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Bonsai Trees Are Afraid
and where we keep the Wicked Witch of the West's feet šŖ
Hello!
Welcome to The Flying P, a weekly newsletter covering your Phipps Center for the Arts and anything else I might want to throw your way.
This issue hasā¦
šØ The Best Shop In Town
so much set building going onš The Best Props In Town
the props, omg the propsš± Plant Success
not dying, thriving

FACILITIES
Our shop rocks

our shop is HUGE
Thereās lots to be proud of at the Phipps, especially when talking about the amazing facilities we enjoy. Today, Iām going to give you a little tour of our fantastic scene shop (we have one of the best in the entire TC metro š).
I hope Kassi doesnāt get grumpy with me for these photos ā theyāre in the process of taking down The Drowsy Chaperone, so the space is a little more cluttered than normal. Sorry, Kassi!

the eyes move šļø
As you can see, the place is HUMONGOUS, and so well organized. Lots of things are saved from show to show, especially flats and other common items that tend to be used in most designs. This helps speed up the next build process because Kassi and the volunteer gang donāt have to keep building the same stuff over and over again.
It also helps the design process, as the scenic designer can put together a design based on what we already have saved in the shop. All of this not only saves time, but also money. Hooray for saving money!

Sister Act anyone?
Weāll also hold on to specialty scenic items that we could potentially reuse or even rent or lend to other theatre-producing organizations. We use something called Basecamp as a sort of āonline catalogā so designers, potential renters, etc. can search our stock and find exactly what they want or need without traveling to Hudson. Convenient!

lotsa signage
Thereās lots more to it, but Iāll leave that to Phipps Community Day, when you can get an actual tour and chat with Kassi and crew about all that goes into making this space work. Itās truly incredible.
PHIPPS TOP 10
best-selling upcoming events this season by tickets soldā¦
1. Prancer (previously: 1)
2. Transyl-Mania (previously: 2)
3. I Am Womanā¦. presented by Lori Dokken (previously: 3)
4. Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society (previously: 4)
5. The Andrews Sisters Onstage: a Jen Burleigh-Bentz production (previously: 8)
6. Colleen Rayeās NYE (previously: 5)
7. Silent Sky (previously: 6)
8. Underneath the Lintel, or: The Mystery of the Abandoned Trousers (previously: 7; 2nd SHOW ADDED)
9. A Brass & Organ Holiday (previously: 9)
10. Kick the Bucket List (previously: 10)
BETTER HURRY LIST
best-selling upcoming events this season by percent sold
(i.e., closest to being sold out)ā¦
1. I Am Womanā¦. presented by Lori Dokken (SOLD OUT)
2. Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society (previously: 3)
3. The Andrews Sisters Onstage: a Jen Burleigh-Bentz production (previously: 4)
4. Underneath the Lintel, or: The Mystery of the Abandoned Trousers (previously: 2; 2nd SHOW ADDED)
5. A Brass & Organ Holiday (previously: 5)
FACILITIES
Donāt count out the props

prop storage is amazingly fun
Just upstairs from the scene shop is prop storage, one of the coolest rooms at the Phipps. This is where we store all our theatrical props.
Thereās a ton of random stuff in here, so organization is key. And once again, the Phipps team nails the organization part. Much like with our scenic elements, all our props are categorized on Basecamp for easy searching (example below š).
a page out of Basecamp

š šŖ
Sometimes a prop is so unique that you just have to make it. For the creation (and maintenance) of props, we have the prop shop.
Here, there are supplies, tools, and space needed to repair or create the props we might need for a production.

the prop shop
![]() so many prop-making materials | ![]() organization is the name of the game |
Prop storage and the prop shop are two more areas youāll be able to tour during Phipps Community Day, so I wonāt toss out any more spoilers. Swing by on April 26th to learn more.

artist: Leslie Carpenter-Holt
š
my favorite gallery piece of the week
This piece is digital photography called Abstract Iris, and itās hanging out in the Atrium Gallery for the next couple of weeks. Check it out!
DEEP DESK DIVE
My peace lily is loving life

this thing is happy
Iām taking a moment to brag about the condition of the peace lily in my office. Six blooms, people. SIX BLOOMS.
I can hear you already: āBen. You need to relax about the peace lily.ā
I will not relax and hereās why:
Iām not the best at keeping plants alive. When I was in college, I killed more bonsai trees than I care to admit. Iām essentially the John Wayne Gacy of bonsai trees.
So, whenever Iām caring for a plant, the ghosts of those dead bonsais haunt me. Will I take a long weekend and forget to water it? What if the soil is wrong? Will I over water this thing? AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
But so far (itās been over a year now), this guy is THRIVING. Maybe Iām not as bad at this as I thought. š

Prancer First Look was a FUN TIME
If youāre still not attending the First Looks, youāre missing out. The photo above is from a portion of the night where Warren Sampson, Prancerās sound designer, took us through a fun audio tour of the upcoming holiday production. Keep an eye on your inbox for an invite to the next First Look!
Are you the smartest PCA person in town?
Prove it by completing The Flying C(rossword).
š

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Talk to you next week!

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