Welcome to Day # 6!! Today's focus is on our performance space! Although many who come and see the productions are able to enjoy the history of the theater- see the stage and the amazing proscenium arch, the wooden floors and the incredible balcony. But few travel backstage to see the intricate fly system and the other backstage items, and certainly VERY few travel down the stairs that the performers and technicians use to use their "home" space during any show!! If you travel down the stage staircase to the 1st floor:
You can see all the spaces that the performers and technicians have to use during a show to get ready and to wait in between the moments they need to be upstairs. This photo shows you the Call Board our students see when they arrive. Right inside the door they enter, there is a cork board that includes attendance, announcements, posters from shows and upcoming opportunities. It is the first thing they all see and they know to check it each time!
From there, the students move into the kitchen where they have a refrigerator that they can use to store food and water, as well as a microwave to heat their meals on long day!
From the kitchen, you travel into our "Green Room"! This is the resting place and waiting place for performers during a show and also for everyone prior to a show starting. Our green room includes a monitor for our stage manager to speak to actors and make calls during a show, and a TV with a live monitor so performers know when they need to head on stage. The term "green room" has existed since Renaissance theater when the Blackfriar's Theater in London had a waiting room behind the theater that happened to be painted Green!! As it stands- so is ours!!
From the Green room, performers can access both dressing rooms and the bathrooms that they have downstairs to use during rehearsals and performances. They also have their make-up room where many sit and get their hair and make-up done in the large mirrors and bright lights!!
The one other very useful space we have is our conference room. This is a large room, which can be used as an additional waiting area so people can spread out. It is also used as an additional rehearsal space (you can see the piano and music stands) as well as a space for meetings. All performers and technicians know the phrase "CONFERENCE ROOM" which happens at every show about 15 minutes before start time. This is the moment everyone gathers together for a pre-show pep talk!!!! To us, the conference room means we are about to begin!!!!! This is our home for months at a time and has become a very special place for many kids, teens and adults!
Join us for our continued mini series on make-up, acting, rehearsals and more!