Messages

16

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / RUNNING: Cancelling a show

« on: Mar 22, 2009, 03:57 pm »

Not sure where to put this because it's partially a legitimite question and partially just a vent so fell free to move it somewhere else...

I am currently stage managing an educational tour with a 5 show rep.  You read that correctly!  I oversee six actors and 5 shows and we do between 5-10 shows a week for schools, libraries and community events. From Sept. to May we currently have booked approx. 180 shows.  That's a lot of shows considering five years ago it was about 30.  The company has grown and grown and yet some things haven't changed which has been my biggest frustration since I arrived in Sept.  The days are long, the drives are hard and the pay is low; but I love what I do and I live on an island so overall I'm very happy with it.  

We will be cancelling our third and fourth show since Sept. tomorrow due to the death of the grandfather of one of my cast memebers. (This poor girl can't catch a break, she dislocated her shoulder two weeks ago and is having her wisdom teeth removed on Saturday!)  She calls me and I start the fun game of calling everyone else.  I call the Education Director who is my immediate boss and she says cancelling is fine due to the circumstances but could I please call the Artistic Director and get his take before making it official.  (She's in NYC with auditions and he's here in the office.) So I call the Artistic Director and let him know and then have to listen to a ten minute dialogue of "this is so inconvienent, we're going to lose money," etc.  Now, I have a very strong knowledge of our budget and I get that this is inconvienent but why wasn't his first question, "Is she ok?"  We've decided to cancel the shows but of course no one is answering at the numbers on the contract.

So I guess my question is: What have some of you gone through when you've cancelled shows?  What are some of the quirks you've come across along the years?  Every theatre is different and theatres with understudies would just continue in this case but we don't have that luxury.

17

Employment / Re: Touring- Windwood Productions, anyone?

« on: Jan 28, 2009, 09:57 pm »

Not that I would believe 100% of what you find on nonequitydeputy.com, but I do know several people who have posted there about Windwood.  I know a couple of people on the Hairspray tour right now and it seems to be a challenge.  Wish I could give you first hand knowledge, sorry.

18

Tools of the Trade / Re: MTI's Stage Manager Scripts

« on: Dec 14, 2008, 01:34 pm »

Wow! $25 was what I was quoted for Millie...interesting.

19

Tools of the Trade / Re: MTI's Stage Manager Scripts

« on: Dec 13, 2008, 01:19 pm »

Agreed...I am one of those stage managers who hole punches on the "wrong" side.  But I have gotten these scripts and then copied them and re punched.  They're pretty helpful if you want to spend the extra $25 for a clean script.  The first time I called them about getting one they were very confused about the hole punching situation.  So I got a good laugh out of it, too.

20

The Green Room / Re: I can't believe I just had to do that...

« on: Nov 29, 2008, 04:18 pm »

I had to rebuild an elf village every show that was complete with a ferris wheel that light up and moved..."If you don't believe in elves, that's your problem!"

21

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Child Labor Laws

« on: Nov 07, 2008, 11:57 am »

Simply because I like learning this stuff...Are you sure your producers are asking you to abide by the correct laws?  Child labor laws are different from Child Actor Labor Laws in a BIG way.  Most states basically say that as long as your superintendent says you can work that long, then you can.  Every thing that I've research on actor labor laws says that in most states you can work a child actor as much as you like.  Which is scary when you think that they could be taken advantage of so you have to look to their parent's and school for more guidance.  The US Dept of Labor website states:

"In addition, the child labor rules do not apply to:

    * Youth employed as actors or performers in motion pictures, theatrical, radio, or television productions;
    * Youth engaged in the delivery of newspapers to consumers; and
    * Youth working at home in the making of wreaths composed of natural holly, pine, cedar, or other evergreens (including the harvesting of the evergreens)."

http://www.dol.gov/elaws/esa/flsa/cl/exemptions.asp

I work with child actors all the time but I have never really thought about it.  Even when I've done double or triple casts kids sometimes work 10 of 12s.  I hope this helps.  You can always contact someone in your state for guidance.

I hope this helps!

22

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Child Labor Laws

« on: Nov 06, 2008, 03:32 pm »

I agree that it varies from state to state.  I did some research on this this summer while I was in Maine and the following is copied from the Maine State website: "Child actors — Maine has no minimum age and no hourly restrictions for child actors, but they must have work permits if under the age of 16."  I thought it was strange because there are definitely restrictions on child technicians.

23

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Hell Week...?

« on: Oct 20, 2008, 10:25 pm »

Maybe I'm out of the loop...but what does IMHO mean?

24

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / PROFESSIONALISM: Hell Week...?

« on: Oct 20, 2008, 10:09 pm »

I was reading some new and old postings today and was a little discouraged that Tech Week was referred to as "hell week"  as often as  it is.  Isn't it our job as stage managers to keep everything flowing above the nine levels of hell?  Sure, things can get ridiculously hard, but if we start out assuming the tech week will be a week of hell aren't we setting ourselves up for some kind of devastation?  The teacher in me screams things like, "If you set a child up for success, they'll reach it.  And if you set them up for failure, well they'll reach that too."  If we as stage managers go into a tech with a sense of dread that can only be invoked by the word "hell," what are we setting ourselves up for?
Now I'm not saying that tech week should be called "Lollipops and Rainbows Week" but could cutting this simple thing out of our vocabulary make a difference?  I don't know. Let's discuss...

25

The Hardline / Re: AEA Rulebook

« on: May 13, 2008, 05:34 pm »

YES!!! Where did this come from? And is there a way to get a copy?

Thanks!!

26

The Hardline / Re: AEA Rulebook

« on: May 12, 2008, 06:39 pm »

Thanks everyone for the input.  I'm kind of in a weird place with this particular theatre.  Some good ol' summer stock! After opening night, the directors leave and I'm the only one left.  There isn't and Assistant Director.  I don't even have an assistant!  (Anyone else up for doing Millie without one because that will be fun for me later!) The Artistic Director, who doesn't necessarily know all of the rehearsal discoveries that I do, simply feels that it is never a stage managers job to give notes. I don't want to argue with her or anything like that.  So I'm simply trying to convey to her that that's kinda my job.  There is no one else to do it. So, she does it.  Which isn't effective.  The actors don't have a relationship with her and don't seem to pay much attention during notes.  And then when they don't take the notes, somehow it's my fault. When I interviewed she stated that although it's non-union, she likes to use union standards (except for the assistant thing, obviously) so I thought maybe this was a good way to go about it.  Do any rulebooks state that the SM gives notes after opening?
It's only a four month gig, but I do want these shows to be the best that they can be.  And I think that me being prepared for this conversation is the first step.

Thanks,
Deb

27

The Hardline / AEA Rulebook

« on: May 11, 2008, 04:03 pm »

Hey gang!

I need a copy of the AEA Rulebook.  I'm sure it's on here and I just can't find it.  I went to the Equity sight but I only found very specific rulebooks.  Is there not a general one?
Plus, if anyone has a copy of anything like "Stage Manager Job Description" I would greatly appreciate it.  My current Artistic Director and I don't see eye to eye on what my job is, so I'm looking to try and meet her in the middle; but having some other opinions on the day to day things  we do would be helpful.  Most specifically what we do once the show is open.  She feels that the SM  should never give an actor a note.
Thank you all so much,
Deb

28

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Picnic

« on: Apr 25, 2008, 02:13 pm »

Love this show! See if they'll let you do the real ending to Act I.
Hal: "We're not going on no damn picnic!" (Kiss in the sunset and they run off as the blackout begins)

You can probably find this version in a local or school library.  Look for it, bc my director loved this option and had I not read the original version, he would have  never known.

Just my thoughts,
Deb

29

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: How do you mark your script during rehearsals?

« on: Apr 16, 2008, 09:36 pm »

I think that there is already a lot of info for you here.  Try searching things like "prompt book" and check the Forms page.
Hope this helps.
~Deb

30

College and Graduate Studies / Re: Minor in SM?

« on: Apr 15, 2008, 10:10 pm »

I don't have a degree in theatre and I've been a working, professional stage manager for going on 8 years.  A degree may have helped, but not having one hasn't hurt me.  You  just need to make sure that you go out there and get the experiences that you need.  Experiences that a theatre degree would have given you.  You also may not be paid as much as someone backed by a degree, but that all depends on the theatre.  I've been able to work without a theatre degree, but everyone is diifferent.  You have to do what works for you.  And if a pursuing theatre full time in college doesn't work for you, then I think that that is just fine.
~Deb