I breathe a heavy sigh when I hear the bell ring. For many other students, this long-awaited chime signals the end of a long school day. For me, and others like me, it is simply the beginning of our after-school routine.
Today is the first production meeting for the spring main stage show. While my homework waits at home, I will be at school until 5 p.m. This requires careful and intricate time management. I must somehow plan my day so that between attending a workshop provided by theater students from Virginia Tech and fulfilling my duty as assistant technical director for "Once Upon A Mattress," I will be able to read the last three chapters of "A Tale of Two Cities" for English class.
Being a technical student can be demanding. However, today my only assignment is to be present at the afternoon production meeting. I consider myself lucky, as I am fully aware that some techs have already been required to begin their work on the upcoming show. I arrive at the Black Box at 3:45, because “in the theater, early is on time.” This is my first time working on the production team of a show, and I am not sure what to expect. Nervously tapping my feet, I stare at the clock, as if concentrating will make 4 arrive sooner. When everyone has entered and located a chair, box, or spot on the floor, the meeting officially begins.
The first order of business is auditions. As a tech, I am not very involved or influential in this process, but I listen intently. I begin tapping my feet again, anxious to discuss something that more directly concerns me. Next, the schedule for the week is planned. I am happy to find out that I am only needed on Friday of this week. While I love working tech and would like to dedicate as much time as possible to my passion, I realize that I need to sleep a great deal in the next few weeks before more hours of my time are wanted.
Last, the director converses with the production team about the tech aspect of the play. In class tomorrow, we will talk about set designs. Overseeing the construction of the set is a major component of the job of the technical director, and of my job as assistant. I prepare myself for weeks of long hours after school while the set is being completed. When the meeting adjourns an hour after it started, it is apparent in my mind, and on the faces of those others who dedicate their time to the theater, that the end of this meeting, like the bell, signals not the end of something small, but the beginning of something very large and important.