So much for my thought that I would keep up in here…for that matter, so much for my thoughts of keeping up at all.
Although, there is no alternative, is there?
Today, I’m feeling a little beaten up by work. And I think, is it work or is it me beating me up? Even with the help of 4 parents to help run the show, I’m still feeling a bit behind.
I got an email this morning because my rosters are a week behind in being updated online. A parent was frustrated that her daughter was showing an absence she knew she’d made up. The child got the credit for the rehearsal in my paper roster, but the online one the boss sees just wasn’t my top priority. Ticketing (Human Tetris) 3 venues for upcoming performances was.
This year it seems that everyone and their brother had some kind of conflict, which resulted in hours of emails and a spreadsheet of people’s specific schedules that requires massive scrolling to get through. It required two people to check and recheck programs to be sure each singer was on the correct program for the correct venue and that all names were spelled properly. All this switching around also means that seating charts and reserved seating for performers be arranged and only after that is done can I begin to assign seats to guests.
The moans and groans I hear from families who don’t get front and center seats is depressing. I literally worked 3, 18 hour days to complete ticketing. I look at vocal parts and seat parents opposite their child’s section in the chorus so they can see their kid sing. With the size of our largest chorus creating a U shape on our stage, I take special care to be sure everyone has a good seat. I weed through the graduating singers and place their guests in prime seating since it’s their last concert. I make sure every person who writes a special request for a certain seat due to a certain ailment gets exactly what they want, and I seat families with small children closer to the stage so their parents can see their little faces, and older singer’s families are mid theater to the back so the booming sound of our larger singers easily reaches their families in the farthest rows. Why a parent of the older singers would even want to sit in the front rows is beyond me. Do the dynamics of sound not enter their thoughts? This beautiful music would shoot right over their heads and they’d miss the subtlety of the harmonious joining of voices and instead hear the individual strong voices of the singers.
I know that most people haven’t a clue as to what I do and for the most part, it’s not necessary that they do. As long as they are enjoying the experience, then that’s the goal. But when I feel I’ve given such a large effort to help create a positive experience and the only thing I hear is complaining… well… even this happy camper can feel a bit kicked.
However! Today is a new day and I understand that you choose the way you feel. Perhaps I should look at my care in seating with a sense of accomplishment instead. I essentially did what normally takes me a week to do in 3 days and I got programs out despite changes and I got the France chaperons started on their paths – since we leave in 58 days – and I got proposals for the next trip in 2015 to ponder. I answered hundreds of emails, sent mass mailings out about changes and reminders for performances and I scheduled over 200 students for their vocal checks/re-auditions. I even successfully navigated another off-site performance with dubious weather and tricky logistics this past week. So on the whole, I feel my workload this week has been handled pretty damn well. And for the next person who complains about a seat that’s slightly to the left, I may just direct them to this blog so they can see that left of center isn’t the worst place to be.
Snippets and Tidbits 