Two things you didn't see at the stimulus signing today

[Buddyblazon]

Those are shims screwed onto the bottom of the feet of the desk he signed on. They adjusted the height on it last night.





That's a huge solar panel that several installers...and the owner of Namaste Solar...built yesterday...but struck from the event at the late last night. During the event...it was behind the blue back drop behind President Obama.


Nothing big. Just wanted to share a couple of interesting phone pictures from behind the scenes.

[liberalmuse]

1. Hey, that's pretty cool!

Did you personally take those pics?

[Buddyblazon]

2. Yes...

I was on the production crew that built all that you saw on TV today. All...EXCEPT the bleachers on the stage that the employees of Namaste sat on.

[liberalmuse]

3. Did you get to see our President?

Not that it matters. I'm very impressed!

[Buddyblazon]

4. No...

I've done quite a few political gigs in my production days. 9 out of 10 times they won't even allow you to be there when a big name politician is there. 10 out of 10 times...you don't get to meet them.

I would love to meet him. I'm really impressed with him and I feel ecstatic about the next 4 years.

[Sal Minella]

5. "Namaste" is an Indigenous American word, right? But meaning what?

I wonder why it was struck from the event.

[Buddyblazon]

6. The decision to strike the solar panel display..

was made because of where it sat behind the back drop and the width of it. They couldn't get it centered between the uprights on the pipe and drape that held up the back drop. If the drape was pulled back to display it, there would've been an upright pole obstructing at least a portion of the solar panel.

Also, it angled back from the upstage (back) edge. If the curtains had been pulled aside....you would've seen a quite a bit behind the stage. Not an appealing effect.

ALSO...pipe and drape is kind of flimsy. Trying to adjust the curtain to open...then close again would've made the entire backdrop sway back and forth. This...again...is not an appealing effect.

All production reasons. Having worked in production...I'm actually glad they made the decision because it would've been ugly...the whole process of revealing it.

As a guy that can appreciate the hard work and enthusiasm of Namaste's installers...I feel bad at the same time.

[Sal Minella]

7. What a fine post. Thank you so much.

Yes, the guys/gals with Namaste deserved to have their work seen, but the image of Obama & Company being Ashcrofted by a toppling blue curtain backdrop assembly is one we were better off without. Yes. Good decision, there.

So few people are aware of the gargantuan efforts behind the scenes (any scenes).

"Sing Faster: The Stagehands Ring Cycle" is one of my favorite films, and I just loathe opera:

http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Sing_Faster_The_Stagehands_Ring_Cycle/60028899?trkid=222336&lnkctr=srchrd-sr&strkid=583869133_0_0

The guy riding inside the dragon's head (operating the dragon controls) gets a real workout.
And this is all live onstage too.

You would appreciate this film more than most, I'm sure.
These guys work with incredible coordination and strength, all the while having fantasies about the Rhine Maidens......

[Buddyblazon]

9. I have heard all about it....

But I've never seen it. Wagners Ring of the Nebulons....am I correct?

I'm going to order that on Netflix and share it with my mentor. He would get a kick out of this.

Though this gig I was a hand...I'm actually a stage manager at a union venue here and don't get to lift or climb or do all the fun things I did as a hand very often anymore. This was an independent gig so I got to dig in like the old days. :)

[Sal Minella]

11. Nibelung (had to look it up) --

From Wiki:
===================
Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung) is a cycle of four epic music dramas by the German composer Richard Wagner. ..... The works are often referred to as "The Ring Cycle", "Wagner's Ring", or simply "The Ring".

The four operas that constitute the Ring cycle are, in the order of the imagined events they portray:

* Das Rheingold (The Rhinegold)
* Die Walküre (The Valkyrie)
* Siegfried
* Götterdämmerung (Twilight of the Gods)
====================

The four sections are usually performed singly, since in sequence they take 15 to 17 hours, and I have no idea what Wagner was thinking. I do know the film shows stagecraft of a very high order, and is fun to watch.

I was Assistant Director on a couple stage plays, so have some feel for how much fun it is to go flat out behind the scenes to make things work......

Edit to close Wiki quote.

[Buddyblazon]

12. I believe the Ring Cycle also gives us the stereotype...

of a large woman in a viking helmet...and the saying, "It ain't over until the fat lady sings.".

I actually learned something in music school....hehe.

[Sal Minella]

13. I'm sure you're right. And I read somewhere that the reason "Wagnerian sopranos" are built

like silverback gorillas is because it takes a tremendous amount of energy and sheer physical strength to sing those roles (not as much as being a stagehand on a Ring production, though, I'd guess).

[moggie]

8. No, South Asian

Sanskrit. It's a term of respect used in greeting.

[Sal Minella]

10. Thank you !