Messages

901

Employment / Re: What else can you do to get the job?

« on: Nov 30, 2009, 07:32 am »

A few months later I heard of a job going that I thought I would like but wasn't sure I would be qualified for. I contacted two or three people who might know the employer and asked what they thought of my chances. One of them happened to be meeting with the employer later that day so I asked him to bring my name into the conversation (which he did). Turned out the employer was actively seeking applicants, not just relying on the advertisements, and she later called me and asked me to apply - the rest is history as it is my current job!  I did also make big efforts to do everything you are supposed to do including calling all my referees and telling them about the job and why I thought I would be good for it (turned out one of them had also already suggested me to the employer, oh yes it is a small industry / world) See I have improved!

I've been thinking a lot about this kind of thing lately- I recently talked to a friend/fellow SM about a company I learned they work with, and mentioned that I have always wanted to work there. He sent my name along and told me to send them a resume. I'm really hoping it will open the door and help me get future jobs there.

I have also applied several times to the same theatre, and only gotten an interview after changing my references to include someone who had worked there before. And I definitely get a lot of work by letting friends and coworkers know that I am looking.

I have no real advice to contribute right now, I just wanted to agree and keep this topic open for discussion- it's something I think about too.

902

Employment / Re: Where should I put it all???

« on: Nov 30, 2009, 12:35 am »

Hi Dee-
Sorry it's taken so long to reply. Why don't you post your resume? I think it might help us see what you're thinking about. You could list your educational shows as a separate category, or integrate them with your other shows, or put an asterisk next to them and explain below. How is your resume broken down?

903

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Performance Reports Excerpted or Made Public

« on: Nov 24, 2009, 04:31 pm »

I had an artistic director quote my performance report in the theatre's blog. It upset me- I don't write anything that I would be embarrassed about having been made public, but I think that performance reports should be in-house documents and not for public consumption, and I also think it would have been appropriate to ask me before including me in the blog. What was quoted wasn't gossip but it was being used to market the show in a way that misrepresented the audience response. (The show wasn't very successful, but he quoted my "audience response summary" which, for one performance, was very positive). Ultimately, I think I let it go, though I spoke with the production manager about it.

After it happened, my audience response notes became more matter of fact- he can do what he wants with the blog, there's no rule against putting report info on it. The only thing I decided I can do is to limit what "descriptive" information I put in it- this theatre views the nature of the reports in a much different way than I do, and doesn't seem to consider them internal documents.

904

Employment / Re: resume format

« on: Nov 09, 2009, 01:45 am »

I only put stage management credits on my SM resume- I think it helps to show where my focus lies. (I also do some scenic painting). If it were me, I would put the electrics credits on a separate resume, or put them into a section of my resume that included related experience.

My resume is sectioned into "Stage Manager", "Assistant Stage Manager", "Education", "Related Skills and Experience" and "References". Currently I have shows from when I was an apprentice under "Education". I feel that this is the best way to show what my experiences are and in what positions. However, it might be different for you. I don't have my (very limited) touring experience separated, but if I had more of it, maybe I would. My work in events I have under "Related Skills and Experience".

What on your resume would you like to showcase? I personally think that it might be more confusing to have more than a few headings- organize it based on what you're using it for.

As for your tour/opera experience, is it being produced by a company with a name that is separate from the university? Or is it being produced by a department at the university? If it has a separate company name I would just list it under then company's name and not mention the university. If there's no way to list it as such, you may want to describe the nature of this experience in your cover letter.

905

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

« on: Oct 15, 2009, 12:28 am »

count me in too.

-received invite-

906

Stage Management: Other / Re: Opera tips

« on: Oct 07, 2009, 09:40 am »

Concerning the orchestra

Find out whether actual curtain time is the same as published curtain time.  I have encountered several companies that contract the orchestra to start 5 minutes after the time printed on the tickets, as they are well aware that a production in a theatre seating anywhere up to 5000 people is not going to start on time.  So rather than paying the orchestra for that almost inevitable house hold, they just assume that the house will need to be held at least five minutes.  This can mean the difference between squeaking in right under three hours or going into overtime for those biggies like Carmen.

That is a really good note- thanks.

907

Stage Management: Other / Re: 15 vs 30 second timings

« on: Jul 27, 2009, 07:37 pm »

Judging from what has been said above, it seems these are used to mark blocking...are there any other uses?

Lighting cues: how long a count as it pertains to the timing in the score
Scene changes: how long can we have between start to finish of a particular set change
Costume changes, etc. etc.

Also, since opera singers are paged 5 min before each entrance, you can use your timings can be used to figure out when to page them by counting back 5 minutes.  And then 2 minutes before, you can put a warning for that entrance in your book.

Timings are helpful in making the WWW as well- entrances, prop handoffs, etc will happen at the same time during each performance. Using the timings to make your paperwork will make it more accurate and useful to the crew.

908

Employment / Re: where do you find work?

« on: Jun 26, 2009, 05:07 pm »

If you are an SMA member, they send out job postings via email as they are submitted. I have seen a lot of postings for the NY area, especially Showcases. The Equity website also has a job posting section- under "casting call", you can search for current SM notices. Opera America has a job posting section on their website but I don't often (if ever) see stage management positions listed.

I know of a couple of other websites for theatres and other arts positions, but they are in the DC area. I would imagine that there are similar websites for NY.

The other way that I hear about available positions is through an email list of stage managers in the DC area. I'm not sure who (if anyone) maintains it currently, but occasionally a job posting will make its way around the email list.

909

Employment / Re: Freelancing - How far out do you commit?

« on: Jun 26, 2009, 12:13 am »

For me, about 6 to 12 (about a season ahead). But, like others have mentioned, I sometimes regret not being available for other opportunities that come up at the last minute. I like to have a certain amount of the season booked, so that I can count on that amount of work (and the health weeks) and then I usually have some flexibility/availability to do last minute things with the rest of the time.

910

Tools of the Trade / Re: Rehearsal via Skype

« on: Jun 02, 2009, 11:19 am »

I used Skype recently in a rehearsal situation- it was a new play and the playwright was on the other side of the country. We used it fairly sparingly (I think only twice) to allow her to see the first read-through and to allow her to see a run after she had given us a new draft.

On the whole it worked well- I think it was just a computer-store quality webcam that was hooked up to a router. For the read-through, the only real difficulty we had was getting all of the actors speaking in the shot- I sat with the camera and moved it to capture who was speaking. (It was a very large cast). For the run with the new draft, we set it up in a stationary position and left it.

We had a few connection problems - we tried using a wireless connection at first, but once it was hooked up to the router it was fine.

911

Tools of the Trade / Re: paint

« on: May 11, 2009, 09:43 pm »

I have never tried this, but there might be some kind of kids' finger paint that would work. Maybe some kind of bathtub paint that is soap-based?  http://www.amazon.com/Alex-Bathtub-Finger-Painting-Kit/dp/B00000IRYM

912

Tools of the Trade / Re: Making prop red wine

« on: Apr 18, 2009, 10:43 am »

There's a stain removal product that come with the Dryel package that I've found works really well. You squeeze some of it on, then put a paper towel or something similar to soak up the excess. I've only used it for small spot treatments, but have been pretty successful with it.

I would look at the package to make sure it included it before purchasing- also, the bottle that I had was fairly small.

913

Employment / Re: Job/Gig searching in the new economy

« on: Apr 11, 2009, 12:33 pm »

I had some work "evaporate" too (I think that's a great word for it). I managed to get through the winter ok- my overhire work tided me over and I started doing some house managing (and was trained to work the box office, so if I needed to pick up some extra hours, I could).

My next production just went into rehearsals this week- it's been nice to get back to doing actual stage management. I think this winter was my longest break without doing a full production since I started SMing.

914

Stage Management: Other / Re: Things to look for in opera

« on: Apr 08, 2009, 12:33 pm »

There are some good threads on here about SMing opera:

http://smnetwork.org/forum/index.php/topic,1249.0.html

http://smnetwork.org/forum/index.php/topic,2158.0.html

http://smnetwork.org/forum/index.php/topic,550.0.html

But in terms of what you can observe, I would think that having the SM call from backstage would be a big thing. All of the entrances are cued by stage management- and the stage manager pages the singers to places 5 minutes before each entrance.

915

Employment / Re: How to Tour with Dance Companies?

« on: Mar 01, 2009, 01:56 pm »

I SM with one particular dance company, and in my opinion it's just like getting a job anywhere else. I started working with them based on a recommendation from a mutual colleague, and since then we have built a working relationship. They tour a number of shows throughout the year, and I am one of the SMs they use- there is one particular piece of theirs that I work on more often than any other. I started with a piece performing in my hometown, and since then have done several short out-of-town gigs with them. (Very excited- going to San Fransisco in April!).

I've been reading news articles about a strange phenomenon in the dance world right now where, due to the terrible economy, some companies are touring less and yet at the same time other companies are touring more. It depends on what their ticket sales are like in their hometown.

The company that I work with told me they are planning on touring less next year- not as many bookings.

My best advice would be to talk to people you know in the world of dance- see if anyone knows of a company who's hiring. I have recommended other SMs when I was not available for something- maybe you know someone with a connection that you were unaware of. Does someone from the dance department at your university work with a company?

And I would definitely second the idea of sending out resumes, and scouring the job listing sites that are out there.