Sometimes a 40 foot long set just isn’t big enough so you add another eight feet.

The actual reason for the alteration is a bit more complicated than simple hubris. The hope from the very beginning has been to put the pit band on on stage on the set. Unfortunately the 8×24 foot second story space just wasn’t large enough after we started adding walls, railings, and musical instruments. The solution seemed simple enough: add more space. 

So we did. 

That also meant moving the entire set forward four feet to make room for the addition in the back. 

We put the corners of the set on upside down carpet squares and with a small army of students slide the set forward. That was last Friday. 

The real problem became evident early the following week when it was discovered that there wasn’t room for the cast in the space remaining for the big dance numbers. 

Sadly we had to eighty-six the pit band on the set, remove the 4×16 foot second story addition, get rid of the inside stairs cases, and slide the set back to where we started to make enough space for the large cast. 

The problem with removing the inside staircases was I thought it looked better with the double-wide. It looked more like bleachers that way. 

I talked to Patrick Nightingale, who’s the technical director for the show, and he had the same opinion. Despite making more work for myself, we went ahead by builting two more 4×8 foot landings and support legs to extend the set to give the actors the space they needed but keep the double-wide stairs. 

Other projects this week involved finishing the custom made stairs going to the second floor. 

Sheathing walls with lauan for the second floor. 

I’m fortunate enough to have a great team of student helpers who have made all the crazy progress in the past three weeks possible. 

These guys are willing to do anything–swing hammers, drive screws, move heavy things (only to move them back again), and even sweep.