I decided to lay off the East Bluff posts for now (I’ll probably do at least one or two more before I’m outta there) to focus on another topic that’s near and dear to me, and since it’s their “birthday,” now seemed like the perfect time.
This fall, Peoria Players open their 95TH consecutive season of “puttin’ on shows” in Peoria (wow, I just realized Woodrow Wilson was President then). Though they haven’t always been located on the hill at University and Lake, they have been there since the 1950’s, after Interstate 74 construction sent them packing and they settled here.
Currently in production is the opener to their 95th season, Les Miserables. I’ve been involved there for many years acting, directing, volunteering, and hanging out. My own name has been plastered on that marquee a few times itself.
There’s all sorts of articles and whatnot out there covering their extensive history of their “playing in Peoria” and I did not care to do yet another piece like that. Also, anyone can really write about seeing a show and the theatre itself from an outside, or audience perspective...but what about from an “inside point of view?” What about the the things backstage that audiences never get to see? I thought it might be fun to wander the place and show you the stuff you don't see when you attend a show at Peoria Players Theatre.
So, let’s take a tour of the backstage and see what it’s like “behind the scenes”...to get there, round the corner from the lobby, down the hallway and step through this door…
And easily enough, we made it! It appears we have entered the “Quiet Zone”, so keep it down back here, alright? Audiences can hear you from offstage if you’re too loud.
Here we are at our first stop on this tour, the hallowed “Stage Manager’s Wall of Fame.” This sprawling tapestry of colored bricks celebrates many of the theatre’s sometimes unsung heroes: The stage managers, and the shows they successfully ran. When I first came to Peoria Players, this wall only had one brick painted on it, so it’s grown a bit in the last 20 years! I believe it originated in this corner due to the fact that a stage manager’s desk was once perched here, until all stage managers were relocated to the booth above the audience.
Behind the first door right next to the SMWOF (Stage Managers Wall of Fame) is where all the lighting instruments are stored for the theatre. And it’s apparently locked. So you’ll just have to believe me when I tell you that’s what’s back there. Still, it’s nice to be reminded that I better not leave any personally owned equipment unattended here. Onward we go...
Here is the view of the stage if you stand offstage left. You can see pieces of the Les Miz set. Looking pretty epic!
Still stage left…and here we have a view of the weights that raise and lower the grand curtain, expertly held together by duct tape it seems. And hey, where’s that ladder go?
After climbing it one handed (iPhone in the other) I found this-insulation that doesn’t look fit to inhale. Yikes! Back down I go…faster and less graceful than ideal. Good thing nobody saw. Maybe I should have used two hands (that’s what she said). Rimshot!
Back down onstage, behind the set, is where the Les Miz orchestra spends the show-I’d get a closer look, but well, there’s that sign...
Behold! It’s the Peoria Players prop storage! This cavern of treasures stocks all the props needed for any and all shows. And may I say, it’s looking more organized these days than I think I’ve ever seen it! Let’s get a closer look at what lies within...
On the left, you can see it appears to be this guy. No idea who it is. Any suggestions? I’m going with “Mr. Kotter Losing a Bet and Having to Shave His ‘Stache” And on the right, its remnants of the Old Man’s Major Award. As alluring as the soft glow of electric sex can sometimes be, we must venture onward…..so much time and so little to do, wait, strike that, reverse it…
Hey look! Right next to props storage is the costume loft! And it's open! This is rare (trust me), let’s go see what’s lurking behind the cage…
Boxes and boxes, it seems. Jeez, it’s friggin' hot up here! And no airflow at all. On the other side of the loft, it’s more boxes and an impressive collection of once wild game, now suitable for wearing. We better get out of here before I collapse from the heat (or PETA sees those coats).
Overseen by Mona Lisa apparently is the backstage bathroom, which you can not flush during a performance-seriously, it’s forbidden. The flush can be heard from the audience and nothing kills the buzz that comes from from storming a barricade than a 21st century WHOOSH! Still that doesn’t stop some people from “using and leaving.” Woof. Poor Mona Lisa. She’s trapped.
Right next to Mona Lisa’s “hangout” is the Paint Storage room, and since the door is, as requested, AJAR, let’s check it out…
What? You were expecting it to be spotless? Good thing I don’t smoke or we could have some trouble…
Years of accumulated pigments used to “dress” all of the sets are kept here. You know, they do take donations of unused/surplus paint, so consider donating them the leftovers from your next DIY project. Then they too, can sit here with the others!
Outside the Paint Shop, we have another ladder! Always one to climb one when I see it, I brace myself better than I did on the last one, ready to defy death...
Boy, I’m high. And not like Marty was in the 70’s!
And here we are…the unabashedly antiquated and delightfully dangerous fly loft! One of those ropes almost sent me flying into the rafters of the theatre once, and anyone who dares use it these days subjects themselves to the same risk. Let’s look around some more…
Check out the view of the stage from up here!
Sometimes, to achieve the right effect, you have to mount lighting instruments in unusual places.
Hey, it’s the Brooklyn Bridge lurking in the rafters! I’m going to take a wild guess that this is left over from an earlier production and is not being used in “Les Miserables.”
Here we have one of the coolest aspects of Peoria Players Backstage area, the Cyclorama (or “cyc” as we call it—life gets too short for formalities, you know). This massive canvas spans almost wall to wall, floor to ceiling and separates the backstage and onstage “worlds” from each other-the onstage side remains white for lighting purposes, but the backside has seen a lot of “decorating” through the years.
Decades of shows and names have been etched onto the cyc, some of them being true works of art (and some of them, not so much). I’ve done my fair share of decorating, as have many others over the years. Seeing it here doesn’t do it justice, you really have to walk the entire thing and get up close!
And of course there’s Rocky Horror—for the past 16 years, I have taken part in this popular annual fundraiser at the theatre, appearing as Riff-Raff every year since 1997 and subsequently leading the show. This will be my first year “retired” and it will definitely be weird to not be Time Warping this Halloween after so many years
Coming up to the end of the cyc brings us to Stage Right. (by the way, in case you didn’t know, Stage Right refers to your right if you’re standing onstage…and Stage Left is, well, you can figure it out. Drama 101 people.)
Here is the view of the stage from Stage Right…..similar to Stage Left, yes?
From here, you can see a “high angle view” of Stage Right. On the left side of the pic, you can see the Loft and the “Quick Change Room,” let’s check them out!
No we have not entered an episode of Hoarders. This room typically serves many purposes during a production-storage, costume quick changes, you name it. Sort of like that closet at home you shove everything into when company comes over. Others out there may also remember its stint as the “Jesse L Martin VIP Lounge”. (That’s a major inside joke that only three people reading this may get or remember…
And up top, it’s the loft….obviously furniture and whatnots too big and bulky for prop storage are kept up here. It’s dark, crowded, and I keep bumping my head on low hanging metal beams and sneezing from dust. Back down I go.
Before we head further, no theatre tour would be complete without a view of the house from onstage. Not pictured is the bat that lives in the light sconces and flies around during performances.
I’ve always wondered what would happen if I pulled one of those rings…
And now, descending downstairs, where actors prepare for each performance. This area has been known to flood a time or two, so It helps to have sand bags on hand!
Directly at the bottom of the stairs is the makeup area, where many a Peoria actor has been beautified through the years (and sometimes ankle deep in flood water!)
And now we move into the “Green Room” (I know, not literally green, but I swear it was, once upon a time), which is another “multi-purpose” location here at the theatre—it's where costumers sew and actors hang out primarily-toward the back of the room is more costume storage as well as access to the rarely used orchestra pit...
This hallway leads to the men and womens dressing rooms (the doors are blue and pink, natch).
Peeking into the men’s room, we see threads fit for a French Revolution. You also can’t flush the toilets in here during a show…
And as I go to peek into the women’s room, the French whores lurking within from “Les Miz” chased me out!
Thanks for joining me on this tour! Now that you’ve seen what “Behind the Scenes” is like, you should consider checking out some local live theatre sometime! Les Miz is coming to a close, but trust me, there is always something to see in town. Prices are comparable to seeing a movie in the theatre, and it can be a great night out! Or, get involved-onstage or backstage! The parties are great. Maybe sometime I’ll blog about what goes on there…
Peoria Players Theatre
4300 N University
Peoria
309-688-4473
Related Posts: An East Bluff Kid Remembers, Part I and Part II and Hoisted By Petarde.
