The 5 Stages Of Tech Week | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Entertainment

The 5 Stages Of Tech Week

Tech week may be hell, but it's one hell of an experience!

227
The 5 Stages Of Tech Week
Unsplash

Tech Week, also known as "Hell Week" by all those who participate in them, is the final week of rehearsal before a show. This is a time of mixed emotions when cast and crew members go through multiple phases of panic, excitement, and dread over what opening night will bring. There's nothing more exhilarating and yet terrifying than those last few runs of each act, so to shed light on what it's like being a part of this crazy experience, here are the five main stages of tech week!

1. Preparation. We're talking apocalypse-like preparation.

You've gotta be ready for everything! Will you really need three days supply of food for rehearsal? Duh, of course! Is it actually necessary to bring a blanket and a pillow? Hey, you never know! Preparing for tech week rehearsals is liking packing for a two-day vacation, you use a quarter of the stuff you actually pack. Nevertheless, it gets packed anyway.

2. Costume, Set, Lighting, Sound, Prop, Crew, and Stage MakeUp Overload!

As soon as you show up to that first rehearsal it's like a confetti cannon full of pure theater exploded. You try on your costume for the first time, debate over whether you actually like it, check yourself out a few times, and then get heartbroken when you realize you can't keep it after the show. You get attacked by your makeup bag, shown a full array of props, and sit through multiple sound and lighting checks, all while sweating away in your full costume. This is unbelievably overwhelming, and even more so when you realize this will be your life until the curtain goes does on the final show.

3. Panicking Over Lines You Know Your Director Knows You Know. I Know... What?

Talk about STRESS! Whether you have two lines or 200, staying on top of cues, characterization and memorization all while being overwhelmed by the excitement of tech week is a lot! It gets worse when you break character during the last rehearsal over a line you've never dropped before. You're certain you know your own lines, you definitely know your cue lines, you probably know your friends lines, and maybe even lines for scenes you're not in... but just how certain are you... don't worry, your brain will stop working in the middle of a scene just to test you!

4. "I've Been Up For 27 Hours" Zombie Off Stage, Full Of Life While On.

By day 3 it really hits you. You wear a blanket cape to class, you don't brush your hair, you sleep on the floor backstage in between scenes and homework sessions. While you're backstage, you might as well be the walking dead. But the second you step on, you're like Willy Wonka when he does that awesome somersault thing! I call it "The Stage Switch." No matter how tired, grumpy, or scared you are behind the scenes, you walk out from that curtain and you're someone completely new. It's magic, pure theater magic.

5. Pre-Show Rituals. And Fear, and Excitement, and Basically Every Other Emotion.

For me, it's blasting "Hey Ya" by Outkast all day, every day while eating Lifesaver mints and cauliflower. But others have more normal ways to seek luck before the show! Whether you've heard people say "Break a Leg!" instead of good luck on opening night, avoid saying Macbeth in the theater, or refrain from whistling backstage, the superstition in real when it comes to theater.

With all of this going on, it's hard to treasure all of the melancholy moments that tech week brings. Yes, it's hectic and stressful, but it's also the last chance you have to really connect with the cast and crew before the big show. With that being said, and with a tech week upon me this very week, I better get back to memorizing lines!

Break a leg!

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Christmas tree
Librarian Lavender

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Christmas is one of my personal favorite holidays because of the Christmas traditions my family upholds generation after generation. After talking to a few of my friends at college, I realized that a lot of them don't really have "Christmas traditions" in their family, and I want to help change that. Here's a list of Christmas traditions that my family does, and anyone can incorporate into their family as well!

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 5 Phases Of Finals

May the odds be ever in your favor.

1327
Does anybody know how to study
Gurl.com

It’s here; that time of year when college students turn into preschoolers again. We cry for our mothers, eat everything in sight, and whine when we don’t get our way. It’s finals, the dreaded time of the semester when we all realize we should have been paying attention in class instead of literally doing anything else but that. Everyone has to take them, and yes, unfortunately, they are inevitable. But just because they are here and inevitable does not mean they’re peaches and cream and full of rainbows. Surviving them is a must, and the following five phases are a reality for all majors from business to art, nursing to history.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

How To Prepare For The Library: Finals Edition

10 ways to prepare for finals week—beginning with getting to the library.

2742
How To Prepare For The Library: Finals Edition
Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

It’s that time of year again when college students live at the library all week, cramming for tests that they should have started studying for last month. Preparing to spend all day at the library takes much consideration and planning. Use these tips to help get you through the week while spending an excessive amount of time in a building that no one wants to be in.

Keep Reading...Show less
girl roommates
StableDiffusion

Where do we begin when we start talking about our roommates? You practically spend every moment with them, they become your second family and they deal with you at your best and at your absolute worst. They are there to make you laugh just a little harder, cry a little less and make each day a little better. We often forget to thank them for the little things that they do to make college even a tiny bit easier and more fun. This list of 26 things are what you should thank your roommates for right this minute and every day that you live with them.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

20 Thoughts While Studying For Finals

I may or may not be stressing right now.

2800
Thoughts While Studying For Finals
StableDiffusion


That time of the semester has arrived once again, finals. The worst week ever. Who thought it was a good idea for all your classes to have exams all in the same week? Definitely not me. Here's 20 thoughts you may have studying for finals.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments