I'm not officially a local 1, but I have enough experience from the shop and running around with friends consulting in the city on projects that I've seen my fair share.... my first reaction is if by dock you mean 40 something street at some ungodly hour of overnight when we can get a street permit to be able to unload a truck we can start there.... that's getting a truck to the
venue on time after it getting stuck in traffic in the tunnel for who knows how long because the bridge was under construction and was going to take longer. Then the forkliftS that's right multiple to get it off the truck and onto the sidewalk, please the sidewalk and not the street....
After that it's not so bad. It's an exact art and a science to
build everything in the shop as much as possible to fit it through the "dock" door. What most passer by's wouldn't realize is that they often walk right by a door that leads directly onto
stage or maybe into a light lock and then onto
stage, but rare. Most houses have a custom ramp that gets them up from the sidewalk to
deck height and then you're in. Most of the Broadway houses exist before lifts and most decks are actually at "street"
level and the houses were carved out inside lowering the seats so that the
stage appears elevated.
The houses to watch out for are the offstage venues that have been shoehorned into who knows where.
Theatre Row and New World
Stage are examples of venues we all work in that we wish we didn't have to load anything in / out. Everything EVERYTHING is below grade and only accessible via lifts. By lifts I mean it fits in the lift, or you get your gym workout in in carrying it down the stairs or
build it when you get there. Always prepare for stairs. There are always stairs.
@MRW Lights THANK YOU for a GREAT START.
Please go on; explain about the joys of parking your 7 x 53' out in the boonies; down to earth (paved parking
level) corral ing everything, double diagonal'ing many items into too MANY 24' or 26' box trucks with their rear doors not quite closed Red flags and Police escorts to get them in and out of downtown.
Add the the off duty police you're paying to keep close watch on the:
9 Pinball machines
7 Motorcycles
and the host of other
(shiny attractive trinkets the urchins of the night are ITCHING to help you carry)
props you're trying to keep within your allowed length of sidewalk.
The sheer number of IA one lads you're paying to unload from your now endless parade of double diagonally packed box trucks with their loads hanging out the back and Red Flagged being escorted in and out of town by teams of NYPD motorcycle cops.
ADD the other herd of IA lasses and laddies who're picking from amongst your
props on the sidewalk and carrying them into the Shubert's
lobby and marshaling them there for the 3rd herd of local 1's finest, the more senior who remain in the
theatre where they and their shoes remain dry rather than soaked by the rain the rest of us are working in.
The 1/4" ply + tarps protecting the
lobby's 'publicly presentable ' carpet from the feet of the poor DRENCHED 'lesser Goddesses and Gods who are working out in the rain all night.
Don't forget the fourth crew of even more insignificant offspring who're out in the boonies off loading your seven 53's into the endless parade of 24's and 26'
ers driving laps to 'n fro' a parking lot in New Jersey and the HEART of Broadway.
Don't forget how many extra hands you're paying to avoid pushing any one person past their mandatory Meal, Coffee, and washroom breaks.
Add the carefully coordinated parade of vending vehicles travelling to 'n fro' to make sure everyone can have their breaks including Gluten Free and other allergic requirements. The additional motor cycle cops circling in teams of two police escorting the vending trucks.
Appreciate the hours you began paying the crews in New Jersey who're eventually the first to end their calls.
Realize some of them have sufficient seniority to drive into downtown and 'bump' their kin to maximize their incomes.
Do all of this in the heart of Times Square where the New York Times are running their 12 or 14 presses NON STOP 24 / 7 with their own parade of trucks driving laps toting paper to feed their presses AND their second parade of trucks to rush papers to news distributors and airports.
To put a little icing on the cake:
The Shubert's long serving and VERY senior Head
House Carpenter had retired and worked his last
call the day before.
His replacement was a SENIOR gentleman ~75 who was only ever referred to as "Doc".
I NEVER saw "Doc" other than when he rolled in hours after the rest of us, sat it his comfy recliner USLC drinking coffee for several hours, then departed for the remainder of his day.
Doc' had done many, MANY,
MANY, load ins over the course of his career.
This was Doc's 1st
load in in his new
theatre. An ENDLESS parade of very senior Local 1 members paraded through to 'Rag the excrement out of Doc' on the occasion of his 1st
load in; 1st in his new
theatre, but clearly not Doc's first.
The endless parade of visitors attending to pay their respects included senior members with surnames like
Altman, Feller, and other brothers you've possibly heard of.
Try loading your show into the Shubert when the ever growing circle of stools, office chairs, stacking chairs, et al was expanding exponentially as visitors dropped by with mysterious little brown bags for Doc' to dilute his coffee and then hung around for 2 to 3 hours to "Help" Doc' through his first
load in.
Deck space was at a premium, not even the senior local 1 members assigned to Head our various departments were willing to crowd Doc's circle of willing "Helpers".
It was fun and a great tribute to Doc'; Oh how much valuable
stage space Doc's enclave occupied.
Then, almost as suddenly as they appeared: The ENTIRE gathering dispersed leaving only 2 or 3 dozen chairs, along with brown bags, beer can ash trays, and the remnants of a great party behind.
That sorta covers loading in and thank you
@MRW Lights for breaking the ice; if a geezer from North of Donnie's walls told this tale, fewer than zero readers would find it even remotely credible.
Now, PLEASE, someone post a little about the
Stage Door's of the Seven Sisters, the interesting path to them and even more interesting accommodations afforded their
Stage Door guards.
PLEASE! BRING IT ON!!
