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Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Seeking show suggestions
« on: Jan 17, 2012, 05:33 pm »
Is Chicago too big?
News:
14 Jan 2021: Happy 21st birthday, SMNetwork! I replaced the old broken mobile theme. -K
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77
Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: SHOWS: Little Shop of Horrors - Puppeteers/Training
« on: Jan 12, 2012, 07:27 pm »Heath - Was that the AMTSJ Little Shop? If so, I thought Gregg did a great job!
Yes, Les, that's right. Glad you saw it! Yep, Gregg worked his butt off and really nailed the performance. Certainly got him into shape!
Edited for language-Rebbe
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Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: SHOWS: Little Shop of Horrors - Puppeteers/Training
« on: Jan 08, 2012, 11:47 pm »
We had one puppeteer, who had done the show before. He was an AEA actor and was on contract (if I remember correctly). He and the voice actor worked together closely, with sychronization being a big issue. I'm pretty sure we did use the puppeteer as ensemble in "Downtown" but I could be mistaken. Pretty much, he was called for every rehearsal all the time and if we weren't actually using any of the big Audrey IIs in the rehearsal hall, was working on his own or with the props people. Of course, we only had a two-week rehearsal process. Our voice actor wanted to be in the wings with a sight-line to the puppet, rather than watching a monitor, and we were able to accommodate that; sound built him a booth to protect his mic from backstage noise.
Since both the puppeteer and the voice were veterans, I'm sorry, but I don't have real answers to your training questions. Hope the others help.
Since both the puppeteer and the voice were veterans, I'm sorry, but I don't have real answers to your training questions. Hope the others help.
79
Tools of the Trade / Re: Stage Write - an iPad app for idiots, by idiots
« on: Jan 02, 2012, 12:30 am »
I can see this being most useful for directors/choreographers, at least those who bother to pre-block scenes. Instead of pushing dolls around on the set model, you've got a slideshow recorded of your thoughts at the time of planning, one that can quickly be referenced when you're in the rehearsal room trying to communicate that blocking to the cast. I see this as being of limited use for SMs, unless the SM had access to the Director's pre-blocked file and just do the updates that happen within the rehearsal.
80
College and Graduate Studies / Re: SM Certificate Programs?
« on: Dec 09, 2011, 02:05 pm »
Josh, having known several people who went through the ACT internship program, I can assure you that experience is the exact equivalent of the academic experience you're wanting. You assisted on a couple mainstage productions at a major LORT theatre with an IATSE crew, and you were the stage manager for one or two MFA productions in the school. You will not find more or better learning in a classroom, anywhere.
I understand you wanting to learn more about the other departments. Yes, you can get a grounding in that from excellent undergrad programs like SFSU, but it sounds like the application process isn't friendly to you. I recommend shopping yourself out to theatres for overhire work on the electrics or scenic crew, or run crew/board ops, to get the practical experience you're looking for. When you get SM gigs, identify which colleagues really know what they're talking about and learn from them. I still have no qualms in learning about automation systems, for example, from the stage carp who's running it.
Formal education is one valid path towards acquiring the necessary skills for a career; practical experience is another. Neither will fill all the gaps in your knowledge, and they are equally long and arduous.
I understand you wanting to learn more about the other departments. Yes, you can get a grounding in that from excellent undergrad programs like SFSU, but it sounds like the application process isn't friendly to you. I recommend shopping yourself out to theatres for overhire work on the electrics or scenic crew, or run crew/board ops, to get the practical experience you're looking for. When you get SM gigs, identify which colleagues really know what they're talking about and learn from them. I still have no qualms in learning about automation systems, for example, from the stage carp who's running it.
Formal education is one valid path towards acquiring the necessary skills for a career; practical experience is another. Neither will fill all the gaps in your knowledge, and they are equally long and arduous.
81
College and Graduate Studies / Re: Grad Schools for SM... tuition stipend?
« on: Nov 30, 2011, 09:31 am »At UC SD, you pay tuition your first year, and then the rest of the time it was paid for you. Again, that is when I was a student.
I could be wrong, Matthew, but my memory is that was only true for California residents who attended UCSD.
82
The Green Room / Re: University of Iowa 2011 Stage Management Survey
« on: Nov 30, 2011, 09:30 am »I'm gonna give this a bump in case people missed it. The survey closes tomorrow. So if you haven't already taken it, please do so. I completely missed this being posted (Stupid tech week......stupid....), so I'm glad I caught the AEA tweet this morning about it.
It's quick, it's painless, and it's really insightful to what's going on with people of our ilk in the industry.
Nick, what's the AEA twitter feed? I'd like to follow.
83
College and Graduate Studies / Re: MFA Stage Management - Musical Theatre
« on: Aug 28, 2011, 01:57 am »
In your shoes, I would contact Syracuse University and talk to their graduate coordinator; they have an extremely strong musical theatre program for undergraduates and there may be a way of "creating" an SM MFA that took advantage of that.
To my knowledge, Yale and UCSD do not have strong opportunities built into their curriculum for musicals.
To my knowledge, Yale and UCSD do not have strong opportunities built into their curriculum for musicals.
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Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Re: ESCRIPTS: Post your requests for electronic scripts here!
« on: Aug 26, 2011, 03:02 am »
Saint Joan? (long shot, I know...)
85
Employment / Re: Stuck in a Rut
« on: Aug 14, 2011, 03:41 pm »
nikkiec, it sounds like you need to refocus your job search on networking, rather than on resume submissions. Keep in touch with actors you've worked with - go see their shows, and chat with them afterwards. Drop lines to the directors you've worked with, ask what they have on the horizon. Let your producers know that you're looking to branch out, so when the get a call (and they do) asking if they know any good stage managers, they think of you.
Matt's right, of course, the Bard is fantastic preparation for just about any other kind of work. Present yourself and your goals with confidence and you will make progress.
Matt's right, of course, the Bard is fantastic preparation for just about any other kind of work. Present yourself and your goals with confidence and you will make progress.
86
Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: communicating who is called for a rehearsal
« on: Aug 13, 2011, 11:10 am »
I agree with loebtmc that you need to get the director to talk through the schedule with you in as much detail, in every call, as he used in creating it. It also would be great to have him work through the scene/character breakdown with you so that you understand who's singing, dancing, talking, or just onstage at any given point. This may not all be able to be accomplished in one sitting; maybe chunk it up to a week at a time?
And it's important to go over the next day's call, because that's when the director's mind is most focused on what the work is going to be on that day; however, in community theatre, my experience has been that actors expect and require that the entire rehearsal calendar is laid out for them so they know when they have nights off and how late they'll be called when they are used. Unlike professional actors, this cast doesn't want to give up dinner nights or company parties; they have more childcare issues, etc., and basically aren't expecting to clear their schedules for whenever there are rehearsal hours. So the night before meeting would be just to catch the kind of misunderstandings that you mention here, with Big Jule; who would have been much less frustrated had he gotten a call the night before saying "actually, we don't need you for that music rehearsal. I'll see you next time".
I think you've already done this, but remind the director that you are the person the actors ask questions of, so you need to understand his schedule as well as he does. Don't give up until you do! Patience and persistence are the way to go.
And it's important to go over the next day's call, because that's when the director's mind is most focused on what the work is going to be on that day; however, in community theatre, my experience has been that actors expect and require that the entire rehearsal calendar is laid out for them so they know when they have nights off and how late they'll be called when they are used. Unlike professional actors, this cast doesn't want to give up dinner nights or company parties; they have more childcare issues, etc., and basically aren't expecting to clear their schedules for whenever there are rehearsal hours. So the night before meeting would be just to catch the kind of misunderstandings that you mention here, with Big Jule; who would have been much less frustrated had he gotten a call the night before saying "actually, we don't need you for that music rehearsal. I'll see you next time".
I think you've already done this, but remind the director that you are the person the actors ask questions of, so you need to understand his schedule as well as he does. Don't give up until you do! Patience and persistence are the way to go.
87
Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: ASM Calling the Show
« on: Jul 23, 2011, 01:38 pm »
I would love to hear how this situation resolved?
88
The Hardline / Re: Fight Captain Selection
« on: Jul 19, 2011, 12:50 pm »
Les, if I were in your situation, as you've described it, I wouldn't hesitate to suggest that I should be the fight captain. With your outside eye, knowing the move sequence, and that there is only one performance; it seems like you are the best choice in the situation. However; if your pre-show is going to be too intense, or if you're going to be practicing cues in your book or something, or if you feel unsure about your ability to keep the actors safe, I would suggest one of the combatants be the FC.
Whatever you do, given the timeline of your show, I would highly recommend settling the issue as soon as possible so that whoever is responsible has as much time as they can get in preparing for the responsibility.
Just my two cents.
Post Merge: Jul 19, 2011, 01:19 pm
P.S., just to clarify a difference raised by Maribeth; on an AEA show, the union requires that the dance captain be an Equity contract (the theatre can always request a concession which may or may not be granted). There is no such requirement for fight captains.
Whatever you do, given the timeline of your show, I would highly recommend settling the issue as soon as possible so that whoever is responsible has as much time as they can get in preparing for the responsibility.
Just my two cents.
Post Merge: Jul 19, 2011, 01:19 pm
P.S., just to clarify a difference raised by Maribeth; on an AEA show, the union requires that the dance captain be an Equity contract (the theatre can always request a concession which may or may not be granted). There is no such requirement for fight captains.
89
Employment / Re: Honest Opinion: Can I Make This Happen?
« on: Jul 18, 2011, 07:28 pm »
If I were starting out, knowing what I know now, I would do much more research about the realities of the market in my area. Instead, I basically took a leap of faith; but I also stumbled into stage management while I was actually trying to be an actor. After two or three shows, I realized I was really good at this and have been very fortunate in my job opportunities.
If I had a time capsule that worked in reverse and could offer advice to my younger self, I would recommend getting to know many of the theatres as a stagehand, or carpenter, or electrician, or wardrobe; some smaller jobs that are easier to get and require less of you than stage management. If you make it a point to bounce around to all the different theatres in your area in these entry-level positions, not only will you gain extremely valuable knowledge of all the areas of theatre but you will also get to know the people who are in the scene at the moment. You'll be able to evaluate for yourself whether there are enough jobs in your market to support an additional stage manager, while doing jobs that are easier to handle while keeping a day job.
Then you'll be able to make the decision as to whether to choose a career in stage management based on experience and facts, rather than an internal evaluation of your desires and skill set.
I was lucky; but I don't recommend relying on luck to anyone else.
If I had a time capsule that worked in reverse and could offer advice to my younger self, I would recommend getting to know many of the theatres as a stagehand, or carpenter, or electrician, or wardrobe; some smaller jobs that are easier to get and require less of you than stage management. If you make it a point to bounce around to all the different theatres in your area in these entry-level positions, not only will you gain extremely valuable knowledge of all the areas of theatre but you will also get to know the people who are in the scene at the moment. You'll be able to evaluate for yourself whether there are enough jobs in your market to support an additional stage manager, while doing jobs that are easier to handle while keeping a day job.
Then you'll be able to make the decision as to whether to choose a career in stage management based on experience and facts, rather than an internal evaluation of your desires and skill set.
I was lucky; but I don't recommend relying on luck to anyone else.
90
Self-Promotion / Re: Next stop: dream job!
« on: Jul 07, 2011, 11:13 pm »Heath - just saw your photo in American Theatre magazine! Nice!
Wow! really? current issue? Did my name get listed? Was it rehearsal photos of Ghost Light?
Thanks!