I put on the last of my costume piece. I run to the mirror and adjust my earrings while using the other hand to put on lipstick. The music abruptly starts to play in the background. That’s my cue reminding me that I have 30 seconds to get downstairs before my partner and others on stage panic at the missing space which they now have to pretend is suppose to be there. As I run downstairs I quickly play through the song and dance in my head. Though I bump into a few props on my way down, I make it just before I’m about to go on. I take a deep breath, put on an enormous smile, and glide onto the stage.

I’m, of course, talking about the backstage scenery in a musical, such as The Producers at Roger Rocka’s Dinner Theatre down in Tower District, which is now running till November 9th and that I’m currently performing in. Sounds hectic, right? Well it is!

Many only see the finished product of a show, what they watch onstage. But few comprehend the craziness and insanity that is backstage, especially in a show such as this, where there are many quick and outrageous costume, prop, and scene changes. So what’s it like you might ask? That’s what I’m here for, to be your one on one guide through this chaotic yet exhilarating experience.

Let’s start off by exploring the start of a show or what we performers refer to as “call time”. The call time of a show is the time when all the performers show up, sign in, and do whatever they need to do before the show begins. Depending on different productions, the call time varies and in this show it occurs an hour before we go onstage. The call time starts the craziness because some show up late which then causes a chain reaction for them to double time it on getting ready. I, sadly, am guilty of sometimes being late which leads to “Owwww you’re in trouuuuuble” looks from the cast and very little time to prepare.

Next comes The “Five Minutes!” and “Places!” mark, where the stage manager comes upstairs to warn us of how much time we have left. There’s nothing funnier than seeing everyone’s reaction to “Places!”, especially when they’re not at all ready. “Places!” usually means “You have until I get downstairs, walk through the house (theatre), and get in the light booth before I play the overture (starting music).

When the show finally starts, all hell breaks loose! Most would think that once the show starts, the actors would settle into their own world and get into there character. Not always the case. When I said that all hell breaks loose, I’m usually referring to the performers upstairs acting like a group of rebelling, out of control, very high pitched screaming teenagers. There’s no doubt that everyone gets really close, especially in a show that you rehearse and perform for six or so weeks each. And that’s no exception in this show. Though there are a few rivalries, mostly everybody gets along.

From gossiping to telling jokes and stories or even singing songs from different shows, there’s no limit to what we do backstage. ” It’s a great place where memories are made”, states nineteen year old theatre veteran Jamie Briceno, who also plays ensemble (background cast) in this show. “There’s also many bloody noses!”

Now let’s not forget the constant injuries on and off the stage. It’s very likely that in any show, injuries are bound to happen. For example, in this show, so far there has been a twisted ankle, rolled over foot, collapse onstage, knocked off wig while being bumped in the head with the scrim (electrically operated curtain), pulled calf, and almost being stabbed in the leg with an American flag, and we just opened two weeks ago.

The great thing about this cast, and I’m sure the same goes for other productions, the injuries and anything else that goes wrong, doesn’t effect our performance. Most of us either suck it up, or laugh about it when we get upstairs.

Alas, the show ends. We take are time dressing back into our street clothes, with the few exceptions who have somewhere to go. We hang up our costumes and set our props for the next show all while conversing with each other about how we think it went. Finally we walk outside in the back alley of the theatre and say our good-byes until the next show.

“It’s a good experience”, says twenty five year old newbie to theatre Billy Whitehurst, also in this production. “I feel comfortable with people in this show.”

So I encourage you to try out theatre some time and see for yourself what it’s really like backstage. Or if your not that into it, come see the show anyway.

Believe me, it’s worth it!