One Man Manages Hundreds Of Props In 'Matilda The Musical'

DENVER (CBS4) - Matilda may be a little girl, but 'Matilda the Musical' is a big show with a lot of props that are all the responsibility of one man. Critic at Large Greg Moody went backstage in San Francisco to meet him.

When Gardner Friscia is happy that means the cast of 'Matilda' is happy as well. Because that means that the props -- hundreds and hundreds of props -- are all in the right place and ready to go.

And the props are everywhere.

"It's a fairly big show. We travel in seven trucks and it takes about 20 hours to set up," Friscia said.

Moody asked Friscia if set up is a "well-oiled machine."

"It's getting there. This is only our third city, so like everything else it takes time to get everything worked out, but we're getting there," he said.

So when Friscia is happy everyone knows it will be a good night on stage, but on the other hand when Friscia isn't happy, they just make him so anyway and the show goes on.

'Matilda the Musical' opens Sept. 9 at the Buell Theater and runs through the Sept. 20. Tickets are going fast so visit denvercenter.org to get them soon.