tic

Set Build: The Spitfire Grill

Theatre in the Country is now presenting The Spitfire Grill, a simple (smaller cast), beautiful bluegrass style musical.

Here are a few build photos:

We had a bit of a slow start in the summer months, with just a few volunteers every Saturday. But we made steady progress. There was an upper deck with some deck stairs that needed to be placed just right.

(Set Design by Reg Parks; Directed by Kate Muchmore Woo, Paint by Lori Rippin.)

As we got closer to opening we had more helpers and more detail oriented work got done! It really started to come together. I really like the muslin tree screens (painted by Jenny Whims, who also painted the Grill sign).

Screengrab from tech week, with some funky lighting!

Here are some production photos. Do not alter or use without permission. They are taken by and copyright Rod Shearing:

The Producers set build

TIC kept me very busy during my weekends in May (plus a few other days during the week too) overseeing the build for The Producers, a Mel Brooks Musical. (Now playing at Theatre in the Country) Here are some photos of the build plus some production photos. It is a very funny and will done Broadway Musical. Just be aware of some of the audience advisories before you go in!

There were 2 or 3 other productions happening on the stage during the build which complicated things a bit. A highschool production of Clue was the major one, so we helped to get that one going kind of at the same time (and Reg the set designer had some clever ways of combining the two sets in many ways). Also the TIC Academy had 2 shows near the beginning, so I helped get their backdrops for The Little Mermaid and Grease ready, but otherwise I wasn’t needed.

I’ve only been working with TIC for a few months but I’m starting to get to know where things are, how things work, and who some of the regular volunteers are. Much thanks to Darren, Nicola, Simon, Robbie, John, and Zander for their expert help with the set! Many of the cast members helped too, especially Joyce with much of the painting… as our regular painter wasn’t available for this show. Jenny from Props also lent us a lot of support with painting.

(Director: Dann Wilhelm; Set Designer: Reg Parks; Lighting: Alex House; Costumes: Kevin Kreisz)

Here are a few official production photos: credit/copyright Shannon Pauls:

Set Build: The Verdict

The Verdict played at Theatre in the Country in April. It was a fairly simple set build, I think I was there maybe 5 days, as we were able to repurpose much of the set from Charley’s Aunt and spent more time on painting and set dec than new building. The main 3 scenes were a bar, a courtroom, and an office.

Build photos:

Some production photos (c) by Shannon Pauls:

Director: Simon Challenger; Set Designer: Reg Parks; Set Painter: Lori Rippin

It was a well-done show, great characters and acting.

Set Build: Charley’s Aunt

My first build for Theatre in the Country (TIC) is in the books! Charley’s Aunt is now playing in Langley: http://www.theatreinthecountry.com

It was a new experience for me – building on site instead of in a workshop – and with quite a large team of support, from carpenters to painters to set designers and set decorators – many of them volunteers. Combined with a simple set plan, it all came together relatively quickly.

It’s a funny play with some strong lead characters and delicious plot twists.