The week before Trouble in Tumbleweed, this year’s spring play at Potosi High School, isn’t just rehearsal anymore. It is tech week, and everything hits at once. Lights, sound, costumes; it all gets added in, and it is suddenly supposed to feel like the actual show. It doesn’t always, though. Sometimes it feels put together, and other times it really doesn’t.
Weston Gillilan, who plays Prospector Luthor, said this is easily the most serious week leading up to the play. Before this, you could kind of get away with still working on things, but now it’s different. You actually have to know your lines, no guessing. He said it definitely raises his stress levels, especially since he has a main role. If something goes wrong, it’s more noticeable.
The biggest thing he’s worried about is forgetting his lines, which he kept coming back to.
But then again, not every part of the week feels that intense. There are random moments where it kind of slows down, like when families bring in food. Gillilan said ”That’s my favorite part.” which seems a little off-topic, but also makes sense. Everyone just stops for a bit, eats, talks, and it feels less like everything is rushing.
Myles Helminiak is dealing with a totally different side of tech week. He’s in charge of microphones and sound effects, so instead of worrying about lines, he’s focused on making sure everything actually works and is timed correctly. He’s assigning microphones, checking cues, fixing when they mess up—which happens more this week than usual.
Helminiak said his favorite part is the last practice before the first show, because that is when the show finally runs the way they are supposed to. Helminiak said “It’s more stopping and starting, fixing bits, trying again, but by the end, it feels steadier.” He said “on his end, everything is ready by then.”
Pierce Whitaker, who plays Mayor Obadiah Oates, said tech week is basically like doing the show for real, just without an audience watching. Costumes and lights are all part of it now, which actually changes more than you would think. He said “wearing the costume is his favorite part, just because it makes everything feel more real.”
He is also a little nervous, mostly about his lines, but not in a huge way it is more like it is just there in the back of his mind. He still seems pretty confident that Trouble in Tumbleweed is going to turn out well.
Tech week doesn’t really feel the same all the way through. One minute it feels like everything is coming together, and the next it feels kind of messy again. Everyone is focused on different things, so it is not like one clear process. Somehow, it all builds up to opening night, even if during the week it doesn’t completely feel like it will.