Messages

1

College and Graduate Studies / Re: Best schools for SM.

« on: May 08, 2010, 10:43 pm »

I am a student at Emerson College in the BFA Stage Production/Management program. If you want to major in the BFA program, you cannot double major. You can take a minor, although I'm not sure if we offer a minor in music. What you could do is still pursue music through our Consortium, which includes an option to take classes at Berkeley College. If you would like more information, let me know.

2

College and Graduate Studies / Re: SUNY Purchase vs. Emerson: Outside Perspectives?

« on: May 08, 2010, 10:41 pm »

Being at purchase right now, I can tell you that yes not doing musicals does suck but at purchase there are tons of contacts constantly being made. Because we are so close to the city, the teachers here also work on Broadway. You can't get that at Emerson. We also have a huge Opera here.

Katek - I disagree with your opinion. I'm a student at Emerson College, and will let you know that Emerson also has professionals working as teachers and on the staff. For example, take Rafael Jaen, Scott Pinkney, or Ron deMarco. They all have active careers outside of Emerson College, and pride themselves on doing so. I have taken classes with Rafael Jaen and Ron deMarco, as well as Debra Acquavella. Debra Acquavella is the advisor to the BFA Stage Production/Management majors, and she is currently stage managing at CATF this coming summer. Deb has worked on Broadway, as well as Bonnie Baggesen (who is also part of the staff at Emerson). They constantly give student stage managers, who want to go the Broadway route, advice on how to achieve their goal. They also understand that Broadway is not the end-all and be-all of a stage manager's career, and are always open to offering advice on other stage management options as well.

As for the experience that you can earn in Boston, I interned at Boston Ballet my sophomore year and stage managed (or ASM'd) shows outside of Emerson College starting the summer after. As for the Opera experience, BFA Stage Production/Management majors have pursued internships with the Boston Lyric Opera and Opera Boston.

As long as you're willing to do the legwork, Emerson College is a great place for the experience, the teachers, and inevitably the contacts. However, I understand that it is extremely expensive, and I agree that Purchase is a good alternative in terms of money.

3

Tools of the Trade / Re: Production Intercom Headsets

« on: May 08, 2010, 10:17 pm »

Thanks for the thread link!

I have looked at Clear-Com CC-26 (it's the standard headset for SMs to buy at my college) but I was hoping for a cheaper alternative. Thanks for the advice!

4

Tools of the Trade / Production Intercom Headsets

« on: May 02, 2010, 02:59 pm »

I'm looking for a good headset and found a Production Intercom Headset SMH-310. Does anyone have any experience with these? I can't find any reviews on the product.

5

College and Graduate Studies / Re: SUNY Purchase vs. Emerson: Outside Perspectives?

« on: Apr 01, 2010, 10:04 pm »

Myrtle,

Glad to find you on the boards! I met you while you were staying at Emerson - I was the BFA Stage Production/Management major for the Overnight Program.

It saddens me to hear the negative experiences that have been posted. There are Emerson stage management alums who are working in established Equity theatres after graduating. If you feel comfortable, email Deb and ask what alums are up to currently - I'm sure she would love to hear from you.

Whatever you choose, best of luck! Stay in touch!

6

The Green Room / Re: Favorite brown bag lunch?

« on: Mar 17, 2010, 11:32 pm »

If I can't pack a sandwich, rice is really easy to make a lot of and it stays good for a very long time. If you grill some chicken beforehand you can just top the rice with that and some veggies.

Children's snacks are great - Chewy bars, animal crackers, pretzels. The best part is that they're usually healthy so you won't feel gross during rehearsal!

7

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Student SM Challenge #9: 30 minutes to save the world

« on: Mar 08, 2010, 09:53 pm »

Looking at the challenge from a different angle, could the ASM call the show while I run backstage or simply become another crew member that makes sure everything gets done safely? My reasoning is that the ASM has sat in all the rehearsals and knows the show well, and is accustomed to the original stage manager's style. Not only that, but the ASM has just been through tech and is intimately acquainted with the show. The ASM would also know the actors' habits and blocking, such as how long an actor's pause will be inbetween lines and when they're going to cross to the other side of the stage.

In this scenario, since the props have already been preset I would introduce myself to the cast and crew. I would then go over the run sheets that the ASM would hand-off and notate both what the ASM does during the show and particularly difficult areas. I would be asked to get a quick tour of the theatre (if I don't know it already, assuming I go to the same college), mentally taking down where the green room, dressing rooms, and booth are. Double-check the safety kits as well as know what is in them. I would then re-check the props to familiarize myself with the stage and the show. In addition, I would carefully go over the QC and request whether the Wardrobe Supervisor (if there is one) could be on deck that night. If not, then I would ask the crew members who do the wardrobe changes to give me a quick talk-through of what happens and how long exactly each QC has.

However, in the situation put down by PSMKay, I agree with Thespi and BLee methods, and would add introductions and updates to the cast, crew, house management, and teachers/supervisors (whoever is overseeing the show - the latter can be done through phone or email if necessary). I understand that in certain situations it is more difficult to replace the ASM with a new person than it is for them to call the show, especially if the ASM has an extremely busy run sheet.