Messages

181

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / PROPS: Actor Cuts throat on Vienna Stage - BBC News

« on: Dec 11, 2008, 03:58 pm »

A colleague just sent me the the link to this story about an actor who cut his throat when his prop knife was replaced by a real knife.  The actor ultimately survived and even went on the next night.  Read the complete story here.  A frightening wake-up call and reminder of the importance of checking props and of securing stage weapons.  

182

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / RUNNING: Fight Call

« on: Nov 19, 2008, 09:32 am »

When working on a show with fights and you have a two show day, do you hold a fight call before both performances or only before the first performance of the day?  I have always made it a practice to do a fight call before both shows, but I have had a few actors question the need for two fight calls on my current production.  Due to the nature of the fight (it involves the full company and includes flying), I will be holding a fight call before each performance on two performance days and the producer supports this decision.  I was just curious as to what other SMs do.  

183

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

« on: Nov 06, 2008, 10:49 am »

It varies from state to state, but there are sometimes special allowances for the number of hours a child can work in special categories like entertainment.  Your best bet would be to contact your state's department of labor and regulations for a definitive answer.  Personally I think that management would trump the director in this case because it is the theatre that would be fined by the state and not the director if the children exceeded their maximum allowable hours for the week. 

Let us know how the situation is resolved. 

184

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Mentorship Program

« on: Oct 29, 2008, 12:17 am »

Thanks for all of the input so far.  You each make really great points and we will definitely take this into consideration as we develop the program. 

185

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Mentorship Program

« on: Oct 13, 2008, 08:00 pm »

As we continue to try to grow and improve SMNetwork, the moderator team has tossed around the idea of starting a mentorship program.  This could go in several directions, from shadowing opportunities to a mentor relationship in your area to one where you talk by email.  I would love input from the members of SMNetwork on whether this is something that would be of interest to you, what you would like to get out of a mentorship program, etc, to help guide us as we further develop this idea.   

186

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: At A Cross Roads

« on: Aug 23, 2008, 10:49 am »

First of all, welcome! 

I second what Matthew has said.  Unless you are entering into a conservatory program, chances are you don't need to decide your freshman year (or even your sophomore year) which concentration you want to focus on.  Talk to your advisor when you are choosing your class schedule and select classes that will satisfy the education requirements for both sec. ed. and stage management.  Everyone probably has to take a beginning acting class, stage craft, etc. regardless of their concentration.  And this would be a good time to get general education classes like math, history, etc. out of the way as well. 

During the year you can get stage management crew assignments at your university and/or volunteer with a school (I helped run an improv club at a middle school after school program).  Find out if there are internships or shadowing opportunities available with local professional companies in your area.  This will help you to make a more informed decision when the time comes. 

Best of luck to you!

187

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: SM thesis advice for senior undergrad

« on: Jul 20, 2008, 01:00 am »

I wrote a stage management handbook for the theatre department at my university as my under grad honors thesis. It detailed policies specifically related to how the production process worked within my department.  It would have little if any application anywhere outside of the university.  In fact, it's no longer used at my university because new faculty took over the department and completely changed the way things work. 

My choice of thesis project was governed by the requirements of the thesis program at my university.  A power point presentation at the end of a year of SMing productions wouldn't have fulfilled the requirements, so the handbook seemed to be my next best option if I wanted to do something related to stage management. 

I agree with the previous posters.  Professional productions are going to look more impressive on your resume to potential employers.  In my experience, you're kind of living in a bubble when you are working in educational theatre.  My first professional production certainly opened my eyes to the way that theatre actually works. 

And speaking as someone who wrote a handbook as a thesis, I have never shown it to any employers in an interview or even mentioned that I wrote it.  My stage management philosophy has matured since that time and I have gained a lot more experience as a stage manager, so it would be pointless to offer it as an example of who I am and what I bring to the table as a stage manager. 

If you are forced to go the handbook route, please feel free to PM me for info on the approach I took to the one I wrote. 

Best of luck to you on your senior year and your thesis!

188

Employment / Re: Thinking of leaving the industry...

« on: Jun 04, 2008, 02:26 pm »

There is a fantastic discussion of this subject in this thread: Changing Lanes

Best of luck to you as you make your decision. 

189

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: STRIKE Help! (New Poster)

« on: Jun 01, 2008, 12:02 am »

First of all, you shouldn't feel horrible or apologize for never having been to a strike.  There's a first time for everything, and this is yours.  Be honest with your crew and the technical director/production manager. 

What type of production are you working on: university, community, professional, etc?  The type of production and the structure of the management will tend to dictate the stage manager's role in strike.  For some productions, the stage manager has no role in strike other than to remove his/her personal belongings from the booth/backstage and to turn in the production book for archival purposes.  In other strikes, stage management is responsible for striking props, furniture, and costumes to areas designated by the departments as well as pulling up safety tape, striking prop tables and running lights, etc.  Speak with the technical director/production manager/faculty advisor before strike to define exactly what is expected of you at strike.  And don't be afraid to ask questions. 

Here's the link to another thread that discusses the stage manager's role in strike: Pre-strike. 

190

Employment / Re: AEA...to be or not to be?

« on: May 16, 2008, 03:44 pm »

Here are two links to other threads related to this topic that may be of interest:

Being offered my card, good idea?
Too soon to be Equity?

The first thread also includes a link to information on the use of the Taft-Hartley act. 

Best of luck to you as you make your decision!

191

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Injured actor, no understudy

« on: Feb 06, 2008, 12:14 pm »

zayit: Is this in an educational or professional setting? 

Personally, I would contact management and ask how they want to proceed (cancel performances, cut the fight, have someone go on with a book, etc) and then help facilitate and execute the plan (call the actors that we're cancelled, call a rehearsal, etc). 

I've encountered the situation where an actor was injured or otherwise unable to perform and the show did not have understudies.  In one situation, I was the ASM and we had an actor break her thumb lifting a piece of furniture during a scene.  I alerted the SM and escorted the actor to the dressing rooms.  It was during a preview, so the full artistic/production staff was there.  The producing director and director decided not to stop the show and the SM told me that the assistant director was on her way backstage and would be going on with a book.  It went very smoothly.  The actor was out for the rest of the week and the AD went on as an understudy. 

On another show, I had an actor unable to perform opening weekend due to medical reasons.  I contacted the producing director, and it was decided in lieu of delaying opening he would step into the role and perform with a book.  We still had rehearsal hours left and the director was still in town, so we did an emergency put-in.  He made a live pre-show announcement before each performance about the situation (and got applause upon his entrance and exit every night...)

192

The Hardline / Re: Who Locks Your Doors?

« on: Jan 26, 2008, 12:29 pm »

At my current theatre, during rehearsal it is the responsibility of my ASM, who is an intern, to lock the rehearsal hall.  During performances, it is the responsibility of house management to lock front-of-house doors and for my ASM to lock the stage doors.  Arming the building's security system is the responsibility of the last person out, which is usually wardrobe (also an intern). 

193

The Hardline / Re: SMA

« on: Jan 20, 2008, 12:18 pm »

But Maryland is relatively close to DC, and there are quite a few things going on with SMA members there.

The SM community in MD/DC/VA (SMA and non-SMA) seems to have been particularly active in the last couple of months.  SMNetwork members put together a drink night in December and there will be an SM Roundtable discussion at Round House Theatre on January 28 (see details here.  One of the stage managers attending the drink night was a member of the SMA and received funding from them to buy us appetizers for the event. 

I have thought about joining SMA in the past, but I have personally had good luck finding jobs through personal contacts/networking, the DC/Baltimore AEA liaison committee's postings, and the DC Theatre Tech pages (a yahoo group).  Also, from what I understand from DC SMA members (and please correct me if I'm wrong), most of the DC area theatres do not post jobs through SMA as of now.  Should that change in the future, or should I choose to relocate to another city/region, I may consider joining. 

However, after reading Erin's post, it seems as if the SMA is beginning to become more active.  I plan to keep my eye out and keep myself informed to see if it will indeed prove advantageous for me to join up.  Ultimately, it's a personal decision and you need to decide what is best for you. 

194

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Props Question....

« on: Dec 30, 2007, 12:35 am »

In my experience, I have found that purses and bags lie in that lovely grey area between props and costumes (along with parasols, umbrellas, fans, and other similar "accessories").  More often than not purses and bags will come from costumes because they are worn and are part of the look of the whole costume, but that isn't always the case.  You will just need to establish with your designers/production staff who is ultimately responsible for the items. 

195

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Who makes the better SM? Men or women?

« on: Dec 10, 2007, 06:23 pm »

A similar topic was discussed in this thread.  It isn't quite as specific as the questions you have posed, but you might find it a useful cross reference.  Best of luck to you on your thesis!!