Messages

181

Stage Management: Other / Re: REVIVED THREAD: Transferring into Opera

« on: Jul 24, 2011, 12:12 pm »

To be honest, with the majority of operas, as long as you have a sense of music and rhythm you can teach yourself to identify certain points in the score and count out the difficult sections of the show if need be.  Now, if we're talking something crazy like Salome or Lulu, well, throw your hands up in the air and just pray to whatever higher power you choose to believe in.  Scores like those two can throw even some of the most experienced SMs into a mini-meltdown trying to follow them.  At one point in time Lulu was even used by the Met as a test during some final interviews (as related to me by somebody who experienced this first hand).

182

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Calling cues for the spotlight operator

« on: Jul 24, 2011, 12:04 pm »

Some shows it is impossible for one person to call the entire show -

So very true.  I don't remember the exact breakdown of who's calling what, but Spider Man has two SMs calling different aspects of the show.  True very few shows will probably ever reach that level of complexity once you leave Broadway, but it does happen.  The same goes for many tours where one spot op is a member of the touring staff and calls all spot cues for the locals who are typically on the other spots.  The ME for the first national tour of Aida did a masterclass back in the day when the show was in Cleveland and he talked about that process, including how descriptive they may sometimes get when talking about the next actor the local guys will be picking up in their next cue (i.e. "you'll be picking up Amneris/Kelly in your next cue, brunette entering SL wearing a blue towel, very sweet girl, can drink many of us under the table")

183

The Hardline / Re: Going Equity 'Young'

« on: Jul 20, 2011, 10:29 pm »

I got my card at 24 as well (that seems to be a trend in this thread).  I interviewed and received a job offer for the summer of 2004 right before going to URTAs in NYC and starting grad school.

I feel that this actually helped me quite a bit in grad school.  I was able to return for a second summer at the theatre where I had received my card and do some Equity work on the side while still in school.  And the department actually finished paying off my dues for me when we did a show under full U/RTA contract during my second year, which I think was their compensation since, under the U/RTA contract, I did not have to be put under contract to SM the show as a full-time student in the department. 

I was also still able to find Equity work for my summer "internship" between my first and second year and my "residency" for my final semester in the summer after my second year with very little problems.  My "internship" summer semester was back at the same theatre where I had gotten my card the year before, and my "residency" summer semester was in St. Louis where one of the two SMs who first encouraged me to apply for the job that I got my card on brought me in to be her Equity ASM.  Sure, there have been times when I wonder if I should have stayed non-Equity and gone back to touring with those companies for a bit longer, but in the long run I've been very happy with my decision and proudly state my Equity membership in every playbill bio that I get.

184

Employment / Re: To tattoo or not to tattoo

« on: Jul 19, 2011, 08:50 pm »

And the other thing to think about, though some people may say their visible tattoos never hurt their interview there is the fact that you never know for sure if you may have lost a job to somebody else because of it.  Sometimes an interviewer may not even realize that the tattoo (or lack of) may be what subconsciously made them lean towards another candidate.  I'm not saying don't get one, but definitely, as others have said, consider an area that is fairly easily concealed during an interview.

185

Tools of the Trade / Re: iPads

« on: Jul 10, 2011, 02:09 pm »

Based on the meeting with our business rep for the TYA contract a week and a half ago it does seem as if Equity is adjusting their stance on taping/filming to acknowledge that the culture has changed drastically in regards to that.  The new TYA contract just went into effect the week we started rehearsals and has some huge changes in regards to the "new media" section, including how much can be filmed and released for public viewing on websites and various media outlets.  I'd have to double check with my rep, but it does seem as if a video to be used by stage management for all the purposes Matthew described is also allowed now.

186

Employment / Re: Resident SM?

« on: Jul 08, 2011, 08:01 pm »

The SM minimum on all the Equity contracts I have ever worked on is higher than the minimum for actors (and I assume it is that way on the other contracts I have not worked).  So yes, a stage manager working for minimum will always be paid more than an actor who is working for minimum.

The stipulation MatthewShiner described is not something I would recommend a young stage manager push for.  That is the type of thing that you can only ask for and expect to get once you reach a pretty high level of experience and expertise (which he certainly has).

187

The Hardline / Re: Union Membership not required under AEA Contract?

« on: Jun 30, 2011, 08:49 pm »

I have to say the deferring membership "as many times as you want" is new to me, but of course if it's coming from the reps then I guess that's that.

I do know that under some contracts (TYA for instance, which I have been working under a lot the last few years, specifically with Theatreworks), the actors are able to decline joining if it is their first job with the company, but they need to join for any future jobs with the company.  However, when they do decline, as BayAreaSM also experienced under the LORT contract, working dues were withheld and they did not get any benefits such as pension and health.  If they did decide to go that route, for whatever reason, they did have the option of choosing to file their membership application (and I think up to two weeks after the end of the contract) and I believe they would then get the credit for health and pension for all the weeks worked.

Ultimately I'm glad to hear that you went to the business reps with the question, as obviously they will pretty much have the final say in such decisions, and of course that is what Equity is paying them to be there for.

188

Self-Promotion / Sigue el camino amarillo

« on: Jun 08, 2011, 11:13 am »

The press release for my next show went out yesterday.

http://www.playbill.com/news/article/151552-Virginia-Cavaliere-Natalie-Toro-Ryan-Duncan-Cast-in-New-Free-Off-Broadway-Musical-Yellow-Brick-Road

I've been with this show since the initial workshop last fall, through the mini-tour earlier this spring, and now Off-Broadway.  It's been quite a process getting here (including a change in director and choreographer after the mini-tour).

I'm really looking forward to meeting Chita Rivera, who is serving as the honorary chair!  I don't get star struck very easily anymore, but I do make the exception for living legends 

189

Tools of the Trade / Re: Cleaning out an Office - what to do with all that STUFF?!

« on: Jun 02, 2011, 10:38 am »

I stopped keeping show binders/prompt books once I finished grad school, and only saved them while in grad school for portfolio review.  If a theatre doesn't want to keep them in their archives, as is their right, then I certainly don't want them.  Since 99.9% of all my paperwork is done on the computer I do save those files, but physical copies just take up valuable space.  So into the recycling bin they all go.

As for all of the supplies you might see if other students want them.  It was always interesting to see the annual spring purges/give aways as people realized they were going to (most likely) be moving soon.

190

Tools of the Trade / Re: Laptop help

« on: May 21, 2011, 09:29 pm »

I may be wrong (and if somebody knows better please correct me), but I believe the advantage to the SSD (solid state drives) is the lack of moving internal parts and thus less of a chance of hard drive failure.  They also run virtually silently, due to the lack of moving parts.  This may not be a huge problem for some, but I have encountered some people with laptops that sound like jet engines revving up, especially when the hard drive starts spinning in the middle of a quiet rehearsal.  They are also lighter and use less power than a standard hard drive, if weight and battery life are high on your priority list.  But, as valence said, it is a feature that is going to push the price tag up quite a bit as an optional upgrade.

191

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: FORMS: shows with lots of props

« on: Apr 29, 2011, 10:20 am »

Speaking from my own experience, and guessing what Ruth is getting at, is that if you ask a carpenter on a departmentalised IATSE crew to move props he'll just tell you to find a props guy and continue to doing whatever it is he was doing when you asked him.  Props and carpenters have always been two separate crews in my experience.

192

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: PROPS: Is there really an easy way to break glass on stage?

« on: Apr 28, 2011, 04:41 pm »

I can't speak for sugar glass, but I personally have walked in my bare feet over the commercially available acrylic breakaways, which have all but replaced sugar glass, with no problems.  This was for a production of Streetcar and I volunteered to be the guinea pig as to whether it would be a problem to have Blanche walking around in bare feet after the "twist this bottle in your face" scene.  While I won't say it is 100% safe (there is always going to be that freak chance) I did everything I could including stomping and shuffling through it (yes, I was very reckless when I was young).

193

The Hardline / Re: AEA ASM?

« on: Apr 25, 2011, 07:06 pm »

But the problem with all of that language is the word "OR."  The Stage Manager OR the Assistant Stage Manager.

Does that mean that although Equity requires an AEA ASM on musicals and with casts over 10, that the ASM really doesn't have to attend rehearsals or do any stage management work, as long as the Stage Manager does?  This is why I'm asking the question.  In the situation I've seen, the duties of stage manager are covered, but the Equity stage manager and whatever run crew is hired for the production - NOT the Equity ASM - are covering all of those duties.

I know we fought for the right to have qualified, Equity help in our field when we got this clause requiring an ASM.  Sure, shows can function without an Equity ASM, or with a decent PA or Actor ASM instead, and these shows clearly do.  But when an Equity ASM is required in the contract, and the theatre covers that responsibility to the bare minimum - by putting any old person (i.e. Box Office Manager) on an ASM contract without actually assigning them to legitimately act as the SM's Assistant - doesn't that go against the very essence of that clause?  Doesn't that feel like a violation to any of the other AEA SM's out there fighting for contracts (and health weeks!)?

And if this language is all we have - that there be an ASM on an Equity contract, and that either the SM or ASM are attending rehearsals and calling the show - is there really any violation at all?  Or am I only feeling jealousy toward my fellow Equity member who has learned to buck the system by earning a coveted contract and 52 health weeks a year but not actually doing any work?

We can go over what's in the rulebooks all we want and bemoan how unfair it is, but unless we see it in action and speak up about it, i.e. actually go to Equity and let them know what is happening, then nothing can change.  I quoted merely a fraction of each of the rulebooks above.  If you go through the entire Stage Manager section of the rulebooks you will most likely find enough other clauses that would indeed warrant Equity taking action on these "phantom" contracts, provided of course that there is somebody brave enough to actually alert the union to what is going on.

194

The Hardline / Re: AEA ASM?

« on: Apr 25, 2011, 05:34 pm »

Just looking through the SPT rulebook (which is probably where you might find this situation happening most often) we find the following:

(1) The Stage Manager or the Assistant Stage Manager shall be present
at all rehearsals and performances and shall actively run such rehearsals
and performances.

So unless that Box Office manager who is signed to the contract is actually in rehearsals then yes, they are violating the contract and Equity would be within their right, and responsibility, to take action should they discover that that is what is going on.

And just to cover bases, here is the language from a few other rulebooks.

CORST:
All rehearsals and performances shall be covered by a freestanding Stage Manager (or
Assistant Stage Manager) signed to an Equity contract. All performances must be
called by a Stage Manager (or Assistant Stage Manager) on an Equity contract who is
unencumbered by any other performance duties.

And TYA:
(1) The Stage Manager or the Assistant Stage Manager shall be present at all rehearsals and
performances. An Assistant Stage Manager shall be the individual who is assigned to assist
the Stage Manager on a specific production or productions. An Assistant Stage Manager
may not be assigned the primary responsibility for a production.

Just off of the top of my head (and because I don't feel like going through all of the rulebooks) the only contract where I can see them getting away with this is on the U/RTA contract where a qualified AEA stage manager on faculty and/or staff is supervising the student stage manager who has been given the primary responsibility for the production.

195

Employment / Re: Civilian Resume?

« on: Apr 21, 2011, 01:52 am »

The way I have seen it done is to list yourself as a freelance stage manager, the time frame that you have been freelancing/stage managing, describe the main basic SM duties (scheduling, record keeping, distributing reports, etc) and then to list a handful of representative companies & productions.