A Look Into an Amazing Institution in Minneapolis
I just witnessed L. Frank Baum’s The Wizard of Oz last night, my fourth play at this state-of-the-art theater in Minneapolis. Once again, I cannot believe the production values I just witnessed for a children’s show. But one should expect no less from Children’s Theatre Company (CTC) as they celebrate their 50th year in existence. In 2003, they were awarded a Tony Award for an “Outstanding Regional Theater,” and they strive for excellence with every performance.
In 1965, a local theater troupe called the Moppet players moved into the Minneapolis Institute of the Arts, forming CTC. The program was built on a history of adapting classic children’s stories to stage, complete with daunting sets and brilliant costumes. They have produced more than 300 plays, which have been viewed by over 11 million people during this time. There are five full-time actors on staff as well as two new, auditioned performing apprentices every year. The rest of the cast is composed of local actors and usually quite a few young student actors.
“The largest misconception about our shows is that we are presenting children actors in a small, homemade theater. People are skeptical when I tell them we are right up there with some of the best theaters in America. I tell them to come see a show. Then they get it,” says Craig Gottschalk, CTC’s house lighting and video director. He has graciously taken me on a tour of the facility, which has been housing this troupe of performers for the last 50 years.
Two Stages
CTC actually consists of two stages, a scenic shop and rehearsal spaces, all attached to the building that still houses the Minneapolis Institute of Art. There are also classrooms where children ranging from toddlers to young adults can learn about acting and theater. The main stage is named the UHG, for its sponsor — United Health Group. The smaller stage next door (the Cargill Stage) was erected in 2005.
Craig leads me through the scenic shop en route to the stage. Just about all of the set pieces are constructed in house. Members of the IATSE Local 13, working at the facility, do the woodworking and metal fabrication. The majority of the scenery is painted here as well, though Craig points out that they often have to use their warehouse facility when painting the stage deck pieces, as there is simply not enough room in the shops to lay out a whole floor. CTC does do remounted performances at times as well as try to keep a green approach to their work, so they store some of the scenery in this other warehouse.
I watched the performance the previous evening. Most shows here are well sold, and I was fortunate to obtain a single rush ticket. I saw the most made out of the 61 line sets on stage as various scenic backdrops and set pieces flew in and out all evening. The timing of each set change was executed flawlessly, and I believe this show utilized more theatrical gags than most. State of the art theatrical lighting accompanied pyro effects, rotating stages, flying effects as well as projection. Walking onto the stage, the first thing I notice is the show deck that rises up approximately 12 inches off the stage floor.
The stage floor has a trapped floor that can then utilize the hydraulic lifts. CTC invested in a new Creative Conners system that allows two points of motion. The new system was implemented into the pre-existing set of Wizard of Oz — one point for the turntable motion, the other point for the lift in the apron. The turntable sits on the existing stage, meaning the false decks had to be built to accommodate the change in height due to the set piece.
I had heard earlier that they had a system of hydraulic lifts and trap doors built into the stage, so I was a little bewildered by why they needed the floor. “We don’t need it for every performance,” Gottschalk states. “With the addition of the new turntable, we had some logistics to figure out. It has to sit on top of the original stage, so we added the false floor to get the height to match the turntable.” Creative Conners Inc. is a Rhode Island company that manufactures just about every gizmo one can think of when it comes to the safe automated motion of scenery on stage. CTC has used quite a bit of their gear over the years.
The stage and raised deck have some cut outs in it. A trap door is utilized to replicate the storm cellar in Kansas that the family unwittingly locks Dorothy out of before the tornado hits. There are circular cutouts in the stage with hydraulic lifts that fit into them. They are necessary for key moments such as the witch melting into a puddle of empty clothes, or the oversized crystal ball that pops out of nowhere with Auntie Em inside of it. The downstage opening of the proscenium is normally about 36 feet wide, but this production has a nice square wooden portal built to frame the opening. This cuts the opening to about 32 feet of width. The wings on either side are a good 16 feet wide, so the stage is plenty big for most legitimate theater shows.
Flying and Effects
At times we see Glinda, the good witch of the North, appear out of nowhere flying onto the stage on a small rounded set piece. The Wizard later flies away in a hot air balloon. The fact is that I have seen performers fly in every show I have seen in this theater, from Peter Pan to Charlotte’s Web. They seem to have an affinity for it here at CTC. A company called ZFX, those masters of flying effects out of Louisville, KY, supplies the hand-run flying systems on the performances at this theater. Craig explains the process. “ZFX will send a couple of technicians up here at the start of rehearsals on stage. They help the carpenters load the gear in and train the stage crew how to use the manual flying system. The cast members who need to fly come in and get fitted for special harnesses, then they practice getting comfortable flying. The actors and stage techs have to scope out the limitations and possibilities for a show. For instance, last year, on Peter Pan, we had an actor who embraced the concept of flying and we could tell he really wanted to incorporate acrobatic moves like flips into his performance. So it worked out well. After a couple of shows, the ZFX techs return home until we need them for the next production.”
Pyrotechnics are utilized in the production as well. Smoke effects appear on cue at times, while CO2 jets also spit out clouded plumes of pressurized gas from holes cut in the false floor on stage. The wicked witch has a broomstick that spews fire, of course, to threaten the scarecrow. Any scene in the UHG theater that includes fire must be approved by the local fire marshal. The set pieces and costumes used in any scene that has fire are required to be flame proofed. Next door, at the Cargill stage, all of the scenery needs to be flame retardant, as there is no hard fire curtain in that theater. The current production of The Jungle Book is playing, and it includes open pots of flames on stage.
The Wizard of Oz starts out with a sparse set depicting the outside of a Kansas farmhouse. From there, the set evolves into the traveling medicine show cart. The tornado scene follows this; where the house lifts up and twirls around in the film version. During this time, it takes the stagehands a couple of minutes to reset the stage scenery for Munchkinland.
Gottschalk explains the scenario. “In the past, setting this stage quickly has been an issue for us. At times, we were left with up to 20 seconds of a blackout, which is an eternity in live theater when nothing is happening. So we bounced ideas back and forth on how to avoid this scenario this time around. The director talked of lowering in a spinning house, and there were other ideas that just didn’t seem possible, based on one thing or another. In the end, I suggested the concept of just using video.”
The Lighting
The theater owns all of its own lighting and a few meager video tools. This included a couple of Christie LX700 projectors. While these 7K LCD fixtures were meant to be used for more close up applications, Craig was able to double stack them to be effective when imagery was shown on a black scrim that flew in for the set change. Of course there was little money in the budget for creating content, so it all fell into Gottschalk’s lap. They bought some stock footage of a swirling tornado effect. Then they shot a small replica of a spinning house and overlaid that footage on the stock clip using Adobe After Effects software. Lastly, the company did own a green screen (as well as a purple one) to shoot the different actors in costume and add their images to the final clip, which was the transition back to Kansas from Oz. The video clip certainly fit the needs of this performance perfectly.
Gottschalk likes to think of his job as a lighting supervisor, despite the titles of “Lighting and Video Director” in the playbill. His job is to facilitate the design while supervising the electrical staff and the overhires. Craig budgets the show from a lighting and video standpoint. He points out. “I consult with the technical director and other production departments while supervising the changeover between plays. I work as a team with the production departments and stage managers to get it all together.”
For The Wizard of Oz, the company brought in a Minnesota native named Paul Hackenmueller to design the lighting for this show. Paul has made a name for himself by working as an associate designer on over 10 Broadway plays alone. He was quite happy to come back home to work on this project. Craig explains, “We bring in one or two “presented shows” a year, but for the rest, we construct the sets and do everything with the lighting at this theater. I do create some of the designs we use for productions, but we usually bring in a top lighting designer from NY, LA, or regionally. Paul did an outstanding job lighting this show.”
Gottschalk has an M.E. and another electrician who work full time with him. They are members of IATSE 13. He also employs an assistant lighting director. The theater employs two board operators who program the lighting and run the shows for their respective stages. They use extra electricians (referred to as overhires) when they need more people on a call. The two permanent electricians will shadow the board operators during the beginning of a run in case they need to step in and take over for any reason.
Master Electrician David Horn has been working hand-in-hand with Gottschalk for as long as he has been there. Craig is quick to mention, “Dave is just masterful in his craft. He’s been with this theatre company since 1991. His skill and inventiveness with incorporating light into scenery, props and costumes is truly tops in this country. As a children’s theater, we have to create things of the imagination. Things that you might never see, but only things you can make up in your head. We are frequently asked to create something from almost nothing. He’s one of the best at doing that, and it is so easy to trust him with any project. That’s the kind of gift you get when having someone with his skillset working here for over 25 years.”
Speaking of putting little lights into scenery and props, Gottschalk admits that he has grown fond of utilizing RC4 products at CTC whenever the show calls for a small battery operated dimmer in a set or a wireless DMX signal to a prop. He recently beta tested their new DMXpix product on another show last summer. “These guys have helped us out at the theater immensely, and we never think twice about using their products. Nobody else provides the support and solutions to our theatrical needs like RC4.”
The Changeovers
Gottschalk explains how they set the stage for an upcoming performance.
“We gather together the lighting crew on the Sunday night after the closing performance of the previous show. We strike all the set practicals and booms during that evening and the scenic department strikes the set and soft goods the following Monday. On Tuesday, the electricians reconvene with the lighting hang of the next production. The electricians and carpenters spend the next five days working around each other until it’s all set in place. The following Tuesday and Wednesday are focus days that lead up to four full days of tech rehearsals. During the third week, there are afternoon rehearsals followed by a Preview performance in front of an audience each night. Friday night will be the official opening.”
Gear-wise, the theater isn’t lacking for anything. The main fixtures utilized on the UHG stage are some 400 Strand SL Zoom Ellipsoidals, both wide- and narrow-lensed. I see a majority of them being used for this show. I notice a few Arri 5K Fresnels with scrollers on them. Gottschalk claims they still have 24 working Coloram CXI scrollers employed in the inventory. They do not own a large contingent of moving lights, mostly some Clay Paky Alpha Spot HPE 700 fixtures. They just bought two new High End Systems SolaSpot Pro 1500 profiles that they used from FOH. For this performance they added some High End Technospots to the overhead rig to help throw textures on the floor and scenery. They also have ETC Revolutions, an automated ellipsoidal fixture, in their inventory. The Cargill stage next door utilizes 300 ETC Source Four fixtures. Gottschalk boasts that they have never run out of fixtures for any show, though they borrow specialized gear from time to time. On one occasion they had to add dimmers, but that was just a single unique production. Two Robert Juliat spotlights are generously used from the front to pinpoint actors with a soft edged light. The lighting is controlled via an ETC Eos Ti lighting console for the UHG Stage and an ETC Gio for the Cargill Stage.
The lighting was perfect for this show. I noticed that in staying in tune with the Emerald City theme, a lot of the scenery is in hues of green. The wooden portal that frames the stage has tints of green in it as well as the natural wood looks. This structure is front-lit by Lekos in the side coves. The Lekos had half-gels of green color next to clear gel in the same frame. The green in the gel frame helps the green tints in the portal to pop out, while the clear gel keeps the natural wood look alive.
The dramatic scenes in the show were lit sparingly to draw attention to specific actors, but when large-scale scenery was in place, there was a lot of it to illuminate at once. One thing of particular attention was the lighting of the individual backdrops. Quite often, the backdrop was just a blue sky that was tinted in several different blue hues depending on the part of day in which an act takes place. An upstage RP (rear-projection) screen was in place often. A ground row of Kliegl striplites and L&E Grunts in three separate shades of blue line the bottom, while a row of top-hung 3-cell L&E fixtures help light the top half. Behind the cyc are several lighting trees with various Lekos on them. These help highlight the other drops. A translucent drop that appears during one scene required the designer to backlight some arches to make them stand out. The painted backdrop for the Emerald City scene also required gobos and certain fine shutter cut focuses to highlight its detailed artwork.
Gottschalk is quick to point out that everyone working on a production comes from a theater background. All the employees took part in theater programs at some point during their schooling. He himself graduated with a BA in theater from Westminster College in Pennsylvania. He came to Minneapolis to achieve his MFA in Lighting Design from the University of Minnesota. While here, he worked as an overhire electrician himself. Upon graduation, he took a full time job with CTC as an assistant LD for two years before exiting for the Milwaukee Rep Theater as their Lighting and Sound Director for four seasons. He stayed in communication with CTC, though, and when the full-time LD position opened up, he was glad to come home to the theater he loves. He is now entering his third season here as LD.
“All in all, I have witnessed some of the best theatrical productions ever in this facility. The attention to detail, from the lighting to the scenery and musical direction (there is an eight-piece orchestra in the pit for this show) are second to none. I doubt a single adult does not enjoy the performances as much as the children in attendance and urge all to check out a show at this facility. There is certainly nothing childish about the production values.”
