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It means that, once again, I am designing lights for the Dance Studio spring recital. Those who have paid attention in the last few years of me doing this (or if you're, y'know, GWEN to whom I bitch on a regular basis), know that the dance studio picks some movie and uses the DVD soundtrack (with dialogue and everything) as the FRAME upon which the dance show is designed around. The teachers at the studio are given a packet of material that includes the music they are choreographing to, and whether their class will be "walking on" or "set in place."
Years past have been "Lilo and Stitch," "Emperor's New Groove," and "Robots." This year? Wizard of Oz. Good gods! I can't get AWAY from the freaking thing! It proves to me once more that the Wizard of Oz is the backbone of American culture. And they have not just *one* "Over the Rainbow" but TWO (one the Judy Garland version with the babies dancing (2.5 to 4 year olds), and one a more jazzy version with a bunch of young women in pink labelled the "Dreamers" - after the cyclone, before munchkinland)!!! And they've added in the music from The Wiz just to make it all that much more surreal.
Yesterday was our one real "tech" rehearsal - I spent all day struggling with lights. And then I'll go and do the five shows this weekend. Yup. Five shows, five *different* casts of leads. So far, only the "oil cans" dance and the senior's dance have the same people in them. And I've only seen three of the shows. The others will "tech" this week while I am at work (although show five techs an Thursday night at 6pm - I may go and play with the lights some more).
And this year we are in the High School again. Which has sucky equipment. The board is tecnically programmable, but it is still a piece of crap. In two scene mode it has 24 channels, in multi scene mode it has 48. I use the multi-scene capability, and will reprogram the 24 Sub-masters - really only 23, because the last one is reserved for the House Lights - to get the few different "looks" I want. The strip lights are in red, blue and a particularly noxious orange the theatre manager had the temerity to call "amber." And then he winced, and said, yeah, it is more like orange, but since these were glass light covers and not gels he couldn't change it.
The system is about 20 YEARS out of date - but then I am spoiled with the state of the art in my home theatre - and even in the other theatre I've lit which has the same state of the art system as my home theatre, just a bit smaller (48 channel vs. 144 channel). But I am used to being able to record cues, and do follow-alongs, and set times for ups and downs and crossfades, and just a whole lot I can actually PROGRAM so all I have to do during the show is push the "go" button when cued to do so.
This show I am not even on a headset. I'm just kind of going along with the music. I suppose as long as the parents can see their little darling's faces while they dance it will be considered a rousing success. And as long as the videographer can record we're good. But it is damn galling to know that this *could* be better, more subtle, more colors, more fun...
Ah, well. They do pay me for it, even though it is relatively little. A couple hundred dollars twice a year, that's all. Once for the spring show, and once for the December Nutcracker.
Ahh, must be Monday. That was a lovely frustrated rant. I hope you day is going better than mine!
Years past have been "Lilo and Stitch," "Emperor's New Groove," and "Robots." This year? Wizard of Oz. Good gods! I can't get AWAY from the freaking thing! It proves to me once more that the Wizard of Oz is the backbone of American culture. And they have not just *one* "Over the Rainbow" but TWO (one the Judy Garland version with the babies dancing (2.5 to 4 year olds), and one a more jazzy version with a bunch of young women in pink labelled the "Dreamers" - after the cyclone, before munchkinland)!!! And they've added in the music from The Wiz just to make it all that much more surreal.
Yesterday was our one real "tech" rehearsal - I spent all day struggling with lights. And then I'll go and do the five shows this weekend. Yup. Five shows, five *different* casts of leads. So far, only the "oil cans" dance and the senior's dance have the same people in them. And I've only seen three of the shows. The others will "tech" this week while I am at work (although show five techs an Thursday night at 6pm - I may go and play with the lights some more).
And this year we are in the High School again. Which has sucky equipment. The board is tecnically programmable, but it is still a piece of crap. In two scene mode it has 24 channels, in multi scene mode it has 48. I use the multi-scene capability, and will reprogram the 24 Sub-masters - really only 23, because the last one is reserved for the House Lights - to get the few different "looks" I want. The strip lights are in red, blue and a particularly noxious orange the theatre manager had the temerity to call "amber." And then he winced, and said, yeah, it is more like orange, but since these were glass light covers and not gels he couldn't change it.
The system is about 20 YEARS out of date - but then I am spoiled with the state of the art in my home theatre - and even in the other theatre I've lit which has the same state of the art system as my home theatre, just a bit smaller (48 channel vs. 144 channel). But I am used to being able to record cues, and do follow-alongs, and set times for ups and downs and crossfades, and just a whole lot I can actually PROGRAM so all I have to do during the show is push the "go" button when cued to do so.
This show I am not even on a headset. I'm just kind of going along with the music. I suppose as long as the parents can see their little darling's faces while they dance it will be considered a rousing success. And as long as the videographer can record we're good. But it is damn galling to know that this *could* be better, more subtle, more colors, more fun...
Ah, well. They do pay me for it, even though it is relatively little. A couple hundred dollars twice a year, that's all. Once for the spring show, and once for the December Nutcracker.
Ahh, must be Monday. That was a lovely frustrated rant. I hope you day is going better than mine!
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