Up until the curtain rises on opening night, stage crew works behind the scenes of the annual musical, tightening the last loose screws and ensuring that set transitions are seamless. This year, stage crew’s efforts will culminate from Nov. 16-19, when Aragon Drama will perform “Grease the Musical” as the first production of their 2023-24 season.
As the stage manager, junior Dani Drobot has many responsibilities such as calling cues and telling the backstage crew when to change sets. Supporting Drobot are assistant stage managers senior Kevin Vigil and junior Sarah Klein, who direct the crew.
“It’s challenging to make sure you have everything under control,” Drobot said. “There’s a lot of moving parts and if one thing goes wrong, it can mess everything else up.
Stage crew starts the production process by building sets, planning transitions and creating props and costumes. During tech week, the week-and-a-half before opening night, stage crew runs through the whole show with the cast.
“Whatever act we’re doing, or if we’re doing the whole show, I [set all the props up] with my assistants,” said junior and props master Chloe Levadoux. “It’s a lot of trying to make sure that objects are in the right place at the right time … In the months [leading] up to the show, I figure out what props we need to purchase, where they need to go and who uses them.”
During the shows, stage crew is responsible for fixing any issues that arise. Vigil recalls a time when stage crew had to fix an onstage accident.
“During the first show of ‘Mamma Mia,’ we were moving a piece and as we moved it, it broke in the middle,” Vigil said. “One of the actors had a wedding veil and it dropped so we had to get it and cover that up in the middle of the show, which was stressful, but it ended up working.”
Along with the cast and crew, the Aragon Drama Boosters, a group of volunteer parents, play a vital role in the production of the show.
“[We] hone in on the skills and capabilities of the parent volunteers,” said Drama Boosters President Amy King. “We look at their interest level and willingness to help, and then [we] identify leaders within the parent organization who can take ownership of various committee roles.”
Drama Boosters are also responsible for helping artistic director Shane Smuin and the drama students to match their ideas.
“The hairstyles in ‘Grease’ are period hairstyles, and we know that 35 cast members need professional hairdos,” King said. “[Smuin] emailed us a video of what their hair would look like, so we’re reaching out to [the College of San Mateo’s] cosmetology school [and] local salons who can help us.”
Stage crew caters to students who love theater but want to participate in ways other than acting. Senior and assistant props master Hailey La Monte believes that being on stage crew is the perfect way to do so.
“I’ve never wanted to perform but I love theater, and I love [being] behind the scenes,” La Monte said. “I wasn’t really considering stage crew until the end of sophomore year. My friend is in [the technical] theater [class] and he invited me to hang out. I got to see the workshop and what the backstage looked like, and it seemed really special.”
Although stage crew requires a lot of hard work, students still feel rewarded by the experience. Levadoux highlights the community as her favorite part of being in stage crew.
“I’ve met some of my best friends in theater,” Levadoux said. “[It is] a very welcoming community full of creative and bright people. Every show and rehearsal is a little different. The most interesting part is seeing all the different ways a show can look based on how the people on and off stage feel. If everybody’s having a bad day, the show might be more emotionally driven, whereas if everybody’s happy, it might just be really happy.”
After months of work, stage crew is putting the final touches on “Grease the Musical” as they gear up to debut the show. Through the props, sets and transitions, Aragon students and families will be able to see the result of stage crew’s work.
