Yesterday was an unbelievable day for me. I first went downtown to meet Scott Lehrer at his studio. We talked for about an hour and 15 minutes during which he gave me a tour of his studio. He also gave me very good insight as to how the business works and the differences between Broadway, Off Broadway, Off-Off Broadway, and Regional theatre. Knowing that he was working on South Pacific, I asked him how he felt about the show, whether he was excited or not to be able to work on the show. He smiled and told me that he was still excited about the show, and that it was a fun show because of the amount of instrumentation in the orchestra, which is different from many of the shows that are on Broadway and on tour. It was very exciting to see how energetic a designer can be about a show.
After meeting with Scott, I had to book it uptown to get to the Winter Garden Theatre. Once there I got to meet Craig Cassidy, the Front of House (FOH) operator for Mamma Mia! He had arranged for me to be able to shadow him during the preshow check and sit at the console during the show. It was one of the coolest experiences in my life. I got to see how the show works and the responsibilities of the sound engineers. I have to admit, I watched less of the action on the stage because I was captivated by Craig running the sound board. I could tell by the way he moved the sliders his intricate knowledge of not only the dialogue of the show, but the orchestral score as well. It was very impressive to watch. So far, this has to have been the best experience of the trip so far, and I honestly dont think that I have done anything as exciting ever.
Today is a new day, lets see what excitement lays ahead.
Last night before I went to see Gypsy with the class, I met sound designer Darron L. West at the West Bank Cafe on 42nd and 9th Ave. I have to tell you, being that he was my first interview in New York, I was very nervous and unsure of how the process would actually play out. But once he arrived and we got through the introductions, any tension and nervousness I had melted away. He was very casual and frank about his experiences and I was instantly drawn in to every little thing that he said.
One of the most enlightening parts of the conversation that I had with Darron was when he began to talk about being smart money-wise and making sure that taxes get paid, because it is very easy to overlook when you are constantly working. I also appreciated the advice he gave me when I asked him what the best way to proceed after college would be. He said that for the first four or five years to take whatever work comes my way, because it is only through doing theatre that you can discover which theatre you want to do for the rest of your life. I never thought about it that way, and yet it seems so simple.
There was one subject that I was very apprehensive about asking Darron though. I asked him what type of social life designers have and how to manage it. He laughed and said that there is no social life, at least a normal social life, when always working. He told me that the first couple of years will probably put a strain on any personal relationships as well as my relationship with my family. But Darron told me the key to it is to spend as much time with them when you have the chance and value the short times you get.
One of the coolest experiences Darron and I talked about was when he did the sound design for Rent at the New York Theatre Workshop. He told me about when he realized how great and powerful the show was when Jonathan Larson was trying to tie the two acts together. He said that Jonathan came in one day with the idea of the phone calls from Mark’s mother, but the problem was the actors were either already on stage or changing when some of the calls were supposed to occur. So Darron told them to call his apt and sing them and he would record them on his answering machine. And when he was on his way back to the theatre with the answering machine tapes, he realized that the show was going to be a powerful and moving piece.
Unfortunately, the hour and a half that Darron and I had to talk went by so fast and I had to leave in order to make the curtain for Gypsy. While watching the show, I couldn’t help but think that this show would probably not have gone to Broadway without a top biller like they had with Patti LuPone. However, I did find it very exciting to be at the first Broadway preview armed with the knowledge that no others would see the exact show that we saw last night since changes are always being made during previews.
Afterwards, Emma and I waited at the stage door to meet her and get her autograph. It was cold, and took a while, but she eventually did emerge and was so warm and friendly, making sure she got to sign as many peoples playbills and posters as she could. I really am so pleased that these great actors don’t try to avoid the fans and just get home, but actually embrace and make small chat with them. It’s so personal and inspiring. I can’t get over how these people who I look up to are regular people in the end.
So today did not pan out the way that I thought it would. I was hoping to meet with a designer in the late morning/early afternoon, but he was unable to answer his cell phone and meet with me. His show is still in preview or tech so he must be extremely busy during this time. I am supposed to call him tomorrow afternoon and see about meeting early Weds. morning, since he is headed out of town on Thursday. I had been playing email tag with another sound designer, but we never were able to finalize today. It’s a little disappointing to say the least because I was so excited, but these people are trying to find time for me and I appreciate it. I was really looking forward to today but will have to postpone the excitement for tomorrow.
I did get to go to the New York Library for the Performing Arts and explore it for about an hour, since I had gone to the Lincoln Center while trying to get in contact with Scott Lehrer. It is a very impressive building. They have a photo exhibit of about six or seven different productions. I found that there was at least one photo from every production that struck me as not only captivating, but emotionally evocative. I was surprised that production photos could evoke that response from me.
On the way home, I dropped in at the Drama Book Shop and browsed the aisles of plays. I loved the bookstore, the fact that there was a single store that had such a collection from so many artists was comforting. Most commercial bookstores have a very limited selection of plays that they carry in stock, and to be able to see the multitude of plays was really cool. I plan to go back before I leave to actually purchase a play or two. But just being able to browse was a fun experience.
Well, I just received a phone call from Darron L. West wondering if we could meet this evening before the show. So now we are meeting at 6pm to sit down and chat. Yay for Serendipity. Sorry if its use and meaning does not fully apply, its the first thing that came to my head. Gonna do some research.
