One Week of/to Insanity
As of this writing, it's May 29th, 2015. "Summer Mummers" opens one week from today, on June 5, 2015. That's great news for all of you Mummers fans out there. For us involved with the show, it's a mix of excitement, determination, and terror. Allow me to explain how the next week will transpire.
Saturday, May 30 and Sunday, May 31 - Technicians and directors will start arriving to the Yucca Theater at 9:00 AM. For the next 3-4 hours, they will work through every single technical transition in the three-hour show. The tech crew will adjust the timing of light and sound cues to fit the vision of the directors. Performers arrive at 12:30 PM, and at 1:00 PM, the technical rehearsal for the melodrama starts. The performers run through the entire melodrama while learning the timing of certain technical cues. After the melodrama is done, the Olio performers hit the stage. Traditionally, the Olio has more technical elements than the Melodrama. All of the Olio acts will be rehearsed until everybody is satisfied. I predict we are out of there by 7:00 PM.
Monday, June 1 and Tuesday, June 2 - All performers and technicians arrive in the early evening, around 6:00 PM. This will be the first time for the performers to add costumes to their rehearsal. While this doesn't sound like a major change, you must remember that many of the Olio performers wear five or more costumes a night, and must learn to change in and out of them very quickly. These nights will end around 10:30, if we're lucky.
Wednesday, June 3 and Thursday, June 4th - Final dress rehearsals. Makeup is added to the mix. Performers are allowed to invited close friends and family members to watch the show without the distraction of popcorn or other patrons. At this point, the performers would give just about anything to fast-forward to Friday night. These nights will end around 11:00, if we're lucky.
Friday, June 5th - Opening night. There are a few more drips of gas left in the tank. The smell of popcorn saturates the entire area around the Yucca. The roar of the crowd is pure rejuvenation. It's like seeing a friend who you haven't seen in months. For a few hours, we forget the lost sleep, the skipped meals, and the general annoyances that invade Mummers life. We hit the stage, and give everything that we have left.
Then, we sleep.