I recently returned from the 24th annual Society of Properties Artisan Managers’ Conference. This year, it was held in Houston, and hosted by the Alley Theatre and Houston Grand Opera. As part of the conference, we were able to tour the prop storage of the Alley.

They have hand props and some commonly used items located in the basement of the theatre itself, located right in downtown Houston.

I’ve been looking for a better way to store my own rugs. This is certainly better than my current method of leaving them in a large pile on the floor, though I do not think I have the wall space to pull this off.

The following day, we headed out to their warehouse, located about twenty minutes away.

The Alley has been producing shows for well over half a century, so it should come as no surprise that they have built up quite the stock of furniture in that time.

Many of us were suitably jealous of the rows and rows of shelving in a well-lit, climate-controlled room, with wide aisles to boot.

A few props were tagged with the name of the show and designer. The tags were actually for a donor event, but they were never removed.

That is all for the Alley. Next week, we will take a look at the Houston Grand Opera.