Messages

16

The Green Room / Re: GREENROOM: Patron Saint of Stage Managers?

« on: Apr 27, 2010, 01:55 am »

May we add to the list:
St Wenceslaus patron Saint of Bohemia
St Rita patron Saint of impossible causes
St Catherine patron Saint of art
Maybe we should choose our own saint to represent us? I am sure that would be quite a discussion. I did find an online list that included saints for television workers, carnival workers and circus workers so why not theatre workers?

17

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: TD Unconcerned with Safety

« on: Apr 22, 2010, 12:09 pm »

I agree safety is the first priority. It can be really frustrating having to fight other departments over safety issues but please don't give up. You need to find out if this is a problem that can't be fixed or they are to "busy" to fix. At the college I work for one of the stages has an uneven spot caused by the trapdoor. The shop has done all they can but the building is old and it just won't get any
more level. When we lay the dance floor over it the dancers still have to make adjustments when working on that area of the stage. It isn't a tripping hazard really but you can definitely feel it. On other shows I have fixed things myself after repeatedly
butting heads with TD's who don't take safety seriously, but I would only do that as a desperate last resort. You should follow all the proper channels that your school requires first, and then if you need outside help to repair the hazard make sure it is fixed by someone qualified or you may end up with a worse problem.

18

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: ASM for AEA vs. SM for NON-AEA

« on: Apr 22, 2010, 11:50 am »

To AEA or not is a big career question. There seems to be more non equity work available from looking at the job boards.
Also what is the pay difference? That can be a deal breaker right now for lots of people. Both of those look to be solid opportunities
lucky you!

19

The Green Room / Re: Food in the Green Room and Smoking in costume?

« on: Apr 17, 2010, 02:55 pm »

My upcoming show will be in a theatre where the green room and dressing rooms are connected but are definitely different rooms.
I will be working for a Jewish theatre company who have a reputation for really feeding their cast and crew well during the process. They choose the rules about food vs costumes it doesn't matter what I think. Actors usually put a robe over their costume to smoke on the loading dock. However this theatre is a shared space on a college campus and the campus went smoke
free this past summer. I am very curious to see if this will lead to issues in performance. The theatre is on the edge of campus
so the neighboring parking lot is not campus property. I have seen actors and crew on other productions wandering to the "smoke zone" during the breaks. I have a feeling that if I don't keep an eye on them we could lose a lot of rehearsal time hunting down
people who have gone out for a quick smoke. Then again I could end up with a cast of health aware non-smokers.  time will tell.
Ultimately I agree that the s.m. should back whatever rules the producer and costumer decide on.

20

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: NEW WORKS: when the show sucks....

« on: Apr 10, 2010, 11:10 am »

In my opinion the night before opening is a little too late to ask for or suggest major changes. I never tell people to lie, but good stage managers have usually perfected the art of commenting without actually saying anything concrete. If it is a show that will be a continuing work in progress or a workshop type of project then saying something like, when you work on this again you could think about x from a different perspective could be a good way to go. If it is a one shot show I would keep my comments to myself.

21

The Green Room / Re: can stage managers take a joke?

« on: Apr 01, 2010, 07:43 pm »

I have to agree with Rebbe. I love to have fun and I would rather laugh than cry. Don't mess with my show though, I think theatre pranks need to be left behind in high school where forgiving people think they are funny. I love it when the rehearsal process is fun and we all bond with humor and silliness, but once we get to tech and performance I am all business.