August 17, 2006
Days and nights at the Players are always busy ones. By 8 a.m. our breakfast cook Jeff Steinberg is on sight in the kitchen preparing breakfast for the company. It could be a nice warm bowl of oatmeal, a company favorite, or a baked cheese omelet, or this week’s highlight – chocolate laced French toast. While Jeff is breaking eggs and making the morning coffee some company members are already up and taking in a bike ride or walk before the work day begins, while others are already waiting in line at the shower.
By 9 a.m. Jeff has set breakfast out and company members are gathering in the lodge recapping their plans for the day or what didn’t quite go smoothly in the show the night before. What is on the work schedule? Who has the day off from rehearsal? Where did the gang hang out last night? Has anyone seen my script?
By 10 a.m. the actors are in rehearsal, the scene shop has started running power tools and the phones have started ringing in the office. Meanwhile the costume shop is open for business. The costumes from the prior evening’s performance need washing, drying and pressing. As I pop into file some paperwork Rachael is showing Andy how to pin a pleat and Brenda is pulling together costume pieces. Soon Greg Vinkler is in the doorway and ready for a fitting. The phones in the office continue to ring and the mail that has just arrived needs sorting.
Before we know it the lunch bell is ringing. Really, the cooks have a large bell that calls us to lunch and dinner. Jeff and John Skare make sure we are well fed, and the sandwich and salad bar is well stocked with a great variety of fresh veggies. By 2 p.m. the saws are once again buzzing in the shop and the phones are still ringing in the office. The UPS man has just delivered a stack of boxes – more shoes for Samantha in costume shop and a 50 pound box of hinges for the tech crew.
While rehearsal continues Nate and Tyler are working on the props for “The Elephant Man.” Nate has been trying to find a claw-foot bathtub and Tyler has been searching for an image of King Leopold. An intern from 1978 has stopped by to visit and is surprised to learn we’ve re-built the theatre. “Wow, great!” he says.
Soon it is four o’clock and the production staff is in the beer garden having a meeting discussing if projections are in the budget, meanwhile yummy smells are coming from the kitchen where John is cooking up something tasty for dinner. Will it be pork chops with fresh chutney, a scrumptious orzo and chicken casserole, or some delectable turkey meatloaf?
At five o’clock the interns make their pre-show rounds and check the sound and lighting instruments and make sure the backstage is ready for the evenings’ performance, the time flies and soon the six o’clock dinner bell rings and a few actresses show up in hair rollers.
John’s fresh and hot meal is eaten with gusto, and soon people are scurrying around getting ready for the show. The ushers and parking attendants rush to their duties to help patrons and before you know it is 8:30 p.m. and the curtain goes up!
The spotlights come on, and there is Sean Fortunato singing “Wilkommen” to the audience. It is a warm night and the sides to the theatre are up, and one can see the lovely glow of the garden lights while the singers and dancers in “Cabaret” entertain.
Before we know it the show is over and after the curtain call the backstage is closed down and the house is picked up. The doors are closed and lights turned out. A group has decided to gather in the lodge and play some games before they go bed, others are heading into town while others go off and find their beds to rest the weary heads before they get up and start their day with a yummy breakfast made by Jeff.
Perhaps I’ll see you by the bay, where the sun sets, the curtain rises and the stars shine!
Audra Baakari Boyle is the Peninsula Players Business Manager. If you would like tickets to one of the Players shows call 868-3287 or visit their website at www.peninsulaplayers.com