Messages

151

The Green Room / Re: Happy New Years!! My Resolution is....

« on: Dec 31, 2010, 05:20 pm »

...get in the gym more consistently (started a regimen in the past year = last year's resolution)
...read even more (read more this year = last year's resolution)
Let's hope this next year in just as successful as the last.

Happy New Year everyone! Best of luck and well wishes to everyone in 2011!

...and good luck remembering to write down 2011 for the first time on all your forms...

152

Tools of the Trade / Re: Gifts!

« on: Dec 08, 2010, 01:33 pm »

I'm honestly not sure what I would like for Christmas this year.  Maybe an upgrade to an ipPhone 4...some new clothes....if I could, I'd ask for a student loan payment!

153

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Sweeney Todd's bloody razor.. Ideas on How??

« on: Oct 20, 2010, 12:04 am »

This solution will not get you an excessive amount of blood, which may not make it appropriate for Sweeney, but here goes:

This was a production of Don Carlos a friend of mine was in, where she had to slit her own throat with a dagger.  She had exited the stage with the knife moments before, only to pick up a duplicate soaking in a cup of blood.  When she entered the stage, she wiped the blood across her neck, appearing to commit suicide. This was also in a fairly small (75 seat) thrust space so I'm not sure if it will translate and fit your needs. It was very convincing from where I was sitting though!

154

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

« on: Oct 15, 2010, 06:38 pm »

We do this every night of the season, in our thrust house. Even with the usher/house staff "guards," audience members find their way onto the stage almost nightly.

Less funny and more, "What are people thinking!?" 
I just had to ask our house manager to post a guard by the set any time the audience is wandering (pre-show, intermission, post-show, post-talkback), because they are stealing and eating our prop mints.  A different style show, I'd just set the mints at places, but that's not an option for this house!

I work in a theatre where all our shows are in the round.  I haven't had a problem with people touching things too much yet.  This may be because our ushers are standing in the middle of the stage helping people to their seats.
We do often have people leave their empty wine, beer, soda, popcorn, whatever on set pieces.  I try to get to them before someone accidentally leaves a water ring on an expensive antique table...

155

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

« on: Oct 15, 2010, 02:10 pm »

As soon as I finished my scene change, I grabbed a feather and some debris (confetti that seemed like a ceiling was cracking) and ran up

You didn't preset the feathers and debris? Why carry it every time?

Kidding aside, it's amazing what we have to come up with sometimes isn't it? Thanks for sharing!

I couldn't preset...I was only a lowly freshman crewmember.... And where would the fun be if I didn't have to carry it all with me?

156

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

« on: Oct 15, 2010, 01:04 am »

The craziest thing I've had to do for a show was when I was crewing Angels in America in college.  As soon as I finished my scene change, I grabbed a feather and some debris (confetti that seemed like a ceiling was cracking) and ran up 2 flights of stairs and along the length of our building.  Once that was done, I had to enter the grid above the audience and travel over the entire audience until I was over the stage.  It doesn't help the grid was verrrry creaky and only above 4' - 5' high and included 2 ladders to climb.  I had to accomplish this in under 3 minutes or so without anyone hearing or seeing.  I was out of breathe pretty consistently.

157

The Green Room / Exercise!

« on: Oct 10, 2010, 08:33 pm »

We are busy individuals and sometimes personal fitness is not our top priority (food, water and sleep usually are)....so:
- Do you have a daily ritual to stay healthy?
- What are some of the ways you like to stay in shape?
- Favorite exercises?
- Favorite gyms?
I bring this up because I find myself having to and wanting to exercise more and more now that I've been out of college for over a year.  I find I was always in better shape in college...maybe because I was running around more, or took a dancing class, or a voice and movement class, or stage combat, etc... I also just ran a 5K-obstacle course (www.ruggedmaniac.com) about a week ago!

158

The Green Room / Re: "15 minute call" (video)

« on: Sep 29, 2010, 07:13 pm »

Thanks for posting. I definitely lawl'd watching it.

159

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: SCENERY: Video

« on: Sep 24, 2010, 04:12 pm »

Video tip for Q-lab folks!  If you're using a lot of video make sure your video designer sets it up as all the same format!  I know Q-lab will run multiple formats even at the same time, but it can casuse instability and spontaneous crashing.  Two years ago, I was doing a musical with canned music and lots of projections, MIDI gos for the light cues.  HEAVY Q-lab stuff.  The first two weeks, it kept crashing on me, never in the same place, about every other show.  Finally, we chatted with Q-lab support, and they suggested putting all the video in the same format.  Never crashed again.

Thanks for the tip! The theatre I'm working at now has me running lights & sound out of QLab and it's a brand-new experience for me (I've never actually run it myself, I've always had a board-op...), so I appreciate any Q-Lab tips I get.

I am opening a show this evening with video.  I also run everything with Qlab.  Excellent program.  Any questions bex, I'd be happy to help.

I find that video cues can be superfluous at times and can be vital in others.  In Best Little Whorehouse, we used a projector for the TV show segment (superfluous).  In I Am My Own Wife, we used a projector to help the audience identify what Charlotte was describing and where the play was moving next (important). In my current show, we're using images of clocks to stress the theme of time and death while also setting the location (car clock, kitchen clock, etc...).  For the last two examples, we're also in the round and have minimal seating.  For Whorehouse, we were proscenium with lots o' set.  I've also seen a production where I couldn't make heads or tails of what they were showing.  It was just plain distracting.

160

Uploaded Forms / Re: Props Tracking

« on: Sep 20, 2010, 12:55 pm »

This is my prop tracking sheet...prints on landscaped legal size paper so heads up...just the first page of what I use. Formatted in Numbers. Attached in .pdf format.

161

Tools of the Trade / Re: Stinky Booth

« on: Sep 03, 2010, 06:51 pm »

I assume it's a stray - I would call animal control first and not try anything yourselves.  Stray animals can be very dangerous and they most likely have techniques and products to speed capture.

162

Tools of the Trade / Re: iPhone Woes

« on: Aug 28, 2010, 06:56 pm »

Could you elaborate....s@cks is kind of vague...

163

The Green Room / Re: Funny definitions

« on: Aug 24, 2010, 03:42 pm »

For the Dr. Who fans:

Reverse Tardis effect: The amazing ability of technicians to cram infinite numbers of props, furniture, set dressing, costumes, actors, orchestra members, etc. into infinitesimal amounts of wingspace.  (or, "It looks bigger on the outside than it is on the inside.")

YES!
P.S. bowties are cool...

The Mind Lapse: The feeling upon completion of a task, of not remembering the process of completing said task. Can be a result of mental exhaustion.
Example: Arriving home and not remembering the journey home.
The SM/Techie Evaluation: The thought process an SM/Techie goes through when deciding to purchase a product in order to determine its overall cost efficiency and usefulness.
Examples include: Will it hold everything I need to carry?  When/Where else can I use this? Is it black? etc...

164

The Green Room / Re: Your ideal kit bag/box/portable hole

« on: Aug 24, 2010, 02:00 pm »

I actually did this recently, although it was a tool cabinet and not an SM kit/bag.  It's made from scraps of wood.  Approx. 5' tall, 4 ' wide, 3' long, with two doors that open out.  On wheels to get it around the theatre.  Built some drawers and shelves.  It's come in pretty handy so far.  I wish I took some more time/care building it.  I had a bigger and better plan but was limited by materials since I didn't want it to cost anything. I'll have to upload a picture when I have time.

Back on topic though:
I have always wanted to build myself a duffel bag/backpack.  Definitely a firm fabric, maybe a dark digital camo (I really like the look of it for some reason) or just plain black.  Gotta have a laptop holder, spaces for the random office supplies we carry, as mentioned. Room for a spare change of clothes...

165

Tools of the Trade / Re: Useful iPhone apps?

« on: Aug 24, 2010, 01:50 pm »

Anyone else finding the ability to create folders on your iPhone now a little too addicting?