A Non-Comprehensive List of Things That Went Wrong Opening Weekend, In No Particular Order
All’s well that ends well.
The Canon just finished our run of Doctor Faustus. Here are just a few of the things that went… well, not exactly according to plan on opening weekend:
The fog machine, which we had not previously had any issues with, set off the smoke alarm during previews, causing us to pause the show and make the lead actor get up on a ladder and turn it off.
Two actors got locked outside their entrance, causing the director to panic and open the squeakiest door in the world mid-scene to let them in. We greased the hinges the next day.
The fog machine was super hot so the director turned it off before the show. She then forgot to turn it back on. She stuck a note out the mail flap to ask the actors to, but it was too late for it to pre-heat, so the demon entered with just lights and no smoke. Turns out, fog machines are supposed to get that hot.
The stage manager started choking mid-scene, staying to run the light change before needing to duck out to have a coughing fit outside. The director, left alone in the booth, panicked, having no idea how to work the manual light board. The stage manager snuck back in just in time. The audience did not notice.
An actor thought it was intermission and started taking off his costume. It was not intermission. He was needed onstage.
The director referred to the main character as “Faust” for months. His name is Faustus. Faust is the Goethe version. Actors now can’t stop saying “Faust” onstage. It’s probably (definitely) her fault.
A step got placed wrong opening night. Several actors fell off the stage. That’s our bad.
The gaff tape got lost for several days. The tapestry covering the neon green bathroom signage fell down mid-show because we were using masking tape instead. The tape was in the booth.
The sound designer (the director) was finishing everything last minute (of course) before final dress. She accidentally changed the computer settings so that she couldn’t click and drag from the desktop anymore, making working with QLab a nightmare. She struggled for an hour and called two friends. The lead actor solved it in two minutes.
It hit a high of 90° during our matinee. Our actors are in layers and their changing area is outside. Luckily, no one died.
A man wandered into the outside changing area. Past the signs that said “Keep Out.” While the actors were changing.
A playing card prop ended up in a bucket backstage. A bucket that is full of water. You can guess how that ended.
Honorable mention that did not happen opening week but sure did happen:
While practicing with the blood packets, we discovered that they can squirt quite far. Fake blood on the walls, the carpets, and down the director’s entire outfit. (It washed out. Mostly.)
The evidence.