The stage is transformed with a white picket fence and wheelbarrow giving off the authentic look of a home in Kansas. The scene changes, and quickly becomes a sparkling yellow brick road, lined with flowers and trees. It transitions again and now everything is green; its the Emerald City. The crowd is excited to see the performance, but what they do not realize is the amount of work that goes into a Perry theater performance.

There were hours leading into days, into weeks of work in preparing and making the set for the latest school play, The Wizard of Oz. Still, they were limited with the time they had to prepare a set compared to the one they made for Addams Family. In Addams Family they had close to nine weeks versus close to six.

“We haven’t had all the tech people show up that we need, so we’ve had some of the actors help out with tech,” says senior tech assistant Alex Duford.

“They’ve really stepped up because of Addams and understanding now how important our job is and how stressful it can be,” states sophomore tech student Maya Whitaker.

Putting on a great show takes more than having talented actors, which Perry definitely has considering our state titles in theater. “In order to get the full effect of theater, you have to be immersed inside the world. And without the set and costumes and everyone that’s in tech, an audience member would not be able to feel themselves as if they were fully immersed in the world,” remarks sophomore tech volunteer Rachael Sharp.

There are many roles to be filled when putting on a show. There are light techies, shifters, costume and makeup artists, stage managers, and many more people helping to full fill their role in making an awe striking show. When going to a play it is important to remember how much work, time, and dedication the theater students put into the show. A big part of what makes a play so great is tech and that should never be overlooked.