Messages

1156

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: I need some serious help!

« on: Apr 04, 2007, 02:01 pm »

just corroborating dramachic5191) (I seem to be doing that a lot lately) - I do a lot of new works and the script isn't frozen until opening nite. But that can be true with traditional works as well. In fact, one well-known director with major Broadway credits is notorious for his SM saying "stop! you can't fix any longer. we have to let in our opening nite audience, the house was supposed to be open 15 minutes ago, we have to freeze the show NOW"

and (depending on the contract and if it IS an original) even then, small tweaks are allowed afterward. So, in addition to a much-needed company meeting-cum-vent session, it may make them feel better to know that, indeed, this IS how real, professional theater works.

1157

Employment / Re: Job Reference

« on: Apr 04, 2007, 01:54 pm »

actually,

 "I think person A is terrible and you shouldn't hire them"

IS slander and/or libel - you are telling someone else how to hire (or not) and your opinion of their character is not the same as your opinion of their work

No, sorry to say it's not slander.  .

Just to be clear, yes it IS slander. The minute you say "you shouldn't hire them" you have overstepped your bounds. Saying the person is terrible can be construed as slander without anything backing it up, and beyond being a bad way to chat abt someone, suggests that your opinion is colored by an emotional reponse that has nothing to do with their job capabilities, since it is a subjective statement and not substantiated.

To say "this person did not show up on time despite multiple warnings" or "this actor refused to try anything the director asked" is different because you are giving clear examples of what caused you to give a less-than-glowing review. But even that is tempered by circumstance. The actor who wouldn't take direction may, in fact, be a terrific director - or I may think that in fact, (altho he certainly was wrong to not trying the director's ideas) this actor was frustrated because the director was an idiot or didn't know how to explain what he wanted or that the actor's ideas were great ones and showed his strength lay in a different arena. Similarly, the techie who never came on time may be a fabulous designer - and heaven knows there's one I've worked with several times whose call is always backed up so he will be there when we need him instead of an hour later - but call times are less of an issue with a designer. So a reference is colored by the job for which they are applying

I agree with and follow Matthew's model. You can't get into trouble for what you don't say, and your word is weighted by the professionalism with which you give it. What is left out, what is read between the lines, is easy to make clear.

1158

Employment / Re: Job Reference

« on: Apr 03, 2007, 11:50 pm »

actually,

 "I think person A is terrible and you shouldn't hire them"

IS slander and/or libel - you are telling someone else how to hire (or not) and your opinion of their character is not the same as your opinion of their work

 "Person A quit without giving me notice, I wouldn't hire them"
is closer to a valid reference. You CAN say "person A quit without giving me notice" and as long as you stop there, you are fine.  Unless asked, I wouldn't volunteer that I wouldn't hire that person again.

Having had to deal w this more than a few times - with actors and crew members - the rule of thumb is as much what you DON'T say as what you do. A neutral or lukewarm reference says much more about the person than an outright blast. Also, your ability to give a calm and unbiased report says a great deal about your professionalism and hence the validity of your opinion.  If you phrase as dramachic5191 did, the interviewer knows you saw that person as a student who was in the growth process, you fully expect them to learn from their mistakes and you might hire w them again once they have some experiences under their respective belts. 

The libel issue is about you affecting their long-term ability to work. Everyone has a bad match, a bad day, a bad show. Does that mean he or she is a terrible person or a nonprofessional? Even if you think the answer is "yes" we have to do a reality check and separate the subjective from the objective.  I have worked w folks I won't again - but it isn't my place to talk about it. Someone else may be a bettter match and get work from them I couldn't, just as I have created crack teams out of people who (I was told later) no one believed would ever accomplish anything constructive.

That said, if someone I don't think is capable is obtuse enough to list me as a reference, I will be honest in the nicest way - and any good professional will respect my tact and professionalism and as well be able to clearly read between the lines.

1159

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: YAle Short Hand

« on: Mar 26, 2007, 01:17 pm »

Thanks for the link - in fact, a lot of those are shorthand I use (some w variations, for example my kneel and rise are reverses of the Kneel sign) - and I was gifted/stole some great shorthand from Annie at the Pasadena Playhouse. I love signs that take one stroke....

1160

The Hardline / Re: Travel Stipend/Reimbursement (LORT)

« on: Mar 23, 2007, 04:24 pm »

is this LOA to LORT D? I don't have the mileage in my head (VSM?) but it's around 30-40 miles - and you can negotiate a stipend for gas or mileage above the salary - (common sense - mileage will be more money but if the company can't afford it you won't get it) - estimate how much it will cost you in gas and time to do the RT (in traffic? on a freeway? sidestreets? what's your mpg?etc) and walk in the door with the a reasonable figure based on your own research. (Know your range, ask for the high end, know what the low end is.) Some companies are intimidated by the rule books and depending on what kind of concession they negotiated and how close your salary is to full LORT you will know what kind of compromise makes sense to you that they will accept.

And are you willing to do this if they don't offer you a gas stipend?

1161

Tools of the Trade / Re: Anyone have to pre-rig milk cartons?

« on: Mar 16, 2007, 01:09 pm »

Thanks for all the great ideas - we tried double-sided tape and velcro before I hit the thread, and the minute it turns, the carton leaks (mind you, we did try it over a sink, not in the briefcase)

the paper or binder clip sounds great, and our alternative is the young actor finding a way to open it for him. Which is an ideal solution as far as I am concerned (lo-tech rules!)

the reasons we were pre-opening included the difficulty in opening, but also the actor doing the drinking NEEDS to have skim milk and it's actually quite a challenge to find the cartons in skim (rather than reduced fat or whole) so we had hoped to have a regular carton with the fluid replaced with skim (or, better, water)

but for the meantime, hopefully we are solved

1162

Tools of the Trade / Re: Anyone have to pre-rig milk cartons?

« on: Mar 15, 2007, 06:50 pm »

funny, we just talked abt binder clips - great idea - we are still bouncing stuff around and figuring out how to compartmentalize and/or swap out the milk carton - I will report on whatever the conclusion ends up just in case someone else ever needs something like that -

thanks - and please keep those ideas coming!

1163

Tools of the Trade / Re: Anyone have to pre-rig milk cartons?

« on: Mar 15, 2007, 02:04 am »

tried that first - older high-maintenance actor wants his water/milk/whatever to help with the sandwich he has to eat (I think I have convinced him that it doesnt' have to be roast beef, just bread with something like cheese or lettuce between, but we are still working on that) - THAT is a lot easier to deal wtih than the milk, tho.

1164

College and Graduate Studies / Re: BA or BFA

« on: Mar 15, 2007, 01:49 am »

you can find several threads covering variations of this discussion including all the pros and cons, but I gotta say, every show that makes me wonder what I would have learned had I taken a stage management degree, I also am grateful for my liberal arts background. The fact that I can help the folks in the last three (THREE) shows pronounce words in foreign languages... My classes in world history and geography and general knowledge of all kinds consistently help me with every aspect of a show. Get general knowledge of many things. You can always specialize later.

1165

Tools of the Trade / Re: Anyone have to pre-rig milk cartons?

« on: Mar 15, 2007, 01:41 am »

The director is a mamet purist. The script says lunch BAG, not BOX, so the milk is inside the lunch bag is inside the briefcase rolling around until the character opens it and pulls out the milk. The reason we are using a carton is for the time period, that the most common way he would have brought milk would be in a carton, not in a thermos or bottle with cap or other much easier method of dealing. And the milk gets drunk onstage every nite. AND, if you've ever tried to open one of those things as an adult, esp as a senior (who has to open it) it's trickier than you remember.

I would love to rig something inside the briefcase but the milk has to lay on its side, whatever is  holding it closed gets wet and then, well, we leak.

I would love a pull-top bottle, or a screw-lid, or something I can manipulate, but the director wants this. And our job is to say yes until we can prove it can't be done. So I love all  these suggestions, maybe one of them will spark something that will solve this dilemma before we see audience.

Thank you all - keep sending ideas!

1166

Tools of the Trade / Anyone have to pre-rig milk cartons?

« on: Mar 14, 2007, 09:37 pm »

I need some ideas and  help for this.

This is a small production of Mamet's Squirrels, set when the play was written in 1974. One actor has to carry his lunch inside his briefcase, and it (natch) gets bounced around. In that lunch is a small school-size wax carton of milk which, because it gets drunk nitely, needs to be rigged cuz those cartons don't open easily. And he needs the water (or whatever) inside. But if we pre-open it, it spills inside the case.

Because this is 1974 they are reluctant to use a screw-top plastic bottle.

Anyone got anything creative to offer?

(we go into tech next week, so it'd be great to play w options over the next three days)

Thanks

1167

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Oliver! Tips and set suggestions. Please.

« on: Feb 13, 2007, 11:02 pm »

The most important thing you need for Oliver! is a kid wrangler - NOT your asm, NOT you, but a responsible parent (or group of parents) and/or someone whose only gig is to keep the kids occupied offstage and make sure they are findable and ready when you need them.

As to sets and the like, well, that's something your designer shd deal with. Ours were minimal at best, given the fact that we had no wings and almost no backstage - it was mostly done by suggestion with curtains and some interesting use of props and design elements that pulled out or pushed back. So I can't help you there.

1168

SMNetwork Archives / Re: Astrology for Stage Managers

« on: Feb 11, 2007, 05:31 pm »

SO copied, pasted, printed out and on the bulletin board - what fun!

(and a capricorn - natch)

1169

The Hardline / Re: Another Fitting Question

« on: Feb 04, 2007, 07:48 pm »

You CAN call actors on a day they aren't rehearsing during the work week for costume fittings and the like - there are span-of-day minimums on each contract (esp on the smaller ones) that need to be observed

What you CAN'T do is officially call the actor in for a fitting on their day off without them being paid (and - I think - permission) - and I have seen that one abused a lot - just overheard two actors at an audition talking abt driving a hefty distance into their theater for a required, scheduled fitting on their Monday off - and they had no idea they shd be asked, let alone paid.

1170

The Hardline / Re: Another Fitting Question

« on: Feb 03, 2007, 01:48 am »

depending on your contract and tier, you can have a broken day as long as there is a specific time lag between the calls - I will try to look that rule up, I know we used it on what I think was an SPT contract I worked a few years ago (I know it was one of the smaller contracts - spt or hat, or some such) - they similarly had the photo calls and costume fittings hours and hours before the rehearsal due to the mixed cast (all their non-AEA had to rehearse at nite after work), but we had a legal break of something like 4-6 hrs of rest between, allowing the company to do it 

sorry, it's not at the top of my brain, I will look it up - it does exist in some contracts I just gotta find it