Adventures in Theater
This last weekend, I was to shoot video at a play directed by a good friend of mine.
Thursday :
6PM : The dress rehersal. So here I sit, up in the lighting booth with Tim, who's running lights for the play, and I set up camera, check light, angles, and do all that videographer stuff. I've just started to monitor audio levels when a strange noise appears. A hissing sound.
At this point it is probably worth mentioning that this show was being produced at the Schafer Theater- which is, to put it mildly, a somewhat neglected building.
6:25 : The hiss grew quite loud, to the point where I could not run audio and hear the actors. With a flashlight we eventually uncovered that the hiss was from a leaking steam pipe. Great. So Plan B became to move the camera down into the rear row of seats. This plan involved having electricity there. Which involved a long orange extension cord. Which involved finding out that half the electrical outlets in the theater were cold. The half that were live were under the bleachers. So were mice.
7:30 Finally, with my orange extension chord duck-taped to the floor, through a hole, down beneath the bleachers, amidst the mice, and plugged into a utility outlet, I took light readings and congradulated myself for having found a flexible solution. The hiss grew louder.
Show Night :
5PM : The director leaves a voicemail on my phone. "We uh, may not have any lights. Something's gone wrong in the theater."
6PM : I arrive at the theatre, indeed something had gone wrong. Tim and I investigate the lighting booth. The floor is wet. I see a dark line on the wall. "There's been standing water in here" I say, backing out of the puddle in this room filled with open electrical circuits which might just choose me as their route to Ground. But if there'd been standing water, where had it gone?
6:15 : Downstairs, under the light booth are the dimmer boxes and breakers. My flashlight beam glints off of them, why? They're soaking wet, that's why. My flashlight beam sweeps up to reveal the alarmingly discolored and sagging ceiling, confirming my worst fears. This is where the water had gone. And in 45 minutes, people will be at the front door, waiting to see a play.
6:20 Amy is dispatched to Lowe's. You know those bright 500 watt Halogen worklights on the yellow stands? Yeah.
6:45 Tim and I have wires snaking all over the aisles, and 1000 watts of Halogen duct-taped to the retaining wall behind the last row of seats. A note on Halogen lights - They get hot. Very hot.
6:50 Power strip on the left hand lights overheats and turns itself off, plunging half the stage into darkness. Examination reveals it is hot to the touch. Quick math is done as to watts and amps, the result? We're probably fortunate we didn't start a fire. New wires are quickly strung and duct-taped, the power is redistributed, fingers are crossed, and with ten minutes to an open house, I begin to set up the camera, audio, and take light readings.
6:55 We're going to open house late. 7:15. That's not too late, we think.
7:15 Open house. 1500 watts of Halogen strapped to the back wall with duct tape. Power strips are humming. Literally.
7:45 Curtain's Up.
Believe it or not, aside from one overheated powerstrip in the middle of the play (which was quickly corrected) it all worked fine. Techies make theater work!
This last weekend, I was to shoot video at a play directed by a good friend of mine.
Thursday :
6PM : The dress rehersal. So here I sit, up in the lighting booth with Tim, who's running lights for the play, and I set up camera, check light, angles, and do all that videographer stuff. I've just started to monitor audio levels when a strange noise appears. A hissing sound.
At this point it is probably worth mentioning that this show was being produced at the Schafer Theater- which is, to put it mildly, a somewhat neglected building.
6:25 : The hiss grew quite loud, to the point where I could not run audio and hear the actors. With a flashlight we eventually uncovered that the hiss was from a leaking steam pipe. Great. So Plan B became to move the camera down into the rear row of seats. This plan involved having electricity there. Which involved a long orange extension cord. Which involved finding out that half the electrical outlets in the theater were cold. The half that were live were under the bleachers. So were mice.
7:30 Finally, with my orange extension chord duck-taped to the floor, through a hole, down beneath the bleachers, amidst the mice, and plugged into a utility outlet, I took light readings and congradulated myself for having found a flexible solution. The hiss grew louder.
Show Night :
5PM : The director leaves a voicemail on my phone. "We uh, may not have any lights. Something's gone wrong in the theater."
6PM : I arrive at the theatre, indeed something had gone wrong. Tim and I investigate the lighting booth. The floor is wet. I see a dark line on the wall. "There's been standing water in here" I say, backing out of the puddle in this room filled with open electrical circuits which might just choose me as their route to Ground. But if there'd been standing water, where had it gone?
6:15 : Downstairs, under the light booth are the dimmer boxes and breakers. My flashlight beam glints off of them, why? They're soaking wet, that's why. My flashlight beam sweeps up to reveal the alarmingly discolored and sagging ceiling, confirming my worst fears. This is where the water had gone. And in 45 minutes, people will be at the front door, waiting to see a play.
6:20 Amy is dispatched to Lowe's. You know those bright 500 watt Halogen worklights on the yellow stands? Yeah.
6:45 Tim and I have wires snaking all over the aisles, and 1000 watts of Halogen duct-taped to the retaining wall behind the last row of seats. A note on Halogen lights - They get hot. Very hot.
6:50 Power strip on the left hand lights overheats and turns itself off, plunging half the stage into darkness. Examination reveals it is hot to the touch. Quick math is done as to watts and amps, the result? We're probably fortunate we didn't start a fire. New wires are quickly strung and duct-taped, the power is redistributed, fingers are crossed, and with ten minutes to an open house, I begin to set up the camera, audio, and take light readings.
6:55 We're going to open house late. 7:15. That's not too late, we think.
7:15 Open house. 1500 watts of Halogen strapped to the back wall with duct tape. Power strips are humming. Literally.
7:45 Curtain's Up.
Believe it or not, aside from one overheated powerstrip in the middle of the play (which was quickly corrected) it all worked fine. Techies make theater work!
VIEW 3 of 3 COMMENTS
contradiction:
heehee we have used those yellow hallogens for shows too. 
angelfrost:
Nice to stop in the sight every so often and read and post, but I hardly need to feel like I HAVE to check certain groups. if SGVA can't take my schedual, I can live without them, most of it never gets this far south anyways.