Y’all! Hell week for theater is no joke. I’ve been through many hell weeks with my youngest, but for some reason, this one kicked my butt.

For those of you who are asking what hell week is, let me give you a little insight. Hell week is a little different depending on your performing type. However, the basics are this: It is the last week leading to the start of the performances. It includes longer practices, tech rehearsals, dress rehearsals, and the first show or five.

The most affected are the performers and the rest of the supporting staff. That supporting staff is different based on the type of performance being done. Sometimes it is the dance teachers, sometimes it is the director.

My youngest has danced for many years. Hell week for dance includes longer practices on occasion but always includes a tech rehearsal and a dress rehearsal. Then there is somewhere between one and five shows. For her, it depends on the year. In years past, she has been in every single recital show, making for long days. Recently, she has pared down the amount of classes she is taking, so she is usually only in one or two shows.

Then there is ballet production, which is still dance, but takes on a different feel since it is one big production with many different levels working together. There are longer rehearsals with all the levels coming together. Then there are two tech rehearsals, a dress rehearsal, and then two to three shows.

This last week was musical theater hell week. We have been through theater hell week a few times at this point. This was our first musical hell week. There is a bit of a different feel. Maybe it only seemed that way because it coincided with our car troubles. It took everything out of me.

I didn’t get much of anything done and needed a few days to recover. Everything outside of the theater took a hit. This includes my blog. My goal to not miss a single day fell by the wayside as I just tried to get through each day.

I am working on a plan to make sure that doesn’t happen again with the next two hell weeks coming up. We have one in April and another in May. I would like to not fall off the blogging wagon for a whole week again.

I apologize to my readers for the break. I am back. Thank you for your continued support.

Words from my youngest about hell week:

“It sucks, and it is amazing. It takes everything out of you and you can’t wait for it to be over. But then it is over, and you’re sad because it is a while until the next one.”

Do you have experience with hell week? What did you love or hate about it?