In two weeks, we premier "The Adventures of Dick Whittington." Friday was our first trial run in costume. This was a real adventure. The two assistants did their best, but clearly we need more backstage help. Once the children understand how exactly to wear their costumes, things should go easier. My big idea for this show was to have the children wear one basic outfit and then don extra pieces to give them a different look in different scenes as needed. The problem was that the children did not remember very well the instructions I had given them as to what to wear and in which scenes. And the helpers really had no clue, either.
I don't know if this is because we live in the space age, but I have discovered that the majority of these children (ages 8-12) do not regularly tie or button. As I recall, in my youth, those were skills we had mastered before entering kindergarten. I guess everything now is velcro or stretch to fit. The big hold up for getting the costume pieces on and off is undoing buttons and tying scarf belts. If these kids don't master these skills quickly, I may need an army of volunteers backstage just to help get the kids in and out of costume parts and pieces. And I thought it was such a simple costume plan.....
We have yet to paint the scenery and work with the body mics. But once we have the set pieces in place and can hear the dialogue and singing better backstage, we should be in business. Now if my backstage recruits come to the next few rehearsals, maybe my anxieties will diminish.
Our stage is difficult to deal with. The way the curtains are hung so close to the walls leaves no room for getting set pieces and props, let alone actors, easily onto the stage. We have to be very creative.
The other day, I went to see a very good production of "Seussical the Musical" done at another elementary school in the area. I could not help feeling envious. The stage had curtains that actually worked to let actors onto and off of the stage. They had good lighting and speakers. They must have rented not only the sound system, but a sound engineer to run it. They had at least 20 kids wearing body mics! And I was most envious of the fact that they had a lot of good parental support and 12 main helpers for the directors. They had a core ensemble of about 30 students and included another 40 students in the big numbers -- only 5th and 6th graders. A lot of talent in that school.
I kept thinking how nice it would be to have helpers and good parental support. Sometimes I feel like I am a committee of 1.
Oh, well, the show must go on!
I don't know if this is because we live in the space age, but I have discovered that the majority of these children (ages 8-12) do not regularly tie or button. As I recall, in my youth, those were skills we had mastered before entering kindergarten. I guess everything now is velcro or stretch to fit. The big hold up for getting the costume pieces on and off is undoing buttons and tying scarf belts. If these kids don't master these skills quickly, I may need an army of volunteers backstage just to help get the kids in and out of costume parts and pieces. And I thought it was such a simple costume plan.....
We have yet to paint the scenery and work with the body mics. But once we have the set pieces in place and can hear the dialogue and singing better backstage, we should be in business. Now if my backstage recruits come to the next few rehearsals, maybe my anxieties will diminish.
Our stage is difficult to deal with. The way the curtains are hung so close to the walls leaves no room for getting set pieces and props, let alone actors, easily onto the stage. We have to be very creative.
The other day, I went to see a very good production of "Seussical the Musical" done at another elementary school in the area. I could not help feeling envious. The stage had curtains that actually worked to let actors onto and off of the stage. They had good lighting and speakers. They must have rented not only the sound system, but a sound engineer to run it. They had at least 20 kids wearing body mics! And I was most envious of the fact that they had a lot of good parental support and 12 main helpers for the directors. They had a core ensemble of about 30 students and included another 40 students in the big numbers -- only 5th and 6th graders. A lot of talent in that school.
I kept thinking how nice it would be to have helpers and good parental support. Sometimes I feel like I am a committee of 1.
Oh, well, the show must go on!
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