REHEARSALS: Marking Out the Floor Without Tape

[opheliamuse]

Hello!
The current show that I'm stage managing is rehearsing in two different studios in the same building. One studio, used for music & theatre, which we use the majority of the time, can have tape down on the floor (I've used spike tape). The other, used for dance, cannot. I have heard of a way of marking out the floor using a cardboard template. This wouldn't be too difficult for me to put together, considering we're performing on quite a small stage...The question I have is: if you use a cardboard template how do you attach it to the floor, besides tape? Thanks!

[MatthewShiner]

Why not just a roll of low pile carpet - tape out on the carpet, and unroll for rehearsal.

[Britney]

When I've rehearsed in dance studios we've been provided with a large tarp that covers the floor.  We can tape-out on the tarp and then unroll it to use for rehearsals. This is also handy because it means not having to take your shoes off to rehearse in the dance studio.  I would say tarp rather than carpet because it's not as heavy, but I'm sure carpets have their advantages as well.

Britney

[damjamkato]

The only thing with using a tarp is that it is slightly slippery, and can slide along the floor.  A carpet would stay where you put it.

[MatthewShiner]

Tarp can be slippery - and how do you attach it the floor.

Cardboard is VERY bad - it can be very slippery. 

[Britney]

The tarps I've used are quite large. They are the type one might use to cover a structure to keep it out of the elements; it's not the slick plastic variety, but rather a different type of material. They can bunch on the floor, but since they are so large and heavy-duty I've never had trouble with them moving during rehearsal. When there is furniture and actors on the tarp, it stays put.  I have found them to be slippery if the actors are in their stocking feet, but the rubber soles of sneakers grab very well to the tarp and I've never had an actor fall.
The one downfall for anything that needs to be rolled up and off the floor at the end of the night is that the rolling action gives the tape more chance to come un-stuck.

[klcurrie]

I've used a tarp a number of times (mostly large canvas paint drop cloths) and yes slipping can be a problem.  But if you can invest in a few of those carpet gripping mats (that go under carpets) it helps A LOT.  Between that and strong gaffe tape on the corners to hold it to the floor, I've been ok.  I still wouldn't try to dance or fight on it, but just normal walking is fine.

[ManageThis]

I actually love the idea of using carpet to tape out the stage. I'd have to look into some different types of material with tarps before I'd use it. But the ability to roll up the set taping and move it to another location or get it out of the way for someone else's rehearsal sounds incredible. I'm going to have to talk to my TD about investing in something for our rehearsal spaces where we sometimes have up to four different shows rehearsing (since he keeps renting out our main stage to random events, ugh). This also helps with the problem of painted over tape layers and layers thick on our stage since I'm never informed when the set is being put into place on the stage... It is fun to remove my tape after the show and see what color the stage was before.

[loebtmc]

I really appreciated this timely discussion, because my act 1 set for Is He Dead will be on drop cloths - the act 1 set is on top of the act 2 set and the overlap is being covered by them.

I have, of course, notified costumes and props, but this is an interesting conundrum since the stage won't be level and we will have to figure out how to label the drop for safety!

Will let you know what happens on our end when we get all the pieces together -

[EFMcMullen]

In college, we rehearsed in a different room, on a different part of campus every night, so I outlined the set with 1/4" ribbon and stitched the shapes together.  That way it was easy to pack into a bag at night and carry around and the next day just stretch it out in the next room.  I do have to say that was a set with nine various rectangular platforms, so I was sewing squares.  I don't know if I would use this method if the set piece were a castle or the like.

[katykat29]

I've done something similar with cheap plastic rope.  I marked the bend points and the center, when I got to the rehearsal space, I'd measure from center and tape it down with painter's tape.  It worked well, wasn't *too* time consuming, and make the actors very aware of the edges of set pieces.  However, this method only works really well with sets with straight lines and simple angles.

[ScooterSM]

I have in the past (in a space owned by my organization) used Plaid brand dimensional fabric paint to mark out the floor in a rehearsal space that is shared with dancers.  The paint doesn't get pulled up by the pointe shoes, but comes off of the Marley with some Simple Green cleaner and a plastic scrubber (like you would use in the shower).  It did not damage our floor, and I have painted and removed several different sets in the same space.  It typically takes about 12 hrs for a complete set to dry.  We did paint dance numbers in the same room and it dried in a couple hours.

If you try this PLEASE TEST it several times on a scrape of your specific flooring to make sure it won't damage the floor in anyway BEFORE you go for the whole set.