For someone who loves theatre, it can be quite a difficult undertaking to actually go and watch a show. Having probably been behind the curtain more often then I've been in front, watching a play or musical isn't ever really the same after you've been blinded by the spots and heard the roar of a sea of silhouettes. The problem, for me anyway, is that the illusion is no longer quite as strong once you've tasted the nerves and the adrenaline, and seen how it all works first hand. If I could sum it up, it's like watching a magician, knowing exactly how he's going to escape the locked container.
In my eyes, I see the stage through a cross-section. I hear the overture and instantly I think of the actors waiting in the wings, the technical team setting off smoke machines and prepping scene changes. But what does all that look like to the uninformed observer? Post-show, the first thing people ask is how things are done. And there is usually a pretty simple answer. But there's also a long tale that lies behind it. So I thought I'd show you how it all works...
The Quiet Before The Storm
Long before the audience is through the door, the actors are in the theatre, receiving notes from the night before, warming up vocally and physically, and generally relaxing. Entering an empty theatre is an extremely strange experience. The thought of the place being full an hour later is almost foreign.
As the house opens though and you hear those first voices coming over the PA system in the dressing rooms, subconsciously, the edge begins to grow. You focus. It's time to start creating characters.
And then comes the waiting. And the nervous energy. When you hear the
15-minute call over the PA, you slowly see people change. The loud can
become very quiet. The calm, restless. And then it's through that stage
door, and all you can hear is the hum of the audience. And then it really kicks in.
And then it's out, into that blinding, great white light.
Of course, that's not all that goes into it. Throughout the performance, there are people working tirelessly in the wings, silently ordering lighting changes and directing teams of men in black through scene changes, smoke machines and audience blinders, all so the audience is none the wiser.
In the midst of a performance, although you're constantly focussed, there's so much going on around you, and also so little. Depending on the part, you can be sat around for an hour or more - maybe even time to nip out for a pint. But then you can be on and off in seconds, and dressed in something new. Which means getting it all out side of stage. If you're lucky, you might even get a dresser to chase you around.
And, in the madness, there's the fun. Otherwise, why would we do it? You get a performance under your belt, and then nervous energy is channeled for the good, and you relax.
Not to mention the obligatory photos!
So, I ask you, why would you want to be anywhere else but behind the curtain, part of the cross-section?
*All photos courtesy of the very talented Rob Watson. He does weddings, don't you know?! Let me know if I can put you in touch.
