Done and done. L.A. Blues is no more. At least this
incarnation. And we won’t look back. Except for right now…
I would like to
start by apologising for the lack of updates in the week before we opened (I
know regular readers will have been devastated by the reduced coverage!).
Things were intense, to say the least. As we approached opening night, each day
seemed to bring its own disaster. So much so, that this installment is long.
It’s still good though, I swear.
(i) Costume Woes
Hiring costumes
from the Abbey is a double-edged sword. On the plus side, they have a great
collection, the staff is incredibly friendly and helpful and the cost is
relatively cheap for what you get. But against that, there are some big
drawbacks. The warehouse is only open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, between 10am
and 4pm, which can make getting an appointment that works for you difficult.
Also, and more frustratingly, there is no system for cataloguing the items in
the warehouse. Which, when you think about it, is ridiculous. We knew exactly
which costumes we needed but rather than type a unique code into a database and
be given an exact location to pick it up, we had to scour the warehouse for
desired items hoping that a) they were there (the lack of a database means that
no-one knows what is in stock and what isn’t), and b) they were in the correct
section. Of the seven items we needed, we were able to find five. One of
Winifred’s dresses was missing (presumably with another company, but who
knows?) as was her hat. Not ideal. So it was back to the dressing room to find
a replacement. At the last minute we did get a new dress and it worked very
well. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the new hat. After a rather
spectacular hat malfunction during the dress rehearsal and a very close call in
Act One on the opening night, it was
decided that the hat would stay in the dressing room.
These may seem
like minor issues but every little thing takes its toll. The costume work had
been done before. All we had to do this time was pick them up and wear them.
But because of a system (or rather complete lack thereof) outside of our
control, we had to make last minute changes. The staff at the Abbey costume
department are fantastic and did whatever they could to help us. But until a
proper system is put in place, costuming a production will remain a bit of a
crapshoot. And given that one has to pay to hire from the Abbey, that is
unacceptable.
(ii) Sickness
Woes
Tuesday 29th
May. 6pm – 9pm. Penultimate rehearsal before the get-in. Things go well. We are
in surprisingly good shape.
Thursday 31st
May. 9.50am. Text message arrives. Matthew is sick, going to the doctor that
morning. Diagnosed with septic throat and ear infection. Can’t make final
rehearsal before get-in. Balls.
Thursday 31st
May. 6.00pm – 8pm. Rehearsal minus one cast member goes well. Gives us time to
work on the niggly bits that have been a bit sloppy. Feel okay.
Saturday 2nd
June. 10.00am – 5.00pm. Set get-in goes well. Matthew’s eye looks suspiciously
like something bad is going to happen.
Sunday 3rd
June. 11.00am – 8pm. Matthew’s eye seems much better. Tech get-in goes well.
Monday 4th
June. 7.16am. Text message arrives. Matthew is sick again, can’t make it in.
Technical run-through replaced by quick top and tail and some individual scene
tweaking. I am not a happy bunny. I am not a bunny at all. I am a ball. A
tightly-wound ball. Of stress. And anger. I do not resent Matthew, but I hate
his left eye. Hate it. Consider the possibility of having the character of
Billy one-eyed.
Tuesday 5th
June. 3.00pm. Look for eye-patch for Matthew. Search unsuccessful. Devise
method to construct eye-patch from felt and duct tape.
Tuseday 5th
June. 6.00pm – 10.00pm. Dress rehearsal pretty good (I think, see below).
Matthew has use of two eyes. Stress begins to subside. Audience numbers panic
sets in. I remain a tightly-would ball.
(iii) Lighting
Operator Woes
When I was in
college, I was a techie. I designed, rigged and operated lights. That was 2000
– 2004. On occasion since, I have helped a friend out whenever they were stuck.
But for the most part, I no longer get involved in the technical side of things
if at all possible. Not because I feel that I have risen above it. Far from it.
Part of the reason is that I do not want to take on too much responsibility.
Also, as I have said before, collaboration is good, vital even. With actors and techies. Although perhaps on
different aspects of the production.
The lighting for
L.A. Blues was designed by the
fabulous Gráinne O’Driscoll. She has designed the Winedark shows for the last number of years and has kindly worked
with Neon Fringe too. But Gráinne
doesn’t operate. That job belongs to Colm Kinsella – Winedark’s lighting operator/stage manager in residence. The
problem this time around was that Colm was on holidays for the get-in and part
of the run and was therefore unable to act as operator. Which left us a little
bit fucked.
We tried calling
in a number of different people. People we knew and trusted and will happily
work with time and time again. They were already working on other shows. We
sent out a call for anyone with experience who was interested to get in touch.
Nothing. Which meant that there was only one option left open to us. I had to
do it. It was with reluctance that I took on the role. I hadn’t done it in a
long time and didn’t know if I would be able to do a good enough job. Also, if
I was operating the lights, who was keeping an eye on the dress rehearsal? To
make matters worse, Colm being absent also meant that we had no stage manager.
Guess who had to step into that role? That’s right, yours truly. At least the
redesigned show (see L.A. Blues: Redux,
Part 2) meant that that role was drastically reduced.
In all, I had
too much to do, too much responsibility on my shoulders. It all worked out in
the end, I suppose. Certainly there were no disasters. But I did forget to do
some things. Thankfully the cast had thought ahead and prepared themselves –
otherwise we would have had some big problems. Write/director/operator/stage
manager: it was not a pleasant situation to be in and one I hope never to have
to repeat again.
(iv) The End
Three nights. Three
packed houses. Three great performances. Each evening of L.A. Blues was met with huge audience approval and overwhelmingly
positive feedback. People enjoyed watching it. We enjoyed doing it. The stress may have been worth it after all. Who am
I kidding? We at Neon Fringe do this
because we love it. We don’t make much (read: any) profit but we cover our
costs – thanks to the support of those who come along to share in (and
hopefully enjoy) our artistic endeavours. And until the Abbey come calling,
we’ll continue to forge our own path.
And that’s it
for L.A. Blues – The Director’s Blog.
Unless and until we revive it down the line. In the meantime, look out for
details of our next production – hopefully premiering in the autumn – on
Facebook and Twitter. Thanks for reading.
Chris Lynch
