h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Just happened to come across your page and wanted to say "Good for you Cymbeline (Peter the Girl)"! I was an under the table construction worker (carpentry, masonry, electrical) before going to college and working with the theater folks there. Never had so much fun in my life. Really missed the work when I graduated and had to pay back my loans, but you are right; jabs are great things to b**ch about. I just moved to Nairobi, Kenya on a strange whim and thought I'd have to forget about theater entirely. WRONG! Being a former British colony, Nairobi has a few excellent companies, and I enjoy hanging out with these undiscovered but brilliant Shakespearian troupes. Anyway, I just wanted to say stick with the theater work, and if you want it enough it will all work out.


Frosty the Snowman
aka Chris the Boy

Always wonderful to hear from another techie.. Nice to meet you! I don't have too much technical knowledge yet, unfortunately.. I'm workin' on it though. I'm gonna be a stage manager if I can help it.. O' course I have to pass college first.. So I'm not taking any theatre classes next semester.

Whoa! You live in Africa? That's pretty cool.. Where did you live before? I'm California. As for theatre, there is a techie guild going to be starting up soon if you'd like to join.. The bare bones of the page are @ A765524 .. Started by soeasilyamused and I.



-pete

Love to join your guild! Don't worry about the knowledge level, you'll get it the same way as everbody else does--learn by doin'. Working on low-budget productions taught me all sorts of useful things; how to build a set out of dead kitchen appliances, the art of "midnight appropriations" for lumber, and how to glare at prima donna actors so they'll go away instead of asking for "just one more adjustment" to a prop. The glaring one can often be the most useful. If you ever want any suggestions (worth what you pay for them) on particular problems drop me a line, once upon a time I was considered a good '/ man'. It's a bit of an inside joke with small troupes. A '/ man' or '/woman' is one of the tireless and crazy people who wears many hats in order to get a production done. They're called '/ people' because of the way their name appears on the playbill, for example "Chris Reichman . . . Set Design/ Construction Manager/ Lighting Manager/ Sound Manager". So, you usually get called a slash, and sometimes as a joke they just put a slash after your name on the credits.

Anyway, this is getting windy so I'll wind up quickly. I lived just north of you in Portland, Oregon before moving to Kenya. Spent a couple of years before that working in Spokane and Boise. Before that, went to college in Santa Fe, NM (which is the place I most consider home. By the way, saying that living in Africa is "pretty cool" is a beautiful bit of irony--the only cool place here is in the snowfields on top of Kilimanjaro.


Frosty the Snowman

Slashes.. That's great! I've been somewhat of a slash, and I know it's only going to get worse.. But that's the beauty of it! I love theatre. A set out of kitchen appliances eh? We made 16 foot tall toothpicks that were turned into train trestles.. That was definitley fun.. Rockin'! Welcome to Black-Clad and Steel-Toed.

It's not all that nice and cool here at the moment either.. But I love the winter.. Oregon is a beautiful state.. You know what's funny? My dad lives in New Mexico.. In fact, he used to live in Santa Fe.. Now he lives in Pojoaque, I might be going there over Christmas break.. Weird.

Woo! Gotta love being at work.. (yet again)

-pete

Where did you get/make a 16 foot tall toothpick? Anyone who can go from that to a train trestle is definitely a Slash! Dad lives in Pojoaque, eh. I used to commute from my apartment in SF to Los Alamos everyday for an internship I was doing, and my favorite quickstop/liquor store was in Pojoaque (well, the part that was on the higway anyway). If you head down there for Christmas, I'll tell you all the good spots--maybe I know one your Dad doesn't and you can surprise him.

Looks like I may be going back to Oregon at Christmas. Mom is already bugging me about it. Oh, well, it's been a few years since I did the Christmas at home bit. Besides, by then I may want a change in climate for a few weeks. The strangest thing about East Africa is the weather. It NEVER changes. Partly cloudy, warm, and mild every single day. I mean, there are no real seasons here. It is fun, though, to try and explain a real winter to my friends here. They just can't imagine snow except on a mountain top.

I don't know of that many schools where you can study theatre, so I was wondering if you are studying theatre, or some different major? Just a curiousity question so tell me to bugger off if you like.

Oh, yeah, about the reply time, internet connectivity in the third world is often humourous at best.


Frosty the Snowman

1"x1" for the frame, about 6" on each side by 16' tall, tapering at the top, with luon (luan?) strips glued and stapled to three sides. Two for each trestle with two crossbars and some scrim between the crossbars to project shadows onto LOL Yah uh I worked on that bit of it quite a lot..

He used to live in Santa Fe, right next to the mall over there.. I don't think I'll be down there for Xmas but probably eventually.. (it will probably end up being a road trip after I get my license, the way my dad is.. )But thanks

Rockin! I think travelling is always fun Hey, it's nice to get a bit of cool weather once in a while. LOL that's pretty funny.. Snow only on mountains?

My major is theatre arts.. We actually have a pretty good programme at San Jose State.. It's workin' for me, anyhow.. I really like the people. Although it's a bit of a pain when the class you need isn't offered every semester.. ;p

*giggle* That's pretty yucky for you.. No worries, I'm patient



pete

Just saw King Lear performed by the Kings's Players here in Nairobi. They are a leftover from the old British Colonial Days, but the performance was quite good. They managed to find a 6'6" old man to play Lear who has that amazing Shakespearean voice that some people can manage. The technical side of the production was lacking at best, but you learn not to expect a whole lot in the developing world. The performance made up for what was lacking.

You've proably seen some productions like that. A good group of actors can often help make up for a limited set budget. Sometimes the actors are very annoying, but sometimes you come across a good group that can really make everything worthwhile.

One of the best things, though, was seeing a playbill for an edition of Othello they performed a few months back. The got an Indian guy to play Othello as all the regular troope are obviuosly black Africans. It seemed to set the Othello character off more than the usual black man in the midst of white people. I'm sorry I didn't get to see that show when it was playing. If the playbill was anything to go off of, it was probably superb.

After the show, I got introduced around to the cast, crew, and producer. It's not that I'm anyone special, but this happens at almost any place I go in Nairobi. There are not a lot of white people around, and the few who are are usually VIP's of some sort. So, if you show up at all it is something of an event and you get introduced around. If you go to a bar that tourists don't frequent, the owner will almost always come to greet you and get a picture taken with you. It sets an egalitarian American on edge at first, but you can't fight it so you learn accept it with a degree of grace.

Anyway, I got introduced around, and it came out that I had done some theater work back in college. The techies asked if I would help them with their next project. I agreed to help them with the planning of the set for their next show, MacBeth. So, I'm back in the theater game. Only as an advisor, though. I have too much work to do to spend a lot of time at it. Just thought it might bring you a giggle to know.

The Shakespeare voice.. Rockin'! I'd believe it -- the important part is the performance anyway, as long as they're lit and have somethign to stand on Not to minimize our profession in any way.. but then again we are working so that these other people's work can shine

Actors can be very, very annoying.. But the ones I'm working with at the moment are pretty cool peoples

Whoa.. That's crazy.. Sounds like it would be a good production though.. and probably much better than the way they mangled it in that silly movie "O".

Wow. That must be kinda strange.. being treated like a VIP just because of your skin colour.. I would *definitely* be weirded out -- I'm generally not an important person at all.. being the centre of attention is kinda creepy..

Woo! You're working the scottish play? That's so ! I had to memorise a scene from that in high school along with building a set for it.. was rather fun actually My english teacher had strange ideas.

We're 19 days to open and they've got about 1/2 of the play down. 1/3 completely off book. *faints* I hope we make it.. Luckily, I've quite got nothing to worry about, as I'm not the one onstage.. (I'm not a , really.. ) I just hope that they can get it down..


-Pete

Hey Pete,

As usual it takes me an age to reply. Been in out and travelling a ton. Had a hell of a trip to Isiolo in the North of Kenya. In many ways this is like visiting the old days of the wild west. The Northern desert is filled with refugees, bandits, cattle rustlers, Somali raiding gangs, and the enigmatic Turkana tribesmen. Hell of a fun place if you keep your head down and your wits about you.

As soon as I got back there was a clamor from the Phoenix Players for my help on the Scottish Tragedy. Trust me when I tell you that converting a late rennaisance play on morality to a thing understandable to semi-modern Kenyans is a hell of a trick.

The director is up to the challenge throughout. Lear is now a 'mzee' (tribal elder) of a fierce Nilotic tribe, and Macduff is the leader of a more sedentary inland tribe. The magic and witches scenes have taken more of an African feel by introducing some of the 'juju' practices. The big problem was the storm, but score one for the techies on this count. I suggested we turn it into a monsoon and this was accepted by acclimation.

Actually, I thought it a rather obvious idea, but everyone else thinks it ingenious. Oh, well, it's working nicely and we have even set up a beatiful rain machine using some PVC pipes that were "requisitioned" late one night. I'm trying to keep my direct involvement to a minimum because work is pressing, but it is hard to fight the old love.

So far everything is going quite well, and I'm surprised at the dilligence the actors put into learning their lines here. I'm used to actors being somewhat lazy about this. These people are on top of their game two or three weeks into a planned production. The rest of the time is spent on improving delivery and staging the scenes. They actually use the marks the tech crew laboriously puts out in glow tape!

I am finding that theater in Kenya is a weird mix of British and African traditions. They have the same stately quality that the Brits exude on stage, but mix it with liveliness and engage the audience to a great degree. It is almost as if the Africans do the same thing as the old Greek plays using the audience as the Chorus. All in all it is quite new and entertaining.


Frosty

PS - Our Lady MacB is wonderfully powerful and evil.
I'll try to send a picture when the show goes off.

Hey, Frosty!

Bandits and cattle rustlers, huh? That's crazy! Sounds like it would be a trip to visit though..

*giggle* I'm sure you were up to it though! Seems to be a interesting translation of the play, though.. I studied that play in high school so I think it would be really odd to see it done in a different setting.. but cool, too.

"Requisitioned," eh? *quirks eyebrow* How devilish! I suppose it goes with the spirit of the play, though.. Theatre has a lovely way of sucking you in, and you're enjoying yourself so much that life flows around you.. Films are even worse for that, I've learned..

Wow, diligent actors? *faints* That's something I've yet to see... Very interesting.

It sounds like it's going to be an awesome play, Sir Snowman.. I'd love to see any pictures you could get on the web..

Right now I'm actually working on my first stage management position on my own... It's called "Bye, Bye bin Laden" and it's a musical revue.. Oy. Touchy subject right now, but I just work here..

Basically, the premise is that bin Laden is the most recognizable face in America, so he decides to get a tv show to convert the Americans to the Afghani ways -- they parody everything from 60 minutes to "I love Lucy"... it's pretty tacky, but it acutally might be funny when staged -- lots of glitter, flashing lights, and a red, white and blue stage with a tv for a backdrop. We'll see how it goes.



Pete