VAN PRIEST AUDITORIUM – DEC 2
We arrived at the Van Priest Auditorium in Madison prepared for a challenging day. Â We’ve not performed here in the past and there were some questions about our technical requirements that had us concerned. As it turned out, things came together very well…starting with load in.
Once into the theatre, everyone went to work. Â Cindy started on her incredibly busy day of putting together the details; Ethan started unloading cases, assembling illusions, and getting his stuff together; Keith headed to the tech booth to get the light board set and patched as well as the sound pulled together; I worked with the crew to get the soft goods hung and the intelligent lighting in place. Â Before we knew it, we were a couple of hours into the day and things were going well enough for a quick lunch break!
After lunch, we hit it hard again to finish up and get ready for tech rehearsal by 5pm. Â When shows start at 7pm, the day goes way fast!
The crowd here is typically an “audience of retired people.” Â That’s the way it was described to me. Â But Kim, the person in charge, told us early in the day that they have had a tremendous amount of interest from college students for this event. Â When the doors opened at 6:30pm, the mix of the audience was perfect – lots of families, tons of college students, and the traditional Florida senior citizen audience. Â From the very first illusion, the audience was enthusiastic and responsive. Â It was a real pleasure performing for these guys!!
Afterwards, I met lots of people, got my picture taken with many of them and picked up a few FaceBook friends along the way.
FLORIDA MOTOR CARRIER EPISODE
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know that we are constantly trying to understand the FMCSA (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration) rules and regulations. Â The problem is, most of the officers don’t seem to understand them because we are constantly being told different things. Â In the past three years, I’ve obtained a Class A Commercial Driver’s License and undergone a complete compliance review by the FMCSA (a 6 hour ordeal). Â Just when I thought I had everything under control, today I drove through the Weigh Scales on Interstate 10 only to be pulled over and questioned for an hour. Â Seems they really don’t like the classification of my truck (or the way the Commonwealth of Virginia registers it). Â I finally told them that I wasn’t being dishonest and that I understood that they were just doing their job; however, after 12 years of driving through Florida, this was the first time I had been told I needed “special permits.” Â After some strong discussions (and a few urgent prayers), they gave me back my license and registrations and sent me on my way. Â I did stop and purchase the required permits for $145 – which is a considerable savings over the $2500 fine I could have gotten (thank you guys!).
Now, we’re in Fort Pierce for our show here on Thursday at the Sunrise Theatre for Performing Arts.