Messages

511

Employment / Re: Cruise jobs

« on: Jan 21, 2007, 04:42 am »

That is a pretty thorough PD for the job - and it puts the correct amount of emphasis on HR type work - It seems that ships have 10 times the paperwork of any other SM job - my stint, I had a small office, maybe 3m x 5m which seemed to be overflowing with paperwork.

I was also approached by one of the activities coordinators about giving back stage tours twice a week, small group of 10 or so patrons, which was great fun.

The biggest pain in the rear end is usually when you are mounting a new show. Usually it will be coming from another ship, or everything has been rehearsed in a space off ship and designed purely on paper. That is dangerous because certain facts are often not visible on paper, which can result in sets not fitting, or lighting design being up the creek, and you are on a much tighter time frame than a standard show - maybe 1 tech and 1 dress and a day to fit up. And if something is left behind on dock, you have to try and get that item to your next port of call without blowing the budget...

During the run though - If I did not sleep till 9 and get an afternoon siesta, well, it was considered a busy day.

512

Employment / Re: Follow Up Thank-You Letters

« on: Jan 19, 2007, 07:21 pm »

I would try and keep it short and simple - if you have any smallish 'index' cards or 'letterhead slips' - they are an ideal size.

I would use something along the lines of

To ________

I would just like to take a moment to thank you for your prompt payment upon completion of <the job name>. It was a pleasure to work with both you and your team, and I hope to work with you again in the future should an opportunity present itself.

You and your team are a credit to the industry, and until we meet again, I wish you the best of luck in all future endeavors.

Kindest Regards

Your Name Here

I would avoid making it a form letter - write an outline maybe, but don't make it too obvious that you filled in the blanks.

513

SMNetwork Archives / Re: SM photos

« on: Jan 18, 2007, 01:26 am »

My only photo as SM is a shocker too... Also taken in hot weather, however it is a photo of me sitting beside a pedestal fan in prompt corner, my hair flying everywhere, looking joyous due to the cool air.

That said - I don't photograph well, and tend to be on the other end of the camera if possible.

514

Stage Management: Other / Re: School productions.

« on: Jan 16, 2007, 02:36 pm »

2 months. I plan on getting as much organisation done now as I can, so that the teachers can spend the next two months drilling students on the protocol, as well as let the parents know from the get-go how everything will happen (school does not resume till Monday here in Vic, Aus).

515

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: marijuana and theatre (I dont know where to put this)

« on: Jan 15, 2007, 09:50 pm »

There is no place for drugs in the theatre.  If there is an accident it opens up the theatre to law suits.   

There is a place.

It's called the cast party.

Even that is a tad dodgey - especially if it is an actual company event (ie formalised and not organised on the side). I know in AU that an employer is responsible for ensuring the safety of all employees whilst at a company function or do (that includes the trip home - so if drunk, it is the employers responsibility to ensure they take a taxi home, and to pay for it). The standard response from management seems to be "Officially, we are not organising anything, although So-and-So is throwing a party on Closing night and I believe they have invited everyone... maybe you should ask them for details."

516

Stage Management: Other / Re: School productions.

« on: Jan 15, 2007, 05:43 pm »

[I might have missed something, but is the “main show” a completely different set of performers?  And are the “Backstage parents” needed for that? ]

Also, I may have misunderstood – am I to understand that even if a parent wants to sit and wait in the audience during a rehearsal [and this is not that unusual], they need clearance?

The main show is made up from a selection of pupils from all the classes. It is a one act musical (an extremely long one act musical) - chorus will be made up of the younger half of the school, and the main performers will be from the upper half. They will all have to audition for roles within the cast etc.

As for the second part - correct. No parents in the rehearsal room unless they have been cleared - ie the choreographer for the main show is a parent. Most classes will rehearse their acts during school hours anyway, so it does not matter. Tech etc will be completely closed door too as that will occur during school hours too.

Containing entrances and exits is key in my book.  As long as they are limited and well manned, especially from parental units deciding to pull their kids early or pulling surprise backstage visits, you've won half the battle. My school is small and doesn't face a lot of the issues you describe, but our parents can really stir things up!  Secretaries are invaluable resources at entrances - they know everybody and already have relationships with faculty and parents.  Plus, have you had an opportunity to meet with the venue's security guys just to make sure they're working with you?  I know that we've had a proble when we've had events off campus - If the venue sub-contracts their security and doesn't communicate our plan things can go to hell in about 2 seconds.

There will be minimal venue staff on hand. The FOH manager, 2 people in the bar and one technician. Everyone else the school is supplying.

517

Stage Management: Other / Re: School productions.

« on: Jan 15, 2007, 03:29 pm »

Scott: I owe this principal a lot on a personal level - they did me a favor when I was in a tight spot, so this is repayment (and she is paying me).

Philimbesi: Since this is an external venue, the school is basically leaving everything up to me as PM. I will have the names of the chaperones in advance, because as I mentioned, they all need to pass a police check. Parents are to drop their kids off in the venues foyer and to check the kid in with their dedicated chaperone at 1800hrs each night the show is on, chaperones are to check in at 1740hrs. That is all I have decided so far. No parents back stage. That should eliminate the problem of "Now who's mother are you?".

Canuck - nope. This is a 3 night, 1 matinée number, tech is going to be odd, as it will basically be teching each class act in what ever order they arrive, then as classes leave, those involved in the performance piece remain in the auditorium, and when everyone is there, we tech the 'performance piece'.

I have spent most of the night worrying about logistics, so I have a few pages of notes on how I plan to have the show run without delay because people were not in place at the right time - but basically I want their preparation timed, I want their act timed, and I will work out the time it takes to walk between the seats and the green room, and the green room and the stage. Then I will add a couple of minutes margin for error.

Your comment about getting them out of their seats for some release is certainly a good one. The venue does not have a rehearsal room, but I can get my hands on some rather large floodlights on tripods and we can set up a space in the small courtyard behind the theatre for them - it is inaccessible from outside the venue and has toilet and drinks facilities.

Barf buckets are already "check" - I have gone a step further and said I will need a person each side of the stage with a comfy chair and some cool, wet cloths and bottles of water for the inevitable feinters. I used to be in a childrens choir, and at these events there were always a few feinters (usually indicated by a dull thud as they hit the stage floor).

518

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Dressing For The Part?

« on: Jan 15, 2007, 05:23 am »

I learnt that lesson too - all I take now is a leather compendium containing my resume (four copies) + references, pad and pen, along with my business cards to interviews, however I tend to take a hell of a lot more to first meetings, especially if I received the script before hand.

519

Stage Management: Other / School productions.

« on: Jan 15, 2007, 05:20 am »

I have just been called about a job starting soon about managing a primary schools (ages 5-12) annual production - thankfully I will be PM and not SMing until just before tech (along with lighting design and running sound) - anyway I spent a lot of time talking to the principal about what they want out of this production, yadda yadda yadda, then I got given a photocopy of a number of government regs - namely to do with children's safety with adults. The long and the short - basically the principals interpretation is that once the rehearsals/performance starts, no-one without a police check carried out by the school and cleared will be allowed in the space. Generally - that is fine, I run a closed rehearsal room policy anyway, and am AR about keeping people out of the back stage area.

The principal however wants access control.

And I hope someone here can help me.

I have never been in a situation where I have had to have access control implemented - I work with mature actors, and I usually have a tight reign over everything and by the time we are in the theatre, I know everyone well enough to know when someone is where they shouldn't be. Hundreds of children, adult chaperone's that I will not have met until dress etc have never been an issue.

My initial thoughts was to get an adult at each door and to make up "Back Stage Passes", however it will be a hassle, as I believe the only time back stage passes are useful is when they have a head shot. In my mind, it's a logistical nightmare.

Another option that came to mind was to get wrist straps made up (those paper ones that tear when you try to remove them) and then have each adult present their drivers license at the start of the night, put a wrist strap on them, bob's your mothers brother. That is still a logistical nightmare, but maybe not so much. I don't know. Maybe someone else knows of a really simple method which is still secure.

The second part of this - Group management. What I have gathered from the principal is that this show will involve each class giving a 5-10 minute show (about an hour and a half) followed by an interval of half an hour, then the "main show" which is two hours long, no break, then half an hour of talk by the principal. (Sounding like hell at the moment)

Looking at the venue, I will have to put the children in the auditorium whilst they are not getting ready to go on. I am thinking that dedicating a balcony would be a good idea, then placing the classes chaperone's in the isle seat, and having three teachers dedicated to herding children (one on cans, one grabs a group of children+chaperone and leads them down back stage, grabs the next lot as they come off stage and leads them back up, and they cross paths with the second group going down - however whilst they are waiting up there, the teacher can be used to relay "shut those kids up" messages to the chaperone's)

Any other help on managing these style shows would be great too, because frankly, I feel out of my depth, and am slightly panicking. I have never done logistics for something like this... and frankly... kids en-mass always give me the willies.

520

Tools of the Trade / Re: Bingo Dabbers or Daubers...

« on: Jan 15, 2007, 04:29 am »

My initial reaction is "Why not just use a pencil", however I realise others like coloured dots/flags/indicators of some sort. I have never played bingo (outside of the school setting, where we drew up our own grid, and just crossed the squares out using a pen), so I did do a quick google for "What the hell is a bingo dauber" and this did tickle my fancy (You'll have to click it and see)... Coloured dots are not my style, but it would be fascinating to try and call under black-light.

Jessie_K's questions also came to my mind when I saw what they were. I imagine they would be a lot like permanent marker, in which case, 80GSM paper (Standard weight) would very quickly let the ink through, and it seems rather inflexible.

I find the coloured dot's I bought when I started out still sit in my stationary cupboard at home (yes, I am that addicted to stationary, that I have an entire wardrobe filled with it), however I found that if you stuck the dots on a plastic sheet protector before you stuck them on the page, at the end of the run, you could recycle them by sticking them onto the sheet protector again (I got 2 shows out of mine before I discarded the method, and the plastic sheet is still in my cupboard, and the dots can still be removed and re-stuck), which makes the dot method extremely cheap.

521

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: marijuana and theatre (I dont know where to put this)

« on: Jan 14, 2007, 05:14 am »

I have a zero tollerance policy with drugs - most theatres I know also have one, as do most companies.

What seems to happen though, is that management tend to take the "We are in the middle of a run and will not be able to get an adequate replacement, just slap them on the wrist and they will be good" approach, as opposed to the "You are in violation of your contract, the door is to your left, please allow the stage manager to escort you from the building, your services are no longer required" stance.

HOWEVER - if ever you are worried that a crew/cast member is a danger to anybody, it is your responsibility to make sure the show does not open with them involved. That is not just a drug thing though, that is just a general rule in my books.

522

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Unprofessionalism

« on: Jan 08, 2007, 10:17 pm »

It is a damned if you do/damned if you don't situation.

If you report that to your superior, you can get a bit of a "tattle tale" stigma as well as get your fellow PA's back up. Even if the SM/whoever did have a quiet word with the PA, chances are it will be a slap-on-the-wrist-and-I-really-expected-better-of-you kind of talk, as opposed to a do-it-again-and-you-are-out-of-here type of talk. That will basically ruin your relationship with the PA, and may result in the two of you being labled as "not team players".

Now, she did not lie about the fact that she had a class, so points to her in that respect, however I agree that the priorities are muddled.

I think your best bet, ignore it for now. If it is clear that her prioreties are messed up, ask to speak to the SM CONFIDENTIALLY about how you feel your PA friend is not pulling her weight, and you do not think it fair - however I would try not to word it as a complaint or make it sound like a winge... just "concerns"

523

Employment / Re: Serving on a Board of Directors and Stage Managing for the Same Company?

« on: Jan 08, 2007, 10:09 pm »

I know people who are in a similar position on the Board.

When chatting with one, I did pose the same question as you - Do conflict of interest issues arrise. Her response was that in any situations where she feels she may have a conflict of interest, she leaves the board room, and in any vote taken over the issue, she is marked down as an abstination. However, I was told that the issue rarely every came to a head, as the board were usually happy to take a back seat, unless something major occured which may affect the entire company.

524

Tools of the Trade / Re: Stage Manager workstation/Desk

« on: Jan 08, 2007, 03:55 am »

On another forum, I asked much the same question, when designing a prompt desk (which did end up getting built, and worked quite well) for a proscenium arch venue. There were more opinions than you could poke a stick at, so many in fact that in the end, I took a step back and said "What essential functions do I need to perform at the prompt desk" and worked from there.

I needed to be able to contact various people/departments and make announcements

I needed to know the time, as well as run times

I needed to be able to see

I needed to be able to read my prompt book, yet be able to continually glance up and see the stage.

I needed to be able to cue cue-lights.

I needed access to the phone network, with the option to turn off the sound (and use a flasher)

I needed control of the house lights/workers etc

I needed to be able to view camera feeds

I needed other SM's who may use computer scripts to be able to use it

I needed to be able to lock up actors valuables

I needed to be able to move the desk, in the event of an SM wishing to call from another location.

So what we did, when designing it, was to take that list and try and find solutions to each.

In the end, we ended up using an L shaped design on casters.

The side facing the stage was basically a sloped surface with a small lip along the bottom for the prompt book, an a littlelite. Beside the ledge (on the left) was a smallish table surface, with an LCD touch screen monitor and some space for stationary/drinks etc. It was intended that the SM would face that way, with almost all other features on the protrusion which ran along the wall when placed in prompt corner (left hand side). Some of the other items which were placed in the return were 4 channel cans with gooseneck mic, camera switcher/pan-tilt control, another computer monitor, as well as a few items the LX and Sound guy made up (telephone ringer etc). We computerised a lot of it, including cue lights - although the cue lights also had a manual control, and by using Voice Over IP, we could control how the phone operated.

525

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Merged Topics - "Left or Right" and "Your book Left or right"

« on: Jan 08, 2007, 01:10 am »

Coolies.