Messages

571

Employment / Re: Post College Employment

« on: Nov 05, 2009, 02:04 pm »

The Surflight in NJ does EMC internships, though I did it and was very unsatisfied for a lot of reasons. If you REAAAALLLY want your points, it's a place to go, but I wouldn't recommend it.

Unfortunate you had a bad experience - I know a few people who have spent time there and both had positive reviews and are both in AEA SM or ASM positions now.

572

Tools of the Trade / Personal Branding

« on: Nov 01, 2009, 11:47 am »

There are a few topics floating around about personal websites.

I've stumbled across this article on CNN.com titled "Me 2.0: Branding Yourself Online".  The article is not specific to Stage Managers, however as the vast majority of Stage Managers are freelancers I found this article to be quite relevant.  If you're a freelancer, your name is your brand.

With this in mind, how have you "branded" yourself?  What tools (personal website, facebook, networking services, etc...) have you used?  What has worked, what hasn't? 

573

The Hardline / Re: NYMF Showcase - three 8 hour days or 2 10 of 12's??

« on: Oct 31, 2009, 09:46 pm »

end the showcase unless it is all equity members.

I don't believe this answers the OP's question.

574

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Fight the flu?

« on: Oct 24, 2009, 01:08 pm »

Microbac.

Ahh microbac, you've beaten me to the punch!

Seriously though, this is good stuff and will get the job done.  It's used widely on cruise ships when an outbreak of GI is imminent or has already occurred.  It's certainly an industrial product, so availability may be limited, but see if you can find it. 

575

Tools of the Trade / Re: Google Chrome

« on: Oct 23, 2009, 10:19 am »

So - turns out I was already running the latest version of chrome.  I've tried out a theme, I've got "brushed metal" going.  "Brushed metal" is also available for iGoogle homepage, so it's a pretty sleek combo.

576

Tools of the Trade / Re: Fog/Haze that wont set off a very sensitive smoke alarm

« on: Oct 20, 2009, 02:21 am »

Another thing is that we're able to put the whole system into test mode if necessary.  The caveat to putting the whole system into test is that, if that were needed during a show, we would need a "fire watch" - one or more fire-fighters or fire marshalls who are on hand backstage during the performance.

I don't know if it was test mode that we used, but when I was apart of a production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat we had a couple dozen live flames on stage and used a couple other small special effects of that sort. I remember every night we had a firefighter in the audience in a specific seat for the 'fire watch' purpose. I can't specifically remember if we had tied up the fire alarm system every night or if our particular area/venue simply required fire protection services with open flame on stage.

Open flame is a totally different ballgame than smoke/haze.  You'll almost always need to have a fire watch when there's an open flame involved. 

577

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Broadway SM arrested

« on: Oct 19, 2009, 04:47 am »

I don't think anyone should be assuming guilt.  Let the courts of law pass judgement prior to the court of public opinion.

578

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Choice of Stage Managment Colleges

« on: Oct 17, 2009, 11:48 am »

I graduated from the Penn State program in 2006.  In the graduating classes I have known personally (2003-2008ish) everyone is actively working and successful.  The proof is in the results, the program produces successful stage managers - and that is how you should judge a program in my opinion.  I'd at the very least take a look at the campus and talk to the program head, see how it might fit what you're looking for.

579

Tools of the Trade / Re: Google Wave - SMNetwork Sandbox

« on: Oct 15, 2009, 10:04 am »

Holy cow!  Now that's what I call a response.

Well - my goal in starting this thread was to see if there was enough interest out there to put a group together.  Judging by the great response, obviously there is.

Since I can't actually gaurantee that I can make this happen, I'm going to lock this thread for the time being as to not get everyones hopes up too high (or maybe it's just my own hopes... either way.). 

If/when I am able to make something happen, we'll figure a plan of attack and move forward.  I hope we can make this happen, I'm excited!

580

Tools of the Trade / Re: Fog/Haze that wont set off a very sensitive smoke alarm

« on: Oct 14, 2009, 11:21 pm »

-If it's not illegal to stop the smoke alarms for the show: If you have cheap smoke alarms not on a grid or you can't get them turned off each night- just cover it with a plastic bag. You may have already thought of this but just thought I'd mention it :p

I don't mean to step on toes, but you won't find a jurisdiction in North America that permits covering smoke detectors with anything.

Don't do this.

581

Tools of the Trade / Re: Fog/Haze that wont set off a very sensitive smoke alarm

« on: Oct 14, 2009, 07:11 pm »

"Smoke" detectors actually detect particles in the air.  If the particles per million exceed a certain number, the detector is triggered.

Along this line, if you're using a smoke/haze effect you can try to dial back the amount of smoke/haze so it doesn't exceed that threshold, point the machines in a different direction to steer them to a less sensitive area, or some combination of these two.  

Is the theatre part of a larger building?  If there is some kind of larger system that alerts building security or the fire department as opposed to simply setting off an alarm, you may be able to give them the detector numbers that are near the machines and say "between xx and zz minutes we will be using a smoke effect" so they understand it is not a fire situation.  In this case you'd have to call them every night to confirm.

Kiwi's option of temporarily disabling the detectors is also viable if arranged through the proper channels, I have seen this before as well.

You can also explore a dry ice smoke effect.  This will not be the same as a smoke/haze machine as the condensation is heavier than air and will sink to the floor as opposed to dissipating evenly, so it will be a different effect, however may still work depending on what you're looking for.

582

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Offshoot from Are you always completely honest?

« on: Oct 14, 2009, 05:27 pm »

But the real question is - are those who aren't always honest in their reports going to be honest here?   

583

Tools of the Trade / Re: Flashlights?

« on: Oct 14, 2009, 08:53 am »

I'd recommend the tried and true maglite (or newer MAG-LED).  They cost a few dollars more than a cheapo flashlight, but I've had the same mag for over 10 years and it still works like new.  Just keep a packet or two of spare lamps in and some fresh batteries handy and you'll never be without light.

584

Tools of the Trade / Re: Google Chrome

« on: Oct 13, 2009, 11:41 am »

Great, I will try the new version soon!

I have played a bit with google sites.  For my personal taste it is too rigid.  It is perfect for an online callboard though, especially if the user is either not tech savvy enough or doesn't have the time to create a more flexibile online page.  I used to use google pages for my alumni chapter's website, however they merged google pages into google sites, so I have gone off of google for that site now.

One thing you my explore if you've got a bit of web design experience (not much is required, my skills are rudimentary at best) are content mangement systems.  These would also be great for an online callboard for a show.  It requires a bit more setup initially, however it's entirely flexible to suit the needs of whatever you're working on.  You can also set certain content so people can only see it if they are logged in.  This would be perfect for protecting things like contact sheets, design drawings, etc.. that you don't want available to the public.  For my alumni chapter's site I use drupal, however there are a number of open source content management systems out there.

585

Tools of the Trade / Google Wave - SMNetwork Sandbox

« on: Oct 13, 2009, 11:35 am »

This is the thread for anyone interested in participating in a SMNetwork "Sandbox" with google wave.  Assuming I am able to invite others to try the software, I will invite everyone who responds to this thread as interested.  We can then play around in a sandbox type way, sharing info and learning about the software's assets and pitfalls with each other.  

I can't guarantee that I'll be able to make this happen, but it would certainly be fun!

Please respond to this thread if you'd be interested.