Dave Wood, Stage Governor at the Players Guild of Dearborn, likes to say, “There’s always something to do at the Guild.” It seems that’s true as our seasons wend away. There is either a set in place on stage that needs to be checked before each performance, or a set for the next show in construction. Frequently, both things are happening at the same time.
Dave, a retired Dearborn Fire Marshall, is also fond of saying, “We build things up and tear them down.” It’s to these ends that the Stage Committee meets almost every Thursday for Stage Night. A fairly consistent group of members appear for Stage Night to check on the condition of a set that’s playing, or to tear down the set of a show that’s over, or to build the set for the show that’s in rehearsal.
The set for A Little Night Music is proving to be a challenge. Jennifer Maiseloff, the Scenic Designer for the show, has designed the flats, drops, and set pieces for the Eggerman Rooms, the stage of a local theatre, Desiree’s Digs, the Breakfast Room in Count Malcom’s Country House, the Armfeldt Terrace, the Armfeldt Lawn, the Armfeldt, the Armfeldt Dining Room, the Armfeldt Garden, Desiree’s Bedroom, and several other parts of the Armfeldt Garden.
Some of the set pieces under construction are trees, bedroom furniture, living room furniture, the stage of a local theatre, and two turn-of-the-century touring cars. The accompanying photo shows Master Carpenter, Gordon Mosley adding a fender to one of the cars.
Dave and the Technical Directors, James Mayne and David Reynolds II, will supervise the members of the Stage Committee and the Stage Crew as they build the items necessary to stage the show. They will also need to choreograph the movement and storage of these pieces so they can be moved on and off-stage in a seamless manner.
Much of the work on the show will be done on a Build Blitz. More about that in the next Night Music blog.