Edinburgh Fringe Festival Post #3

These things have something in common: Korean food is extremely spicy, luggage insurance is a good idea, and the Fringe Festival is no cakewalk. Give up? I’ve learned all of these things in...drumroll please...Hello from Scotland! I arrived on the 1st of August actually, but I’ve been so busy that this is the first time that I’ve been able to sit down and write. Even now it is 1AM Scotland time! So, my plan is to split up my experiences from my first few days into a multi-part blog that I will end with a cliffhanger, because I can.

Indeed we have all been very busy, all 7 of us. I joined an already-existing team of South Korean theatre students and teachers, along with Kent State’s own lighting design professor, Jakyung Seo and we have all been living in a flat in Edinburgh about a mile from the theatre that we rehearse and perform in. The day after I arrived - without my bags containing all of my tools and supplies, I might add - we went to the venue, called C Soco, to complete our tech rehearsal. A tech rehearsal, traditionally, is a rehearsal during which we add things like lights, sound, and projections to an already rehearsed show. Usually, theaters will take at least three days to complete this process. We were given four hours...yeah.

Some of the many responsibilities of a stage manager include organizing and conducting these rehearsals as efficiently as possible, and “calling” the show. Calling refers to the responsibility of the stage manager to instruct the various operators of the show - lights, sound, projections, scenery, lasers, pyrotechnics, pneumatic squirrel cannons, etc. - on what to do and when to do it during the show, usually via a headset system. I do not have the benefit of a headset system as our technical booth is open to the audience, and they would hear me talking. Not that it matters, because I do not speak Korean! Instead, I developed a hand signal system. Which totally worked...for the most part...

Also, I told you that I would set up a special email address that you can use to send me feedback, suggestions, or just to comment on a post. You can reach me at steveatthefringe@gmail.com. Until next time, so long from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival!