"To begin with, Marley was dead," the Narrator said to begin the telling of "A Christmas Carol." Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the show has closed. I cannot sum up my entire experience of the show in words. So, instead, I will give you a few glimpses.
Strike & Load-In: After Miss Saigon closed, we did strike which means that we that everything went away. The costumes and props went back to their departments, the set pieces were broken down, and the light plot was put back to rep. Now, let me explain the light plot. When you go see a show there are lights hung on a plot. If the theatre has a rep plot, it means that lights are added and subtracted but at the end everything is put back to normal.
During load in, we added in new lights. This included conventional and intelligent lights. We hung light and circuited. Then we focused and dropped color. We basically got everything done as we could. before tech.
Tech: Since this show has been a tradition for the theatre for 20 years most of the bigger details have been figured out. Basically all that is left is the smaller stuff and fine tuning until the show is perfect.
My role in this show was being a Spot Op. This means that during the show, I sat in the catwalk with three other spot operators and followed actors. My spotlight had six color frames, which meant there were six colors for me to use. At one point in the show, I would go from frame six to one and then all the way through the colors to six. During tech, the Lighting Designer and Assistant Lighting Designer figured out the details of the design--this included when the spots would come up and on who.
Pre-show: Before every show, I had a list of duties that I had to do. This included checking the practicals. In this show, the practicals were multiple electronic candles and lamps on tables. After my duties, I would standby and help the Assistant Lighting Supervisor who was also the board op. This sometimes included changing out bulbs and retouching focus notes.
If everything checked out, I would go and hang out in the greenroom with my fellow crew members. There we would play poker, Bananagrams, BS, and Cards Against Humanity. It was fantastic!
Show: My light turns on and I spot people. We did a ton of morning shows for elementary and middle schoolers. It was great. One of the best things was hearing the reactions from the kids. They would freak out and scream at the ghosts and clap at the end.
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