I Acquire(d) The Fire!

Well, it certainly didn't take long! Last night I worked my first LJVM union call - breaking down the Acquire the Fire concert.

Once again, I was initially intimated. There were so many people there! Everyone seemed to know everyone else, but I made it a point to introduce myself. Two people had worked the Opera with me, so there were some familiar faces. I was a bit nervous when Ricky put me on the "electrical crew". I don't know much about electrical concert stuff, but I was assured the work was mostly rolling up electrical cable. I wouldn't have ever guessed that rolling up cable would be tough. The cable is extremely long and, after winding it into a circle, gets quite heavy. Ah, muscles!

After that I helped take down the lights. The concert lights are very expensive and extremely heavy. It takes two people to lift them off the pole and carry to the storage boxes. The storage boxes were then moved to the end of the stage where Ricky was waiting with a forklift. Spencer and I rolled the storage boxes into place and Ricky took them away. There was more cable to unhook and roll, and more heavy stuff to store.

It took us 4 hours to break down the concert and load into the trucks. It was definitely work, but not back breaking work. It was more like muscle developing work. I impressed many of the "gorillas" with my willingness to take whatever job they gave me without complaining. And believe it or not, I actually had a good time. And I've got the ATF concert shirt to prove it!

A New Career For Me?

I'm excited to tell you that I started a new "job". Yesterday I worked as a professional stagehand, for the IATSE Union, Local 635. The call was at the Stevens Center for The Piedmont Opera, loading in for Die Fledermaus.

Initially I was a bit intimidated. I didn't have a crescent wrench (who would have thought?) and within the first 15 minutes, it was obvious I needed one. As one of only two women on the job, and the only newbie, I was concerned about asking one of the guys for a tool. I didn't want anyone picking on me or thinking of me as an inexperienced girly girl. (After all, I did purchase good gloves to protect my manicured nails.) To my delight, one of the guys saw my distress and offered his wrench. I can now guarantee the railing on the back staircase is secure.

As time wore on, I became a little more comfortable. In working with community theatres, I am accustomed to loading in and striking sets. So I was able to look like I knew what I was doing as I moved flats and doors and unloaded set pieces. Even though I was "green" I apparently impressed the steward. He called me back for the second call of the day, and gave me a special assignment - coordinate the unloading of the props.

Even though stagehands refer to themselves as gorillas, they do look out for each other. No one is left alone to move a flat that is too heavy or difficult to control. It's all about teamwork, and the gorillas accepted me after they realized I wasn't afraid of manual labor. It wasn't back-breaking work, so I'm not sore today. I did injury myself yesterday. I bruised my thumb beating up Doris' headstone - at rehearsal.

Because I am not (yet) a card carrying Local member, the work won't be regular, and that's okay with me. While yesterday's work was actually kinda fun, I've heard that working at the LJVM is akin to being a roadie!