SHOWS: Chicago

[BlueRidgeSM]

Hi all, I know I've been absent for a while, but now I'm back!   

I'm getting ready to open a production of Chicago a week from Friday.  We have two more rehearsals, dry tech on Saturday, and cue to cue plus a run on Sunday.  I will admit I am slightly nervous about tech for this show because I have seen zero info about light cues so far and I get the feeling that there will be A LOT of them.

But my question is actually about sound.  For those who know the show, Chicago has a lot of "announcement" type things usually done by an Emcee.  Originally our Emcee was going to be the band director, as the band is onstage, so the announcements would be read live by the band director.  However, this was nixed a few days ago by our director because a) the band director is not comfortable with memorizing lines and he has enough going on and b) he will be missing two performances anyway and we'll have a guest conductor. 

So the new plan is to record these announcements and play them as sound cues.  However, currently the sound guy is lobbying to just play the announcements from a CD at his position.   Now, in this theatre I'm in the booth with my light board op.  We typically don't get a sound board op for sound cues, I just play all sound cues using a computer in the booth.  The live sound guy is located in the house and he is typically not on headset.  In an emergency I can reach him via one of my spot ops (one of the spot towers is directly over the live sound position) but it's not optimal.  EVERYONE (sound guy, director, assistant director) seems to think that sound guy playing the cues from a CD at his position will make things easier for me.  I don't know yet, but I fear that it won't because then I will be unable to coordinate the light cues with these announcements.  If there were only one or two of them, it might work, but there are A LOT of them and they pretty much open almost every musical number in the show.  Now, having me run them would add a lot to what I've got going on (again, already nervous about lights) but I'm willing and able to do it if it will make the performance better.

Sound guy isn't planning on miking actors until Tue of tech week, so now I'm concerned about me learning light cues on Sun, calling only light cues Sun and Mon, and then suddenly having him try to run sound cues Tue and all of us going "huh, this isn't working" and then I have ONE NIGHT on Wed to call both sound and light cues before we get our first preview audience on Thursday.  I don't want to come across as a controlling diva and I also don't want to give the sound guy the impression that I think he's incompetent or anything like that.  I've worked with him before and he's by far the best sound guy I've worked with (this is community theatre, but still).  I am just getting nervous about trying to add sound at the last minute and everyone going "oh wait, this won't work" and then I have to change all the cues the night before the first preview.

Thoughts?  Advice? 

Thanks,

Beth

[MatthewShiner]

You are going to have a lot to do with the light cues, maybe giving up the sound cues is the way to go.  As far as syncing things up, it wouldn't be much different then calling cues off a live performer, right?  And if you go into tech knowing this, there are tricks around it.

I would recommend you set up a cue light to your mixer / sound operator, so if you need to cue, you can cue via the cue lights.

And adding in sound cues the last rehearsal is nothing, by then you will know the lights.  (I once had to call spot cues for an Opera - that were added mid way through Act 2 of the final dress - so opening night, four spot ops who had never seen the show, talking them through.)

Let it go, since everyone, including yourself, thinks the sound op has a chance at making this work.

[LizzG]

I agree that setting the sound guy up with a cue light is the way to go.  This way you can cue everything.  Also, if you are worried about communication, you can set him up with a comm pack and a phone headset instead of a normal headset.  If you need him, you can press the call button, and he can pick up the phone easily.  Just make sure the comm pack is in a position where he can see the call light. 

Our sound guy has the call button wired into his board somehow, so when we hit the call button, it lights up on his board.  Pretty nifty.

[BlueRidgeSM]

I have actually never used a cue light before and I'm not sure if this theatre has them available.  I'll find out.

I think we may already be at our max for headsets on this show.  Typically the sound guy doesn't have one because we are already using six on this show (which I think is our max unless there is a mysterious seventh headset out there somewhere).  In the booth I've got one and so does the light board op, then both follow spot ops have one, and then my two ASMs (SL and SR).  That's six.  I will check with the TD and see if we have more.

On Monday night we were talking about sound guy "taking the cues off the lights" as in I'd take a light cue and he'd then follow with the sound, but again I don't know how feasible that is as I haven't seen any of the lights at all yet so don't know if the changes would be noticeable enough.  I've worked with this LD before and he sometimes has what I call "fake cues" where there is a cue and I take it but honestly I cannot notice any difference at all onstage.  No problem with that, he's the designer, I just note in my book (usually I write "sneaky!" out to the side  but if we've got any of those going on it could be a problem if he's trying to take sound cues off them.

[MatthewShiner]

for a show being mixed live and having playback cues, there are usually only two options -

either have the operator take them on the own
or
the cue light

I have a very inexpensive cue light system in my rehearsal hall right now (don't ask why I need a cue light in the rehearsal hall) but it's two run lights plugged into an extension cord run to a surge protector that has a light up on/off switch.  On the cheap, easy, and works for something basic.  Usually the LX department can rig up something VERY quickly for a SM.

[BlueRidgeSM]

I've done live mixed shows at this theatre before, and I have always previously run recorded cues on my own from the booth and the live mixer only deals with live sound.  Not saying that's the "right" method but that's the way I've always done it at this particular theatre.  I wasn't really aware there were other options.  I've sent the TD an email about cue lights to see what she thinks and we'll go from there!

[LizzG]

(side note - I know you said don't ask, but why do you have a cue light in the rehearsal hall?)

[loebtmc]

cue lights are easy, cheap, and the standard way to go so there shd be no ego issues - and assuming you will need to tie it to light or other cues, also makes the most sense . Turn it on for standby, then off for go

[MatthewShiner]

the musical I am working on has spoken words that need to be timed off physical actions; the actor is trapped in a booth and can't see the action.  Seriously, I have more tech support then I need - a rehearsal with both a sound engineer/mixer and an A2 . . . a cue light is nothing.