Baragining chips

I want to thank all of my loyal readers for their support poured out of yesterday's news. I'm sorry it I raised many hopes that I would be returning. The job offer, while very real, has taken on more of a symbolic meaning than a literal choice. I am unlikely to take BTF up on their offer.

Financially it's six of one, half dozen of the other. I'd make more in MA, but over a shorter period of time, with longer hours and a much higher stress level. They would give me housing, but I'd still be paying rent here. And I have health insurance here; only worker's comp there. And no car. In the middle of the Berkshires. That is forgivable if I only needed a car for personal use...rides are easy enough to find. But if I were to take on the shop manager position I would need a car for work at my disposal. The nearest shopping in a good 30 minutes away. And you can't always depend on the designers to get it all done themselves.

The main reason I am hesitant to take the offer is the stress level. I would literal leave Honolulu on the 30th, with most of one day to recover only to start work the morning of the 1st. And jumping into a shop that's already been running without a supervisor for a few weeks.

But the bigger stress is that of my age. I would be respected by the staff and designers without a doubt. I already know most of them. It is the actors, particularly the straight, middle-age men that are the problem. For some reason they think a shop full of young women should kiss the ground they walk on. That their acting prowess somehow sways us to swooning. Our shop manager last year had her hands full with a few of them herself and she was an experienced battle ax. I cringed at times under their lewd comments and glances just in the few fittings I was required at as a draper. And I am by no means a modest person. If Cindy could not get respect from them as a theatre professional in her 50's they sure as hell aren't going to respect some 20 something spitfire. I've no patience for that.

My return wouldn't be to network, as these are already solid contacts I have made. But it is an honor just to be asked. To say one managed the shop at one of the U.S.'s premiere summer theatre festivals opens the door to a lot of other well paying possibilities. People recognize that theatre's name.

But no, I won't be adding that title to my resume. However, just by offering the position, the production manager there gave me a huge baragining chip. Other better known theatres are inquiring about me...and this theatre better damn well know about it so they fight all the harder to keep me. I will not let them take me, my degree, or my talents for granted.

I forwarded the email I received outlining the offer to my immediate boss, as well as the artistic director and managing director. Tomorrow, on paper I will have a new letter of commitment covering June 1, 2008 through May 31, 2009. And in that letter is the new pay scale. It ain't much more, but it's a start.

Mixed Bag of Good News

Another long 12 hour day, but honestly one of the most satisfying of the summer. No one likes to work a 12 hour day. Especially on your feet, in a barn, on the first beautiful and tolerable days this week. The bubble of heat and humidity finally burst and all in the shop would have much rather been outside. But the show must go on.

First on the docket was a fitting for one of the leading ladies. The character of Vivi. All but a petticoat and skirt were being built for her...essentially all of the items I previously posted. This fitting was the first fabric fitting...we had an initial fitting of all of the clothes we were making using a cheap fabric first, while major changes can still be made. I left the fitting an hour later with only three notes: shorten the corset an inch, add an inch and a half to the waist band of her second skirt and take in the center back of her jacket a smidge (yes, just like cooking, we have our own jargon for small increments of measure. And any draper worth their salt knows what a smidge is..). The rest...marking hems and finishing the linings. Finishing is no small feat. It ususally involves patterning a lining, facings, cuffs and such. In the case of the jacket and a the vest to line it, you are essentially building it all over again in a lighter, slippery fabric. Time consuming. But we don't have pages of adjustments to do first. A fitting like this, with that much clothes built so quickly, with so few notes, is immensely satisfying. Reassuring. It means I did my job right the first time around. Both the designer and the actor were immensely pleased.

The remaining 11 hours of work digressed into a bouncy caffeinated mess by 8pm. I don't think much was accomplished in that last hour, but I love seeing spirits that high thorough the day. Overall this shop has been excellent...supportive, talented, friendly, and young. I'll miss a lot of them when we part ways.

And part ways I will. My plane ticket was booked...departing Chicago on the 29th with a short layover in Phoenix. I have an apartment with roommate secured in addition to a pleasant surprise from my future boss. A small set back at the company worked out in my favor. I'm not sure if I'd call it a raise or a promotion. But it does involve designing the Kabuki show...starting with preliminaries in the next two weeks. I am hitting the ground running, but my boss assured me, because of the snag, the hardest part of the season will be up front. I may kick myself at some point during the process. It is a lot to digest in a short time: new work, new home, new hierarchies and processes at the theatre, a design, setting up shop the way I want with no predecessor to really guide me...at the moment I feel I'm up for the challenge.

Today's been quite a rush.

Another small sampling

The post below is a small sample of the work my girls have managed to accomplish in three days. Three blouses, two skirts, a vest and a jacket. Granted these are all in the fitting stage...meaning we still have hems, closures, linings and the other assorted finishing work that tends to take longer than building initial construction in the first place. Not pictured are the five men's vests, two cravats, corset and men's suit alterations. Not to mention the two dresses for Mrs Warren herself that the other draper is in charge of. Despite all of the set backs: an overwhelming previous tech, a indecisive designer, a sick stitcher, a maxed out company credit card, the weather in NY delaying our designer's travel back up...we have progressed incredibly far. I am very very proud of my girls. This may be the best looking show of the season. Pity it feels as though we are pulling it out of our asses.

It's been a hard days night

Recovery

At last a day off. After dinner I will more likely than not crash for at least 12 hours. Laundry, beach, perhaps a bit of shopping in the afternoon. Sad thing is...we have a little over a week and a day before Mrs. Warren goes into tech. And the designer still does not know what she wants. No rest for the wicked.

But despite the workload, I managed to finish Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and spend a few nights out and about. Of course, last night was a blast, even if I didn't stay that terribly long. I'm quite fond of this photo:

Bad Days and Burlesque

Ah yes...the post that I've meant to post since Monday, but haven't managed to between long evenings at work and enjoyment of the nights I did have off. This past week has been hell. This and last were the most difficult weeks by far as work load is concerned. Last week it was tech for the Two Headed on top of first fittings for Mrs Warren and finishing Mornings at Seven. While we were fairly on top of things, one more late evening may have put us in a better spot for this last week. But with as tired as the shop was, the few hours off were well worth it.

This Monday was first dress for Mornings at Seven. The show designed by my professor. The following morning I discovered that one dress, the pink frothy concoction posted on an earlier blog, was cut completely from the show. Not that it was poorly made. Honestly, the only note we would have had was to fix the hem. It was cut because it did not really suit the character. Too soft, too pretty. And it contrasted too much with the rest of the costumes in that act. It is unfortunate...afterall the director approved the sketch and one assumes the designer and director would have talked in depth about it before hand. But alas, things always change during the rehearsal process and what looks good on paper often translate wrong on the stage, no matter how close to the original sketch the costume looks. Three weeks of work and probably close to $300 cut from the show like that. But it happens. And it was the right choice. The shop came through beautifully to create a new costume in less than 24 hours...building a new skirt and trimming a blouse from stock.

The worse news was the series of notes about Esther's dress. This dress has been the bane of my existence for the last three weeks. It is a fairly simple dress, but has had the most go wrong with it. The original fitting back in July had gone well...but a lot of fullness in blouse was taken out. A fairly minor alteration. But then, after the garment was cut out of the real fabric we began having problems. First....I had a miscommunication with the designer...the blouse had been made out of the wrong fabric. In an afternoon my girls managed to cut and stitch the new blouse out of the correct fabric...barely squeezing what we need out of the amount of fabric David bought and staying about an hour late to finish it.

The second fitting went well too, only the actor was not pleased with the line of the dress. One would hope such notes would have come out of the first fitting. Pity really. The belt was the wrong shape. She didn't think the skirt was full enough it front...and didn't like the fact that it buttoned all the way to the hem. And the waistband wasn't sitting where the designer wanted it too. All this meant a lot of back tracking. But even that was understandable. We still had a week to work on the dress.

The dress rehearsals, however, we're a pain in the ass. During the afternoon, I was called down to the theatre to take a look at the bodice, collar and skirt. Something wasn't looking right. I fitted what I could, and in the four hours we had during the actors' break the shop altered what they could. That evening I was called down to the actor's dressing room again. She still was not happy with the way it flattered her, though it was what the designer wanted. It was the same notes she had been concerned about in the earlier fitting, but the designer had, supposedly, smoothed her fears and we had moved forward. But she still had the same qualms. So I fit her again, with the shop supervisor's eye. But the next day, yet again I was asked to come down and re-fit the garment.

This is when I realized the politics of the situation. The designer would not step in on the fitting. He wanted me to fix the problem. He was happy. The actress was not. My summons was for the designer to save face by showcasing the shop's incompetence by having the draper, for a third time, try to fix the problem that wasn't really a problem. I had become the scape goat. And even through Thursday we continued to get notes. I will not deny that all of the changes made to the garment improved it. The dress looked phenomenal when it was on stage tonight. And after a point, the shop supervisor did step in, consulted with the actor and made a decision that the designer did not care to deal with. And it made the actor happy. To have the higher up in the shop address the situation when the draper could not. Personal attention. Sometimes that's really what these notes are about, not that the costume is wrong, but that the actor needs to feel as though they are being catered to. That their needs and insecurities are being addressed. It sucks. It's bullshit and it shouldn't happen, but it does. The thing that really stung was the designer's attitude toward the whole process. He felt his design was done. But the actor was clearly unhappy. So to make him look good, the help needed to be sacrificed.

The actor, by the by, was a dear the entire time. While needy and demanding, she was not a diva about it, nor was she rude. She was sincerely self conscious and unhappy. But that only makes the situation slightly more bearable.

But time was had this week to unwind amongst the stress. Monday I got away to Albany for a cute little burlesque show. A flash back to the 80's. The highlight of the performance for me a least, was the fire dancing...poi...as the finale. But I have a personal affinity toward that particular act. Thursday, when most of Morning's was finally done, I went out with two of the girls from the shop to indulge in a Thai dinner. It was amazing. Two hours of eating, gossiping and relaxing. And a stroll through Great Barrington afterward as we digested.

And of course...tonight...opening and the paint shop party. Perhaps I'm too critical, but I did not enjoy the play. Much of it felt too forced...to contrived, though it was funny, well acted and beautiful costumed and lit...all played out and a gorgeous and highly detail oriented set. But overall I found it very tedious. Perhaps I'm tired. I felt the same way about our kid's show which we attended Wednesday afternoon.

Ah yes, but the paint shop party. The party for the hard working employees after the rest of the patrons have departed from the reception. The themed party supplying beer and music to help all unwind after a hard tech process. I was very impressed with the turn out of this party. Since it's themed, costumes are highly encouraged. This theme...Saturday mornings at seven. A plethora of cartoon character, pjs and breakfast cereal. Several groups teamed up on costumes...the Ninja Turtle, Scooby Doo, Sailor Moon, Care Bears, Rainbow Bright, the Smurfs, Batman and and Robin (and the joker) My Little Ponies...so many throw backs to the 80's we all shared of our childhood. As I write I can still heat the occasional cheers and screams as the party rages on. Tis 3am...it will probably go on until at least 5. I was quite proud of my own costume...conceived back in May, but thrown together in an hour this afternoon.

Finding a niche

Dragging. Slowly. Tedious. Painful. Hot and humid. Interrupted by strike for the kids show and fittings for the next mainstage.

I'm frustrated because I'm tired. Working through yet another weekend...So far 15 straight days without a day off and the next chance is a full work week from now. The designer for Mrs Warren was here today. We had to cram in as many fittings as possible. Vivi's were great. Her corset..minor alterations..two small darts. Blouse, tailored vest, jacket, skirt...I am incredibly proud of this set of mock ups. They fit beautifully with little alteration needed. And very few design choices changes.

Mrs. Warren on the other hand. I love this designer. She's brilliant. Friendly, wants to work closely with you to get the work done. But now that I'm in the position of draper, I grit my teeth every time I hear her say "we'll look at it and play around." Meaning she doesn't now what she wants yet. Which means the process is very organic and free form, regardless of deadlines. Which means I'll be sitting on my ass twiddling my thumbs for a week without answers needed to move forward. The clothes will be beautiful. But I may be beating my head against a wall sometime next week.

Set backs and time off

Work progresses quickly, though it seems whenever we are in a time crunch...the little things seems to go wrong. A sleeve is set in wrong and needs to be taken out and stitched back in 1" further back. A hem isn't put in quite evenly. The fabric you thought you had to finish a dress hasn't arrived. You think you're okay to meet deadline because it's Tuesday. You still have time to meet your Saturday deadline. And then you realize its actually Wednesday. And the work day just ended. Such is life. We plug along during the toughest week of the season. Yes tension, but optimistic, cheerful. So far the worst of the spats has been over music choices. But tis nothing new. With personalities as varied as they are, such spats were in place before the work load increased.

Of course instead of working tonight, I went to see Two-Headed. Lucky me, this was the show I was completely responsible for. Aside from a few design choices I didn't agree with, I am proud of my work. What the designer wants and my own aesthetic are two completely different things. But draping still gives me an immense sense of satisfaction. Of control. Of creation. And a relationship with the actors that many others on the tech side of theatre do not have.

I'm thrilled to be taking on the bulk of Mrs. Warren, though the amount of work is insane. Perhaps my own personal standards are too high.

But more and more, especially recently, I find work is providing more of a diversion, a distraction. A place to focus my mind for nine plus hours of the day. I refuse to rot in front of a TV. Rather be stimulated by the problems of a particular costume. But a diversion from the problems of life nonetheless. Absence from loved ones. No housing set up for three weeks from now. Student loan payments soon needing to begin. A huge move. Unexpected news. Screw balls thrown left and right really. Murphy's Law or Psychosomatic? Priorities shifting. Responsibilities? To whom? But I'm off to Hawaii for nine months. Such a move. What better way to find oneself. Than to isolate oneself with one joy and one pet peeve. The joy...costuming...the peeve...children. And of course the distance. What better way to test myself...find out if work alone truly makes me happy or if there is something else that makes me feel whole. Independent woman? Bullshit. I'm usually feel quite alone, despite those I manage to draw near and let in. It still seems I'm always saying goodbye.

A fraction of work

Supposedly this week is the week that makes or breaks most of us. Housing is stretched to its tightest...we have two maintage shows in rehearsal, one on stage, one studio show on stage, another staring rehearsal on Monday, the first children's show in its final week of run and the second children's show going into tech this Monday. That's the overview of the festival at the moment. Perfect time for the shit to hit the fan, no?

In our shop, once a show is up and running, we have little to do with it (with the exception of Cinderella, which seems to continually have little notes crop up that need attention). But still, this is the toughest part of our season. We're just finishing up notes on the studio show currently in dress rehearsal...opening tomorrow. That show was entirely on my plate...two prairie dresses, petticoats, under clothing, a few aprons and a silk camisole. No small feat, but this project had a bit more time than others.

Our big time crunch was finishing the next mainstage...one of our larger builds. Thankfully, because of the studio show and Cinderella, I was only responsible for the build of three dresses and all of the men's alterations. Beautiful dresses, but I cannot get one dress to cooperate. I'm nervous for the reaction in the fitting tomorrow. But on top of that we needed to start work on Mrs. Warren. The other draper is up to her neck in six dresses for the current show and her own design for the next children's show...so lucky me.


































Mrs Warren is actually a wonderful set of clothing. All turn of the century. In two days I've patterned two corsets, a blouse, woman's vest, woman jacket, skirt and two day dresses. Do not be fooled. Day dress then are not the simple halter or strappy knee length numbers we have today. High collared, lacy, trained skirts...most more complicated than many wedding dresses. But the patterning is done. And our first hand has been phenomenal...she already has the skirt suit ensemble cut out. Two bad the entire first batch is entirely muslin...we have to essentially make each garment twice. Once in muslin or another cheap fabric where major fitting and alterations can take place. The second one out of the really fabric. We're putting in extra hours all this week. But supposedly once Monday comes we're in the clear.

My Pal George

"We're wearing the same color..would you call this putty? You should know, as a designer..." Ms. Hamilton accosted me in the shop yesterday. She is an incredibly gracious and friendly woman. I thought I'd be a bit star struck working with her, but she puts everyone around her at ease...even when she comes up behind you unannounced, grabs a hunk of your skirt hem and holds it up, comparing it to her own dress. If only she could impart some of that grace into her colleagues. It may save us from practically rebuilding a dress that is torn off of her far too violently every night.

It literally rained on the parade yesterday; though as I was at work, if there was a parade nearby I was unable to attend it. The independence day found me supervising and sewing. Making patterns and small talk. The small BBQ planned by the scene shop was rained out. As were most of the area fireworks.

Williamstown had extended the hand of hospitality and offered free tickets to two of their shows last night. The Fourth seems to be a particularly slow night for theatres. Neither really struck my interest. I opted instead to see the preview performance of My Pal George. A cute show, entertaining in its way. I was hoping for something more biting, given the subject mater. But it was amusing. I found it lacking, strained, but that was more victim to the presentation style than the new play itself. What better way to spend a rained out Fourth of July than to partake in a commentary on our current administration.

Settling in

I've been in for a week now, and we finally have enough work to keep us busy throughout the day. I missed a lot yesterday. I had returned briefly to Brooklyn for a strike and then briefly to NJ to return the rentals from Rutgers and retrieve my security deposit from my landlord. It seems like such an excessive amount of driving for so little.

The rest of the cast for the first mainstage show arrived yesterday as did the designer. Our build doubled from just tutus to pj's as well. The second draper managed to pattern most of the pjs yesterday while I was still in transit, but work was left for me nonetheless. I shift from feeling overqualified due to the youth and general maturity level of our shop and out of my element by those who have been at BTF in years previous. Liz is great. Yale bound this fall. She showed us her portfolio today. She has much higher quality of work in her undergraduate portfolio than most of the master's candidates from Rutgers have. No wonder she's Yale bound. But I feel she could easily make a go of it without grad school right now. It was humbling. I admit to being jealous. But she comes from a very different background...a fine arts major from a family of artists. She's no doubt talented. But more than jealous I felt proud of her. Genuinely friendly. A hard worker. Good leader. I sincerely hope our paths cross again. Given how strong of a designer she is now, I am eager to see her once she completes Yale's program. Hopefully she will not loose her humanity while she's there.

This evening I managed a stupid error which led to me meeting a good Samaritan. My check engine light came on and of course I panic. Not outwardly, but a moment of concern passed through my head. I made it to the grocery store, parked, shopped and returned to my car again flashing the engine light and refusing to start. Thank God fro AAA. Unfortunately the woman on the phone kept hearing the wrong information and making typing errors as she tried to help. The call took much longer than I'm used to. The entire time I pace the length of my car, not sure where to have it towed to or when with my work schedule and the small town tendency for businesses to close before 6pm I will manage to deal with this problem. One of the gentlemen employees had been watching, and came over. Asked if he could be any help. Discovers my car is not in park. Stupid. Humbling. He asked for a tip. I should have offered to take him out for a drink later in the week. If nothing else to socialize away from the others in the theatre. We are a slightly clique-ish and inbred group...us theatre folk....

On another note, the owner of the studio I modeled for recently emailed me his regards. He'd been flipping through sketch pads from previous sessions and came across one of me he really liked. Here's a small cropping of it.

I hesitate to post his website with the full image as I have family on this blog occasionally. But tis art so I guess if you are so inclined...

http://www.xldesignsource.com/abrown/hmedrawing_thmbs1.html

There are only two sketches of me up, but the rest of his nudes are worth a look as well.

Day One

The main building of BTF

I love having an internet connection. If only I could find a more reliable area to try to call people from. I discovered today that Lee, a town about 7 minutes away, grants me a full signal. Now I just need to make excuses to run to that grocery store.

Jumped right in during the first day. I'm still hesitant about draping. Not that I doubt my abilities at actually draping so much as my ability to delegate work and supervise the underlings. I was surprised to see how young the shop is. Other than the shop supervisor (conveniently one of my house mates as well) I am the oldest of the bunch. The other draper (and recently accepted Yalie--congrats to her!) comes in close at 24. The remaining six cannot legally drink. Granted this only means a 4-5 year age gap, but after completing two degrees, working at several summer theatres, living on my own...4-5 years seems a huge difference. It is a great friendly group of people though.

The shop is freezing. We're in a converted barn, which honestly is much better off than everyone made it sound. However, I am longing for the comfort and ease at APT. Stock supplies are sketchy. There is a dampness and the mildew and odor that accompanies. I'm certain once the mountains escape this spring chill the summer will be quite hot. But it is beautiful. And I am continually reassured that this season will be quite low stress. First on the docket is six tutus for Love! Valour! Compassion!

I still cannot wrap my head around the comfort of the housing. I know people respond well to visuals so here is the photo tour:

The house from the outside...we are situated on the first floor

And the lovely landscaping that adorns the front. I hear the backyard is even more stunning.

The hall and living area...yes we have skylights...lots of them. And the massive kitchen is on the left.

Our Massive kitchen with a Viking gas range with 6 burners...

The living area from the other side.

My quaint room awaiting more unpacking...it looks much more like I live in it now...and no that does not mean it is a mess.