Miracle on 34th street production

7/12/18
Miracle on 34th street day 1

Today was the first day of the first show for Miracle in 34th street. I prepared for this day by packing my back the night before ensuring I had packed anything I may need for the day ahead of me and also by washing my makeup brushes to make sure I was being professional making everything hygienic  I also asked the class if anyone had any questions and answered any concerns to make sure everyone felt comfortable with the day ahead of them. I went though all the schedules and made sure I knew exactly what was going to be happening the next day.

I woke up bright and early the next morning to make sure I was prepared and ready to go. I wanted to make sure I was on time or even earlier than needed to get everything ready and set up. Once arriving I met up with the other makeup artists (a lot of them stressed) and made sure everyone felt okay about the plan of the day. I explained about the hardest worker certificates I had made. I made these to build the excitement of the day give them something to be motivated to aim for.

We then got told from the director that the clown makeup needed to be changed as it was to complex as the clowns required a lot of quick changes. I quickly worked with my fellow head of department Caitlin to make a new design. I think we work very well together with this as we accepted each other's opinions and took in a lot of additional information about what was wanted and needed. We changed the design and explained to the MUAs know the design fully. I practiced on a fellow MUA to make sure they all knew what they were supposed to make it look like.

I also had to problem solve a lot today as obviously with a first show there still changes to be made while the production was in the process to make the production run smoother. Today there was no room available for the makeup artists. We set up in a corridor in the morning and got moved just before we started the makeup. I had to calmly go and talk to the director and explain what happened. I made sure I spoke clearly and calmly because she was very stressed trying to organize the shows for the day. We then got told we could use the theatre for makeup while it wasn't in use. This meant we only have 40 minutes to do all the makeups. I used time management and leadership skills to help other MUAs to make sure they were on time and getting things done right.
This also meant I had to keep a eye out while we were in the corridor, making sure there was no health and safety risks which also took my time and care.

I also problem solved in quick changes! We realized while running through the show that some of the performers in the show needed different makeup added throughout. However, we realized there was no backstage as the way the staged is laid out there is a gap in between both sides of the stage for the sleigh to come out in the parade in the second scene. I talked with the cast and we spoke about what is the best way to do it. We made a plan of me waiting at the side of the stages for the Performer to come off, I do his makeup fast and leave across the stage in a blackout so the audience won't see me. This worked very well and we will reuse this technique in the production.


Another problem I solved was one of the clown's wigs needed the elastic sewing in it. I tried my best by sewing it on using the practice I learned from last year and attached the elastic to the netting. I think it went quite well as it has not fallen off or broke.

Throughout the day I asked MUAs if they needed any assistance, I spoke in front of a large group of people to organize what was happening and let them know where they needed to be and when and I also feel like I shows a lot of leadership skills by making everyone feel at ease and happy and that they knew what they were supposed to be doing and when. lastly, we handed out our hardest worker certificate to a MUA called Bernie. This made her very excited and it made everyone spirits higher after a long hard day of work.