While the singers, dancers and actors have been working hard to put the story of the Addams Family together for the 12 weeks 40 technical team members have been working hard on making the show look good. From makeup and costumes to lighting and sound, the tech department has been working behind the scenes of every rehearsal.

Tech is split into many moving parts. To prepare the stage for opening night, the crew, under the direction of Mr. Damon Norko and senior Katy Quirolgico built the set pieces, painted, and hung various props. Katy Quirolgico is the set designer and has been leading the crew as they drill, saw and hammer together the set.

“The set is very grand. We call it the ‘grand hall’ for a reason,” said Quirolgico. “The audience should be excited for Pugsley’s torture wheel because it took a lot of time to design, and we used tools we had not used before. It is a set piece you would not see in any other show.”

While Quirolgico has been dealing with the huge parts of the building. The costume department has been working hard to help prepare the actors for opening by fitting actors into different creepy costumes.

Brenna Lindsay is the head of the costume department. “The costumes are very individualized because each character, including those in the ensemble, have a different job and a different background,” said Lindsay.

Working with the costume department is the makeup department who has been dealing with the costume department and the actors to get just the right look for the stage.

Abbie Maloid and Sara Brady have been in charge of the the makeup.

“The makeup is not necessarily dark, but it is dark and ghostly,” said Maloid. “The amount of makeup in this show is very shocking, and I think the audience will really enjoy the different looks.”

The run-crew dresses in all black like theater-ninjas to move set pieces on and off stage. Each side of the stage has its own independent run-crew who are led by a student known as the wing head. The wing heads in the Addams Family are Rozmia Fattah and Sarah Jameson. The brain that puts these two sides together is the stage manager, Marta Madrid.

“The wing heads are very responsible people who always have to be two scenes ahead of what is going on stage,” said Madrid.

Marta has done tech for 14 shows at Linganore. Madrid plans to go to college to study stage production and management.

“We have the opportunity to do things by ourselves in tech. We do not necessarily have teachers leading us, and, while we encounter challenges throughout the production, we all come together to make things work,” said Madrid.

Up in the mezzanine there is a small booth with all the equipment to run the sound and lights for the show. Inside the booth is Angela Smithhisler and a handful of students who deal with the microphones, sound effects, and light changes. Those students include Marta Madrid the stage manager, Allyson Ecklof the sound manager, and Kayla Dungan the light technician.

“The random sound effects add flare to the show,” said Ecklof. “There are a lot of sound effects and most cause a laugh.”

The Addams Family will open on April 6th at 7:00. Shows are also on April 7 at 7:00, April 8 at 2:00 and 7:00, and April 9 at 2:00. Tickets can be purchased online or at the door.