Messages

16

Tools of the Trade / The comfort of a featherweight headset

« on: May 09, 2006, 11:25 am »

They use Telex lightweights at my school and they have certainly withstood the use of many different students day after day and being moved around between shows, etc.
That's all I got.

17

Students and Novice Stage Managers / How to ASM

« on: May 02, 2006, 01:14 am »

One of the great things an ASM can do for me, and what I try to do as an ASM, is be on top of it during tech. When I am worrying about calling cues and negotiating between the designers and directors and all the other people in the room, it is so spectacular to just get the info that "it's all taken care of" or "We figured it out" without having to ask, "you know the lamp is still onstage?" (Some people may want to know what went wrong and how you fixed it; if it's something small, I generally let it pass, keep moving, and conversate post rehearsal or at a break if it's not urgent to the moment).
If I can trust you, I love you. It's so great when my ASM is another set of eyes who is watching for the same things as me and handles stuff as I would. I also tend to delegate to my ASM as much as I think they can take on, but the good point was made here that not everyone works that way. Just talk with your SM about how they work with ASMs (if they are a good SM, they will know and communicate this), what your abilities are (I know/don't know about tracking props/how you track props in your company), and be honest and ask questions. Hopefully the theater has an SM who is good about showing you the way they do things. ASK QUESTIONS and don't be afraid to communicate.

18

College and Graduate Studies / Brandeis

« on: Apr 23, 2006, 01:27 am »

WOOHOO!!!
Nice to have met you in Jen's office a week or two ago and lovely to see your decision. :-) I hope you have a great time here, and feel free to contact me if you ever have any questions about anything.
Brandeis is a great place to stage manage and a great place to study theater... you can also double major pretty easily if you so desire (or even triple!)
The teachers they have in the department are pretty amazing and everyone is very supportive of your training as a stage manager. (I think the undergrad SMs get the best experience of our department, MFA designers and actors and undergrads included).
I am graduating from Brandeis in a little less than a month, and I feel prepared to enter the real world. I think the program has made me a well-educated, well-rounded person, and has given me a great start on a career in stage management.
I will add, however, that if one is looking to be in a city, this isn't it. It is a suburban campus, though Boston is easily accessible.
If anyone has any questions about the program or anything, I am happy to answer them.

19

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Need help with writting SM resume

« on: Apr 04, 2006, 03:28 am »

My references are on the same page as my resume, but that is partly because my credit list isn't so long- it fits all the essential info perfectly. The whole thing is in 10pt font, but it's still clear to read. I kind of like it with the references on there because it's easy to read; it's all one page; no futzing with staples or two pages of stuff. Also this way, nothing separates in a stack of resumes- all the info is right there.

I think the bottom line is as it is with any document you create as a stage manager- from runsheets to resumes to references. Ask yourself is it clear, does it make sense, is it organized, can someone else understand it, does it give you all the necessary info? If yes, then you are good to go.

20

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / The SM times are a-changin'?

« on: Mar 30, 2006, 08:59 am »

A nod to Sarah's comments above:
One of the things I have done in the past and will continue to do in the future, especially as I get out and do more long running shows, is ask the director what he or she would like me to keep an eye on as the show keeps running. For example, I worked on a children's show in rep last summer, and the director told me he wanted me to keep an eye out for one of the actors; the actor was extremely funny, but had a tendency to take the moments too far for a children's show where we needed to be conscious of our audiences' short attention spans. Having that in my head from the director, I was able to not only look out for it, but also feel supported as a young SM giving notes, really for the first time. I think it was also reassuring to the director that even though it was just the non-Equity "children's show" in a summer rep situation, somebody would be looking out for it when he left.
With the show I am working on now, the director has very specific qualities for every single one of the scenes/choruses (it's Greek). I take notes in my script as I hear him detail what it is that he wants from each character.
Are these common techniques in the world outside of university? What else do you do?

21

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / My $0.02 on standbys

« on: Mar 30, 2006, 03:13 am »

As far as confirmations go, I will say that I prefer a confirmation where the other person will reply with whatever area they are in standby for, ie of "lights" "sound" "actor" "trap", whatever- because if i'm giving more than one type of cue, then my brain can sort out and ascertain more easily who hasn't responded (if that's the case), and confirm them all in the same manner they've just been asked to standby in... plus people's voices can sound the same and this way I know exactly who is ready and who I'm waiting on... just makes it clearer IMHO

22

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Random tidbit

« on: Mar 26, 2006, 11:05 am »

In Italy they call source fours by their highest wattage- "750s"

And now you know something new, maybe.

23

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Be quiet!

« on: Mar 21, 2006, 04:50 am »

just say it!
even if you are cutting off whomever is talking at the moment (such as the director), there is a chance they also are aware of the noise in the room and will be happy to have you nip it in the bud, as is your job
a succinct shout of "quiet please" or "focus, please" through the din should take care of it. You don't have to sound jerky about it either (I know the SMing your peers thing can be difficult)-- you can just say it-- it needs to be done in order for rehearsal to happen effectively, and it's your job to enable that process. Just say it!
Also you may repeat yourself- just start doing it during rehearsal every time the volume rises. At the end of that rehearsal or the begining of the next, let them know, "I'm sure it's annoying to hear my voice every time the volume rises, but it's also very difficult to get good work done with all the talking that's been going on. please be respectful of the others who are trying to work, or go outside to talk" etc, etc.
As high schoolers they should be used to quieting down when somone yells at them... you'd think.

24

Employment / more on poor email addresses

« on: Mar 19, 2006, 02:43 am »

lol...
so bigmaglite69@yahoo is also out of the question?

25

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / RUNNING: Maintaining the show (meta-thread)

« on: Mar 12, 2006, 01:16 pm »

So something else to chew over:

One of the guest artists on the show I'm doing right now actually graduated from my university in '75. In fact, even before coming to university, he received his Equity card as an SM at the age of 18. Now he acts and that's a whole other story.
However, point is we were discussing stage management yesterday after rehearsal, and he was telling me that it seems SMs nowadays don't care as much about maintaining the show, and don't concern themselves with being the defacto director after the show is up and running.
I am not doing a BFA program, but I would be interested in hearing what others think- those who are officially doing BFA and MFA programs now- is this something you get trained in as much as how to do paperwork and call cues, and also those who have been working a while- have you seen a shift like this? Any other thoughts?

NOTE: This is now a meta-thread, combining multiple merged threads on the same subject. - PSMK

26

The Hardline / AEA information

« on: Mar 12, 2006, 01:07 pm »

So, in this realm of thought, but shifting away a bit, I wanted to point out something interesting that happened a few weeks ago and I was just curious about it.

I am about to graduate from college. I became an EMC because of where I worked last summer. So, now, it's on my resume and I went to a theater job expo, similar to SETCs and all that, where you walk around and give out the resume and smile big and theoretically find a job. Upon handing out my resume, I got asked more than once by a producer if I was planning to turn Equity soon. When I told them I wasn't planning on it for a few years, I felt like they started trying to talk me in to it.
I recognize there are a bunch of benefits, but upon analyzing much of the commentary in these forums, I feel like the idea of waiting a few years is a good one. Maybe the higher contract thing will push me into joining AEA sooner, but I still thought it funny that most of the producers/managing directors didn't understand why I would wait. I explained why I wanted to wait, and they still sort of continued to beef up AEA.
Any thoughts?
Just something strange to think about.
(And I still want to wait... )

27

SMNetwork Archives / Spike Tape Problems

« on: Mar 09, 2006, 12:07 pm »

Can I hear more about this "moving with purpose" thing? I sort of understand what it might be getting at in terms of transporting tech pieces through space, but I'd love it if someone could flesh it out for me.

28

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / another idea...

« on: Feb 25, 2006, 04:10 pm »

You could take MCs diagrams and show them to a physics teacher, or show him what you have and what you want it to do. We built circuits in 8th grade and stuff; I'm sure they look at that stuff in high school too. I also bet the teacher would also get a kick out of helping you guys out. Plus hey, you could learn something! :-)

29

SMNetwork Archives / There must be some way...

« on: Jan 07, 2006, 02:09 pm »

to do it. Look up autonumber in help.  Or, try typing 1. where you want the numbers to start-- the number with period tends to tip the computer off that you want to start a numbered list, and then you can go back and format it later if you dont want a period (format --> bullets and numbering). Also, MC's suggestion of a mailmerge is good - you can definitely find more info about this in Word's help menu... thouogh hopefully the numbered list thing works, but then again, does Word ever do what you want it to do when you want it to do something? :roll:
Anyhow, good luck- let us know how it works out! :-)

30

SMNetwork Archives / Racism - dilemma?

« on: Dec 22, 2005, 05:53 pm »

Is this a professional/faculty director, or a student?
I think that is to be considered here wen evaluating the situation.

I had a possible potentiality for sexual harrassement issue that came up last year and the actor and I discussed how she was dealing with it and the steps we would take if it reached a point where she felt substantially uncomfortable and wanted him talked to.
When I discussed it with my advisor, she was quick to note that in professional theater, more often than not, this may very well have passed quickly out of the SMs hands already (all you professionals out there please would love your two cents on this one!), because at that point you're dealing with a legal issue of harrassment. THankfully it never went that far and I didnt have to talk to anyone. BUT, I think this may be a similar situation in that it's a learning environment even if you are trying to run it professionally, and there are things that need to be taken in to account.  I don't know that I drew conclusions that will help you to take action either way, but perhaps I've broadened the scope a bit? I don' tknow... I just had my wisdom teeth out this morning so I feel inclined to say a lot online, given that my mouth is stuffed full of cotton    heheh... anyhow good luck with this, and wish the sm luck - it sounds like a challenge, but hopefully a manageable one. I think you should not be afraid to seek imput from the higherups though, esp in a university situation where we are learning how to navigate this relationship. If it's a guest director though, I really think that changes stuff quite a bit. They should know what they're doing enough to not offend, at least not be offensive past tthe point of being constructive (that might exist-- i dont know- giving someone motivation for a scene/monologue)
Oh look at my groggy self rambling more. :-)