"The word theatre comes from the Greeks. It means the seeing place. It is the place people come to see the truth about life and the social situation."
- Stella Adler -
Tech Week was amazing...
In this photo essay about a stage production of Disney's Beauty and the Beast, I hope to begin to convey some of that excitement.
Let's go backstage and see what happens behind the scenes...
Note- To my very faithful followers of the "Beauty and the Beast" series:
Please pardon the rather long hiatus from telling this story. Your enthusiasm for my theater series has been very encouraging to me in past days. However, I became suddenly very busy (thank God, gainfully so) and it has been difficult getting back to finishing the series. Your patience with me is noted with great appreciation!
Tech Week Choreography ~ Original image by 
In this series of photos,
you may click on each to reveal its full-resolution version. However, please don't be disappointed; all too often, the low light levels backstage and the hand-held photography have resulted in noticeable blurring.
Hallway behind the stage. ~ Original image by
Behind the stage,
there is a very long hallway that spans the entire stage width. There are entrance doors at both ends. There is also a huge entrance door opposite the scene shop for moving large set pieces in and out.
Stage right end of hallway. ~ Original image by
This is a closer view of the stage right end.
Actors and backstage support personnel tend to cluster here between appearances on stage.
Props filed in their places... ~ Original image by
Nestled between building structure uprights,
tables are set out for storing and organizing the myriad props for the show. The tables are subdivided with strips of tape on which the name of each prop is written. During performances, not knowing where to find any particular prop could spoil the show.
Maurice's windmill prop. ~ Original image by
You may recognize this.
It is of course Maurice's Windmill prop. You can read a detailed description of it's creation in a two-part article beginning here.
Maurice's tool crate. ~ Original image by
To the left of the windmill,
a wooden crate waits for Maurice to carry his project and tools in.
A real trouper. ~ Original image by
Why, you might ask,
is this actor sideways? Perhaps the image isn't properly oriented?
No, not at all. This photo was deliberately taken as you see it, and the actor portraying The Beast was kind enough to accommodate my request that he lie on his side for the photo shoot.
The Magic Mirror ~ Original image by
The normal video orientation for a Kindle Fire is horizontal.
I needed a quick way—without any special software—to re-orient the video vertically, so I had The Beast lie sideways on a couple of padded chairs while I shot a short video sequence of him looking ferocious.
The Magic Mirror between scenes. ~ Original image by
The Mirror, safely on the props table,
awaits its next appearance on stage.
The Rose, before mounting. ~ Original image by
Early in Tech Week,
The Rose prop had not yet been mounted on its pedestal. Seeing it here near the edge of the props table still makes me a little nervous.
An end run around stage left. ~ Original image by
Let's sneak past the edge of stage left.
Rounding the corner near the front of the stage, we can get a peek into a small, blue-lit control space, and we discover a short stairway and an entrance into the house.
In the house. ~ Original image by
A few actors are seated in the house.
They are between scenes. In the center of the house, a temporary desk has been set up for the director and her assistants to sit at and manage all activities.
The control booth, atypically illuminated from within. ~ Original image by
Turning to our left,
at the back of the house and above the balcony, the control booth is visible. We can see it in this photo because its interior lights are on at the moment. During performances, they are normally off.
Up in the control booth with The Rose. ~ Original image by
As its designer and creator,
one of the high points of Tech Week for me was taking The Rose up to the control booth to have it integrated with the theater DMX lighting control system.
Petals dropping, twinkle lights flashing... ~ Original image by
Watching the setup was fascinating.
Not only did the operator get every Rose feature working, he compensated for variable petal drop delays by adjusting the cue timing for each operation.
Footlights raised for dramatic effect. ~ Original image by
For dramatic effect,
the variable colored lights around the base of The Rose were raised, along with musical cues, to focus attention on the Rose petals dropping.
That's it for now...
Fear not, there's much more from Tech Week to come. The story of how The Rose was finally (successfully) finished, after much agonizing, is also waiting in the wings.
And I'll do my best to make it a much shorter span of time before the next story in this series... ;)
FIN
If you're just tuning in, here are previous entries in this series (including ruminations) about prop-making:
"The Ocean of Life" - A Haiku by Duncan Cary Palmer
"When Wandering Wizards Wonder..."
"Finally Out to Sea..." a Haiku by Duncan Cary Palmer
Beauty and the Beast Props - Enchanted Rose Teaser
Beauty and the Beast Props - Magic Mirror Teaser
Beauty and the Beast Props - Windmill Teaser
Beauty and the Beast Props - The Director Is Happy!
Fine-Tuning The Rose for Beauty and the Beast
How I Designed And Built Maurice's Windmill for ~Beauty and the Beast~ Part 1
How I Designed And Built Maurice's Windmill for ~Beauty and the Beast~ Conclusion
How I Designed And Built The Magic Mirror for ~Beauty and the Beast~ Part 1
How I Designed And Built The Magic Mirror for ~Beauty and the Beast~ Part 2
How I Designed And Built The Magic Mirror for ~Beauty and the Beast~ Part 3
How I Designed And Built The Magic Mirror for ~Beauty and the Beast~ Conclusion
Tech Week for Beauty and the Beast ~ Part One
Walt Disney's Beauty and the Beast
Image by Walt Disney Pictures, via Wikimedia Commons
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