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On an early Sunday morning, Nov. 4, semi-trucks and coach buses wait outside of Jesse Auditorium to be unloaded. Coming from Asheville, N.C., are the stage crew and cast from a touring company of the musical “The Producers.” At 8 a.m., the unloading of backdrops, costumes and props commences for a show that will take place a relatively short 11 hours later.
The air rings with yelling and the rolling of carts and giant Styrofoam army tanks used on the set. The crews from “The Producers” and Jesse Auditorium are joined by workers with Labor Ready of Columbia and Klance Staging of St. Louis. More than 50 people work to hang lights, style wigs and lay flooring for the 7 p.m. show.
- One of three semi trucks waits out back of Jesse Auditorium for the crew to load when the show is over.
- Terry Stiles, from Klance Staging in St. Louis, falls asleep in Jesse Auditorium while the stage is being put together. He only had a few hours of sleep the previous night after another job.
- Outside the stage doors of Jesse Hall, cases of wigs sit waiting in the parking lot for cast members to wear. Jesse Auditorium does not have enough room to hold all the costumes and wigs at the same time, so the parking lot is often used for additional space.
- Brad Thompson, a worker for Klancey Staging in St. Louis for the past two years, takes a breath during the stage clean up at 10:20 p.m. on Nov. 4. The crew did not finish packing up the semi trucks for another three to four hours.
- Unloading the three semi trucks for the Broadway show 'The Producers' at Jesse Auditorium begins at 8 a.m. on Nov. 4. The workers are from the auditorium, Klance Staging in St. Louis, Labor Ready in Columbia or part of the traveling crew.
What many in the audience might not realize is that the massive preparation and setup done before the curtain is raised will last only seconds once the cast members take their final bows. The performers will change into street clothes and gather their belongings to head to a local hotel. But the crews will tear down and pack up the set, finishing sometime around 2 a.m., before they get some sleep on the long bus ride to Fort Collins, Colo.
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