aware of. We did manage to right the problem because I followed the signal path and found that somewhere between the amp and the speaker the path wasn't connecting, I just didn't know where.

During my run crew positions (which are both in touchstone) I am in charge of getting the scenic elements inspected and ready for performance, getting props in order, supervising actors' needs and being ready to oversee any technical difficulties with lights or sound. The lights and sound necessity comes from the fact that the stage manager runs both during the show. Other duties include cleaning the stage floor, helping stage management improve run sheets and whatever else anyone needs me to do.

 A quick an amusing anecdote about doing what people need us to do. My closest co-workers and I are commonly referred to as the Production Assistants, or as we like to referrer to ourselves as, The Practically Anythings.

Another thing I'll quickly touch on was the Tech process. I wasn't around for the bulk of it, save for the smaller second rep A&C tech. Essentially it was just to flesh out the smoothness of transitions of what needed to happen and to see was was arbitrary. I did however get be on standby to the Sound Designer Sarah Pickett should she need anything, which was really fantastic. Most of my duties lay with manipulating a sail and organizing props. One interesting aspect of the show was the planned life blank gun shot that I had to perform. One character, Enobarbus kills himself and they wanted a definitive end. The way that was preferred by the Director (Kate Buckley) instead of a sound cue was the live shot. I was trained on how to do that by Jen Trieloff (Props Director). After the first few attempts it was concluded that the sound was not quite consistent enough so we tried the a recorded shot. We eventually cut the sound entirely.

I'm sure there is plenty I've missed as I'm trying to recall a month in a single post.

One of the single discoveries I think it's of paramount importance to mention is the delicacy that it has required to come into this large of a production (really any size production) on such short notice. I've never tried to pass myself off as a "replacement," I'm simply newer than everyone else and I'm trying to add my own flavor to my nitché. I'm fresh eyes sometimes and other times I'm simply learning. More than anywhere I've been before I think that the people are what make this place work. We all work strange hours at strenuous paces and tensions can run high sometimes but we persevere. Everyone here has helped to make a welcoming environment that I'm quickly adapting to.

So a gigantic thank you to everyone who's made this experience possible, it's been more than a dream come true. While it's not exactly what I expected it'd be, it is wonderful on so many levels that I had no appreciation for previously.

Thanks again,

John

Here are a quick link to the APT homepage if there is anything you'd like more reference for, there are also blogs of other people if you explore too:

http://americanplayers.org/

Also, I'll be adding some production photos soon to try to give some reference for the changeovers I'm part of.