An annual West Michigan tradition returns this week with the 21st D&W Fresh Market Picnic Pops. The Grand Rapids Symphony has been hard at work at Cannonsburg Ski Area to set the scene since June 29. This timelapse video was recorded by GRS videographer Marty Hogan from his tent on the Cannonsburg slopes. It illustrates the logistics, details and manpower that go into making Picnic Pops possible.
As the video shows, there are multiple stages involved in preparing for the GRS's summer season. It begins with the installation of the orchestra shell, the curved structure designed to reflect the sounds of the orchestra toward the audience. For most of the year, the Picnic Pops shell is stored off-site, as it is not a permanent structure on the Cannonsburg grounds. It takes about 15 people to install the shell's frame.
Next, the stage deck (where the musicians perform) and the table seating deck in front of the stage are built in two eight-hour shifts. Load in of all the audio and visual equipment follows. Finally, all of the tents, tables, chairs and other Picnic Pops amenities are delivered by vendors and set up by Symphony staff and volunteers. Cannonsburg Ski Area is then ready to welcome the guest artists and orchestra musicians to the stage for the first Picnic Pops rehearsal!