When the curtain rises tonight, the actors onstage will not be the only ones with a hand in theproduction. Even though "Richard III" has stadiumseating, there is still a production team in thewings. From the producers and stage manager to thelight ops, there are over 70 members of the"Richard III" production team.

But while the actors have been working togethersince March, most of the crew joined only in thepast few weeks.

What is it like to mesh together the cast andthe crew late in the game?

"It's like when you bring a picture you drew inschool home to your parents and you want them toapprove of it," says set designer Scully. "Youalways like someone to validate your work," namelythe actors, in this case.

The set is one of the more risky aspects thisshow, which features stadium seating, an exitbeneath the stage (the aforementioned "pit") andcocoa-shell mulch, posing as dirt, on the floor.

According to Scully, stadium seating has notbeen used at the Loeb since about 1980.

"It presents a whole new set of problems [inexecution,]" he says.

With stadium seating, the actors are surroundedby the audience on both sides.

"It's sort of giving the Mainstage the feelingof a black box," Gfaller says. Black box theatresare flexible in design and can change to fitalmost any type of set. Like Harvard's Loeb Ex,most black boxes host experimental, short-runproductions.

Actors say the stadium seating was a challengebecause they need to make themselves heard on allfour sides. Some say the setting makes them feelvulnerable, since they can not hide from theaudience's eyes.

"It's a real challenge to be both subtle and[be] heard at the same time," Juri Henley Cohn '00says.

"Stadium seating] makes me think big," Henry D.Clarke '00 says. "You have to talk out of yourback, you really do."

After becoming accustomed to the set, someactors called it "thrilling."

"I like having people all over the place,"Clarke adds. "Hopefully it will make the audiencefeel like more a part of the show."

Tripletake