Week 13:
Closing Nights and Surprise Stage Managing

August 16, 2016

This morning, I drove away from Creede, Colorado.  I wasn’t driving to Alamosa to get Taco Bell or to Pagosa for an adventurous day off.  I was driving the full 9 hours, all the way back to my driveway in Ogden, Utah.

It’s hard to believe that after making a home out of Creede, my time there is done.  I miss it already.

I thought I knew what to expect from my last week at Creede Repertory Theatre.  I was going to work some shows, work some changeovers, have some exit interviews, and head out.

But I should have known this crazy world of theatre would have another curve ball to throw my way.

My expectations were true to an extent.  As expected, I said goodbye to my shows this week.  We had our closing performances of both Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and The (Curious Case of the) Watson Intelligence.  Both shows had really good final performances.  My director in high school always told us on closing nights, “Leave it all on the stage.”

I think that was very much the attitude the cast and crew had at both closing performances.  We gave the final shows everything we had because it would be our last chance ever to do so.  The audiences clearly enjoyed our last few performances of both shows.  I was so proud of my work and the work of all the actors and other crew members.

However, closing shows and working a changeover or two wasn’t all this past week had in store for me.  CRT has something called a Young Audience Outreach Tour.  It is a small original show that tours parts of the country for young audiences.  The tour for this upcoming school year has started rehearsing, adding another stage manager to our team.

Unfortunately, the stage manager of the tour got a concussion this week and was unable to attend rehearsals.  Desperate for a replacement, I was asked by our production stage manager (and my supervisor) to cover rehearsals for the rest of my time in Creede.

This was an incredible honor for me.  I was trusted to be the only stage manager in the room.  I was trusted with the ability to run rehearsals and type up the rehearsal reports.   Though it added a little more stress to my final week, I had so much fun being involved with the tour even for just a little bit.

This was another reminder to me of how important it is for a stage manager to have good records of everything.  My first time reading the script for the show was during my first rehearsal as substitute stage manager.  This is not an ideal situation.  But Dylan (the stage manager) had enough information recorded that I could jump in the water without drowning.

I was given her script, which included blocking notes and any script changes that have been made.  I was given the tour laptop and Dylan’s flash drive with rehearsal reports and any other relevant files.  I definitely would not have been able to successfully jump in without having access to these records.  Stage managers need to know what they are doing – but almost more importantly, stage managers need to have the proper materials so that other people can also know what they are doing.

In addition to helping out with the touring show, I spent an afternoon helping out with rehearsal for the final show of CRT’s season: Private Lives.  I was called in to take line notes during a run through, which is one of my favorite tasks.  Taking line notes means writing down what lines the actors missed or paraphrased.  I like to challenge myself to write as quickly and as legibly as possible so that I can get every single note down.

It was great to be at a Private Lives rehearsal since I won’t be in Creede when the show opens next week.  I still got a glimpse at the process and the show.

My last day in Creede was a blur of working and cleaning and packing and goodbyes.  When I drove into the tiny town of Creede, Colorado in May, I didn’t know what to expect.  I was scared.  I was nervous.  I cried in the car before I even unpacked any of my things.

I didn’t know how much I would fall in love with Creede and with CRT.  I didn’t know how much I would learn and grow as an artist.  I didn’t know I would make great friends that I hope to work with again in the future.  I wasn’t confident that I would thrive there, but I proved to myself I could.

In 13 weeks, I opened and closed three shows.  I experienced being an assistant stage manager.  I worked so many changeovers.  I helped cook a huge company dinner.   I shadowed shows from the booth.  I laughed at Boomtown week after week.  I performed at a cabaret.  Every single day I was reminded of my love for theatre and that was the most beautiful part of it all.

Today I said goodbye to Creede Repertory Theatre, at least for the time being.  Time to move on to the next adventure: tackling my senior year.