It’s opening night. Theatre-goers wait outside the building, flowers in hand, eager to see their friends and family perform. When doors open, seats fill up in the blink of an eye.
The crowd whispers amongst themselves as the cast and crew run their lines one last time and do the final touches on their makeup. Nerves and excitement hang in the air.
“Right before I’m about to go on stage, I feel butterflies every time,” said Robert Bednar, a fourth-year musical theatre major at San Diego State University. “No matter how long I do this, I’m always a little nervous.”
Suddenly, an upbeat jazz melody grabs the attention of the crowd. Bright lights illuminate the stage. The room falls silent – it’s showtime.
“There’s this rush of adrenaline and excitement as everyone comes in for the opening number,” said Jansen Espares, a third-year musical theatre major. “Right before the ensemble comes in, everyone is locked in for that moment, knowing that we have a crowd to show that they are in for a good time.”
“Merrily We Roll Along,” a musical by Stephen Sondheim, took over SDSU’s Main Stage Theatre from Oct. 24 to 26, bringing a comedic and nostalgically introspective show to the stage.
The musical follows Frank Shepard, a wealthy Hollywood celebrity who isn’t happy with his life. He has abandoned his core values and pushed away the people who cared for him the most. His story begs the question: What was the moment it all went sideways?
Bednar, Espares and several others in the show spilled the behind-the-scenes details on everything the audience doesn’t see during a production.
“Many things go wrong during a show that the audience could never tell,” Bednar said.
From audio and visual issues to mix-ups with lines and props, there are many small mistakes that fly right over the audience’s heads, fortunately for the performers.
While theatre-goers cozy into their seats, the crew behind the curtains is doing anything but sitting still.
“The costume changes feel like a NASCAR pit stop,” Bednar said. “There are so many moving pieces that have to be executed perfectly or else you won’t make it on stage in time or your costume will be a mess.”
Backstage, actors are constantly preparing for their next scene.
“First, we get into our mics and our costumes, and the remaining time is for me to mentally and physically prepare to be on stage,” Espares said. “I’ll be reviewing lyrics and some blocking notes, just so that I don’t forget them.”
“Everything backstage is very calculated and everyone has to work together to make sure scene transitions seem as fluid as possible,” Espares continued.
SDSU’s show featured impressive vocals, stage setups, costumes and a collaboration with the SDSU jazz ensemble.
“I think most people don’t know just how much every single person involved does backstage,” said Dante Nathaniel, a fourth-year musical theatre major. “It isn’t just the actors doing the work; it really takes a village.”
Nathaniel said there are many components to making a show run smoothly. These include the stage crew helping with scene changes, the costume crew assisting with quick changes, lighting crew controlling the visual aspect and sound board operators, who mix the band and actors’ voices live. Additionally, the stage managers hide out of sight, calling cues and overseeing actors.
“I love a quick change,” Nathaniel said. “I find those to be so fun because it feels a lot like I’m figuring out the technical mechanics of a show.”
“I witnessed people change their entire outfits in seconds,” said Harper Nooney, a second-year musical theatre major. “Our costume people are unbelievably impressive.”
Even amidst the mental focus backstage, fourth-year musical theatre major Gabrielle Ocampo says performers still occasionally let loose.
“Before the big ensemble numbers, you’re there waiting to go on and people kind of just dance,” Ocampo said. “That’s a very theatre thing in any musical. If it’s a fun, groovy song and the ensemble is about to come on, but they’re all waiting backstage to go on, we’re all dancing back there in the wings.”
According to Nathaniel, most shows at SDSU rehearse four to five days a week from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. for one to two months, giving the cast the time to form a genuine bond.
Nooney said that even though rehearsals can be difficult to balance with academics, her passion for theatre gives her the motivation to persevere.
Jack Holden, a fourth-year jazz studies major, performed as a pianist with the on-stage jazz ensemble.
While actors go on and off stage, Holden’s role requires him to remain in the spotlight. He said that while on stage, he is careful not to slouch or yawn, but still focuses on having fun.
“One of my favorite behind-the-scenes things is the little jokes and bits the band and cast do for ourselves during the show,” Holden said.
“Rob, the conductor, will often pretend to drink from a glass placed next to him or will look at me weirdly when I play an intentionally dissonant chord,” he continued. “I’ll often look up and see the cast gesturing to each other across the stage from the wings before going on, or the band and I will mouth along with the cast when they’re mimicking another character.”
Even those in the show still love to watch and feel the theatre magic come to life.
“We have monitors off stage that show a full view of the stage, and it’s really fun to see this talented cast perform,” Espares said.
Many of the students said that they laugh and have fun with their cast mates whenever they can while running the show.
Even amidst the stress and nerves of being a performer, the students never forget to enjoy the moments they have together. For them, the theatre is their place to do what they love, form new friendships and leave their mark.
