Sitting as audience members in “David: A New Musical”, we see the final product of a musical. We see the actors with their lines memorized and perfect delivery, we see the intricate props and the lights all together in a polished package. For each minute of the musical, we enjoy as the audience, there are days and weeks of preparation for the backstage hands we never see. Whether it be the sound design, a lighting design or the makeup on the actors, it is all pieces of the puzzle that come together.
Sound Design
For Bryant, majoring in psychology at Olivet Nazarene University, this was the first time she had ever ran the sound system, yet the crew was helpful to get her prepared for “David.”
Before “David,” Bryant had done theater since grade school. Bryant had always done the acting side of theater production but had a special interest in technical work. When the opportunity to run the sound system came up, she jumped on the opportunity to work behind the scenes.
“We added mics, I got to not only run the tracks, but also making sure everyone sounded good and making sure they were turned on when they needed to be,” she said.
While this was the first time running the technical side, Bryant is proud of herself for doing the show.
“I was surprised how quickly I was able to learn and do it. Yes, there were mistakes, and it was never perfect, but I was the one totally running it,” said Bryant.
The technical side of theater often gets overlooked. Yet it is these unseen hands working on the project that work to ensure the production has all its moving parts.
Renowned sound designer, Kai Harada, explained to Theater Trip, “The thing I enjoy most is overcoming the physical and acoustical challenges of a space, ensuring that every audience member gets the best experience possible.”
An effective musical is only as good as the music that is in the production. The music can only be impactful if it can be heard.
“I never realized how stressful running sound can be and I have more respect for people who do this,” said Bryant.
Lighting Design
The theater calling, lights, camera, action, leans first into the part lights play in a musical. The process of lighting is in part to ensure the actors are properly lit, but also the strong emotions they can convey.
Working on the lighting design for a musical involves the flow of creativity and the working hands of science. The Olivet Nazarene University (ONU) black box theater is a “space with state-of-the-art lights and sounds to allow students to hone their skills in acting while gaining an understanding in tech, students will be able to learn lighting design their first semester.”
For Ella Carder, a sophomore majoring in Theater Production and Performance and a minor in computer science, the opportunity to create the lighting set was the perfect combination of everything she loved.
“Lighting is my passion, and I am excited to continue it and I absolutely love it,” said Carder.
Carder explains the complex but rewarding process of designing a lighting set for “David”. First, she likes to get the feel of the actors by watching the play first with no lighting added to it. From there, Carder works to bring the characters alive through the lighting.
The backstage crew works together with the actors to convey the emotion an audience member feels. When watching reactions of the audiences during “David”, Carder said she loved making a difference.
“Lighting can be super basic, but I want to transport the audience, lighting can represent the characters, affect the emotions of the audience to make them feel angry, happy or sad and it’s a really fun process,” said Carder.
According to psychologist Dr. Steffanie Stecker, color plays an influential role in our lives,
“Warm colors evoke feelings of anger and hostility while blue colors evoke feelings of calm or sadness,” said Stecker.
Click one each light below to learn more about color theory and how it was used in “David”.
Makeup
Abby Siri, with her makeup brush at the ready, delicately, effectively primed the actors with glitter as they were rearing to run onto the stage.
Siri, a sophomore majoring in Theater Performance and Production, explained she “didn’t have experience working with hair and makeup, but it was a new experience,” for her.
Siri originally auditioned for an acting role in “David” but expressed she “was willing to do sign up for any of the crew jobs, whatever was needed,” just to be involved with the production.
The process for achieving a look for each actor involved creating the practical as well as the art behind it. Siri explained her process involved working closely with the director Cami Yanez.
“Cami sent me a Pinterest board of inspiration a couple of months before the show, and I just practiced the look and took pictures,” said Siri.
A musical cannot exist without the hands of many. It involves the backstage prepping and doing the unseen work. After working backstage for “David”, Siri was able to gain a new level of respect for the backstage crew.
