Director’s Secret Diary: “ACB” Production Week
With opening night just around the corner we thought it would only be fair to release a sneak peek at all the hard work the cast and Crew of “The ACB with Honora Lee” were putting in.
BEHIND THE SCENES!
Saturday 20th
Two crucial pieces of AV screen missing. Where are they? Have they been ordered? Have they been cut? Hasty conference with Producer, Stephen Blackburn and Stage Manager/Operator, Deb McGuire. Many phone calls….
Sunday 21st
Confirmed ETA of missing screen pieces with laser cutter. Crew member misses flight from Auckland. Attempt at AV plotting abandoned. But wait a minute – John Hodgkins and the Blackburn Boys have come to the rescue – it’s a family thing – hole plugging, set painting and lycra stretching – (not that kind of lycra stretching!)
Monday 22nd
Laser cutting for screen and coffee tables arrive as promised.
We plot the lights – Phil Blackburn’s simple, ingenious design. And Jason, our AV designer gets cracking with the animation. (Secretly I’m hating the black floor!)
Tuesday 23rd
Hey – it’s really starting to look like a set and Phil’s lighting looks terrific. But the floor’s still bugging me. I tell Stephen, he agrees that we should try and find some carpet that doesn’t cost anything. (‘Hardy ha,’ as Gran says in the play.)
I zip round to check on Lance’s progress and pick up a piece of the upholstery fabric, so we can get a feel for what could match for a floor covering. Miracolo! He’s already got the couch half done and he says we’ll have it by Thursday. I tell him I’d hug him if I knew him better.
Wednesday 24th
Prior to our first full cue to cue Tech – actors, lighting, sound, costume changes and props, I do a quick bit of research to find carpet. We may have something, but it’d better be good, because it’s pricey (i.e. too expensive for our lean mean budget). Stephen and I race off to check it out before we start our Tech – fortunately, the colour’s wrong, so we don’t have to spend money we haven’t got. Peter Hambleton’s volunteered to give us a hand if we need it – we phone him and he’s on the job Pronto!
We get the tech underway – the first time with sound, designed by my partner, John McKay. Technology’s a wonderful thing when it works – and eventually, it starts to sing, with all the elements coming together – Sheila Horton’s understated, beautifully coordinated costumes, the lighting and sound components subtly integrating with the AV, the calm control of Deb McGuire, serene and highly organised – and last but not least, a terrific cast who have come along on this ride into uncharted territory – a world premiere with no template, no reviews from previous productions. We’ve made it from scratch. This is as fresh as it gets.
Don’t watch this space – come and see the show – the magic is happening.(Fingers crossed!)
P.S. Peter Hambleton got us a great deal on a ‘carpet.’
The Vivian Hirschfeld season of “The ACB with Honora Lee” opens Saturday 27 Feb, Preview Friday 26 Feb.