Journey to Hometown, Part 21

As the curtain came down at the end of our first dress rehearsal last night there was jubilation.  Despite the exhaustion that everyone is feeling as we near the finish line, spirits soared and a fulfilling sense of accomplishment descended on the group as we realized that we made it through.

The person who is steering this gargantuan production, is stage manager Steph Link.  During the two hours of Hometown...The Musical! she has to verbally trigger over one thousand cues, putting myriad technical details into motion through a complex intercom system that connects her with all the technicians and volunteers that eagerly await their "Go".

She was out of breath and a little drained as she got on the stage shortly after 11 pm last night, but she was smiling.  It takes a special gift to not only stick handle an extraordinary level of technical detail, but to do it calmly, with grace and consistent professionalism.  Steph is a pro, and Hometown would not be where it is today without her.

Speaking of pros, costume designer Tiffany Bishop turned me into an old man last night.  She had me squinch up my forehead, mouth and various other facial features while she dabbed a little of this and painted a little bit of that.  By the time I looked in the mirror, I had aged 40 years, almost instantly resembling my grandfather in the latter stages of his life.  In the quarter-light of the wings, I looked absolutely frightful.
Tonight some additional prosthetics will get added to the mix making me look older than the hills.

It's time now for media call and our final dress rehearsal before we head into tomorrow night's preview performance.  Tickets for the opening weekend evening performances are in very short supply, so don't wait much longer to get yours.