Tech Weekend Success

We did it! We teched the whole play over our two 'ten our of twelve' days! This means we had Saturday and Sunday, between 11am and 11pm to get through every single cue in the show that involved technical elements; lights, sound, costume, props, violence, movement, etc...
Leading up to tech weekend, Scott, the lighting designer, and his team had been in the space hanging and focusing lights while Molly and Ashley, the co-costume designers, worked extremely hard (while Molly was sick with the flu!) to pull together all the costumes. Not to mention Elizabeth, the props master, who was out searching for the final props, things like a popcorn machine and dog biscuits! Adam, the sound designer, has been in and out of rehearsal since the beginning, playing with sound and finalizing the locations for the speakers, while Jason, the set designer (as well as production manager of ASP) would often start working on the set as we were finishing rehearsal! So, suffice it to say, everyone has been working very, very hard to get this show ready for tech weekend. The result of that is that it all went very smoothly. Melia was pleased with all the looks and the production meetings each night were the shortest I've ever experienced. For those of you who don't know, the actors get to go home at 11pm, but the whole production team has to stay behind and have a production meeting, where Jason leads a meeting to go over any details that still need to be looked at by the team. Amazingly, these only lasted about twenty minutes (I've sometimes been in some that run over an hour). A real testament to how hard everyone has been working.
For me, I think the best thing about tech weekend is always how everyone really has time to be in the space and be with each other. It is amazing to see the show come together with all its elements and to put the final touches on the acting moments and the design elements. It is always a special time for those involved in a show and this one was no exception to that. There is always a magical feeling about tech weekend.
Onwards and upwards to the dress rehearsals and then, the previews where we get to share what we've created with an audience. Cannot wait!

Kristen van Ginhoven
Assistant Director