Messages

2131

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / ah the booth conversation

« on: Jan 26, 2006, 01:37 am »

RuthNY, intense political bog .... hmmm, I can guess which theatre you are at.

I have no problems with booth operators doing other things between cues.  As long as it does not effect the show.  I find if you try to ban that sort of thing they get chatty, which I feel is worse.

2132

Students and Novice Stage Managers / me too

« on: Jan 23, 2006, 01:03 am »

what the heck, me as well

2133

College and Graduate Studies / undergrad

« on: Jan 18, 2006, 10:03 am »

just find a good school with a nice undergrad threate program.

become a smart, well rounded person.

you know, you may find after college you dont want to be a SM - so go get a nice well rounded education.

2134

Employment / going back on my word

« on: Jan 18, 2006, 10:01 am »

Twice in my career I have had to break a contract.

1)  A death in my partner's family; I asked to be replaced on the current show.  (The death occured first day of tech, I was replaced a week after opening.)  I think everyone understood, but I still feel terrible about it.

2) The second was I had to break contract on a non-union asm opera gig, when I was first offered a psm position.  I don't feel quite so bad about this one, I gave over three months notice, and I was going from being freelance, and to taking a full time job.

2135

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Full Time Employment

« on: Jan 17, 2006, 06:53 am »

Are you looking to be employed full time or find one job that employs you full time?  There is a slight difference.

For me, as someone who worked 48-52 weeks a year, and has done so since graduatng grad school, let me tell you have to work you butt off to line it up.

I find, before become I resident PSM, when freelancing, to keep sending out resumes, hustling and networking lining up work.  I was, for awhile, able to keep myself booked a year in advance.  (Now, I missed some wonderful, high profile opportunities, including two broadway shows, because I was booked long in advance.)  Be prepared to move, a lot.  I lived my entire lift out of 4 black hard plastic cases (all my possesions weighed less the 400 pounds, so I could move via UPS under Equity Guidelines.)  

Right now is the the time to be sending out resumes.  Most theatres are doing their hiring right now.

Best of luck to you.

2136

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / ASMing

« on: Jan 03, 2006, 11:15 am »

Heath, I know it's a little advice, but maybe it can help.

The ASM and SM really have such seperate jobs during tech, that there will be a normal period of adjustment during the show, especially when working in a IATSE house.  I think a lot of it comes from you working on a small show - if it was a larger show, more complicated with more problems to solve, you would be jumping a lot more.  

It sounds like you are doing everything right, there is just not enough to do.  Considering yourself lucky that everything is running so smoothly, and hope that nothing major comes up you need to solve.  Remember a lot of stage management is like being an air traffic control, hours and hours of boredom interuppted by moments of sheer terror.

Also, it's a great time to pay attention to the SM's style, and learn do's and don'ts - play that game in your head "What would I do differently?" or "Why don't I do things this way?"

You may also want to approach the SM and make sure their needs are being met and also discuss that everything that is expected for you do is being done, but other then that . . . it may just be adjusting the perception that you are not plugged into the show, and realize that everything is just fine.

2137

Students and Novice Stage Managers / yep

« on: Dec 27, 2005, 11:47 am »

listen, if you are in this for the money, get out now.

mc was right, try to convience parental units that you are doing something you love and that will help down the line.  

On the flip side, as a father myself, he is just worried about you, and wants to make sure you are going into a business you will make some decent money.

2138

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / SUPER SECRET SM CALLING

« on: Dec 08, 2005, 01:12 pm »

I call half-hour at 30 minutes before curtain time.

I call 15 minutes TO PLACES, 17 minutes before curtain time.

I call 5 minutes to places/crew to Places at 7 minutes before curtain time.

I call places 2 minutes prior to curtain time, unless I know we are doing a 3 more minute hold on the house.

2139

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Peg Legs

« on: Dec 08, 2005, 12:46 pm »

I used one in Sherlock Holmes - they are a pain.  We found a knee pad helps to buffer between the knee and the peg leg.

It's fine to insist he use the leg from day one, the problem is that he may not be able to wear it that long and it may get in the way of more basic acting things (like character, learning lines, etc . . .)  I found if he could wear it two hours at a time (the show length) then that was enough.  Making him wear it all tech would be cruel and unusual punishment.

Also, just try to find a good phyiscal therapist - that may help.

2140

Tools of the Trade / Response for Adam

« on: Nov 09, 2005, 01:27 am »

I do in it Microsoft Word.

I use Callouts and drag it from the word to the margin.

All it all it takes about 15-30 seconds per cue.  I usually can book all the cues I did in four or five hours in that 30 minutes between calling actors for tech and we are ready to go.

You get fast at it.

2141

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / um

« on: Nov 06, 2005, 10:47 pm »

let's not rule out the fact Erin could indeed just be a freak.

 :lol:    

Just saying . . .

(Smooches Erin . . . Daniel Breaker sends his love)

2142

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / wherever

« on: Nov 06, 2005, 10:44 pm »

I check in with my principals before the show; usually just a hi and hello, and then after that my calls are done over the paging system.  (Literally by the timeI  did half-hour, I would be turning around and do 15.)  I also tend to do a lot of "In this evening's performance" type of announcements at half-hour, so to continue to repeat it over and over would be kind of a pain.  

I have been in my booths where you have to be there before the balcony fills up - I don't mind the down time away from the kind of back stage hub-bub, especially on bigger shows.  

Right now I usually cal half-hour, and my assistant calls 15.  Once I get to the booth, I call 5 (crew to places) and places over the paging mic.  It seems to work for me.

2143

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Mentors

« on: Nov 04, 2005, 08:49 am »

In my growth as a stage manager, based firmly in the educational model, most of my mentors were instructors, but's it's funny how quickly you grow up and find yourself going from mentor/mentee to peers.  

When I got in the real world, I kind of jump started the entire ASM route, and starting SMing directly, and from there into PSMing.  But, when I did have an opportunity to work with other stage managers, either hiring Equity assistants, and working along side other stage managers - I am always interested in taking different looks at the job.  (I also think an interesting thing is if you ever get to work with a bad stage manager, and they are out there, you learn a lot as well as what not to do.)

The whole philosophy of life long learning instilled in my grad school now applys to everyone I work with from Intern to Production Managers - I like when people question the way I do things, or suggest new ways.  I am far from perfect, but I do have reasons for doing things the way I do - but it's nice to explain it, and often in explaining it, I will find out that indeed it was not the best way to do it.

I think the best thing to pass on is there is "no right way to do" anything - but this job is all about style and personality.

2144

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / It's Half-Hour: Do you know where your SM is?

« on: Nov 01, 2005, 09:40 pm »

they went outside for a fag

Off course, having the dirty mind I have . . . this meant something else . . . never mind.

2145

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / asm vs sm method

« on: Oct 30, 2005, 02:12 pm »

There are very few things I "demand" from paperwork (other the now a unifed logo/header look, and the path/document title on the bottom of all printed documents.  I hate not being able to find where someone put a document.)

I find that as long as I can follow the paperwork, the exact style does not matter that much to me.  I think the people who are primarly using the paperwork should be most comfortable with it.